Maciste contre les Mongols

This particular peplum finds Hercules/Maciste going up against the sons of Genghis Khan and I have to say that these three are about as lousy a set of progeny I've seen on the screen since My Darling Clementine and those inbred Clantons.

Genghis Khan has died, but decreed that the Mongol empire would now live in peace with its Christian neighbors. But the three sons have different ideas, they want to go back to the old Mongol plundering ways. They kill the shaman giving Genghis Khan his last rites and then proclaim Christian treachery. Then they ride in and sack the Kingdom of Judela, kill the king and start looking for the boy prince, they take prisoner after awhile his sister.

Enter Mark Forest and Hercules/Maciste who performs the usual who performs his usual feats of strength like killing a lion and lifting a cement pillar. Of course the three brothers all want to be top dog and that's an apt description of them. And the Christians have one traitor in their midst.

It's all in a day's work for our hero.

Sandals film with Mark Forest as Maciste

After the death of Genghis Khan (Giuseppe Addobbati), there are fierce battles over the inheritance between his violent sons (strong cast including: Ken Clark, Howard Ross and the Italian male model Nadir Moretti). The Poles attacked by the Mongols in particular had to suffer from this. When the beautiful Bianca (Jose Greci) is kidnapped, the Italian film legend Maciste (the bodybuilder Mark Forest, born in 1933, who later performed very successfully as an opera singer) intervenes. And if the muscleman has to tear up trees to do it!

You can tell that the plot of the film shouldn't be taken too seriously. National hero Maciste was often used by film producers all over the world and in all cultural circles. The main thing was to prevent injustice and save a beautiful girl. So in this film it's the Mongols' turn. The mask doesn't look very convincing, but that's not the point. The action scenes are quite entertaining. It's also interesting to see the soon-to-be James Bond imitator Ken Clark (From the Orient with Fury) in a villainous role. It was directed by Domenico Paolella, who hasn't made a big name for himself in this genre.

Nevertheless: definitely recommended for peplum fans!

As I've said in other reviews, the sword and sandal genre isn't exactly one that I enjoy. But I think even those who do enjoy its offerings will find this particular one tough to sit through. One big reason for that is that the hero (Maciste or Hercules, depending on what version you watch) is particularly weak. Not when it comes to physical strength (though his strength does fluctuate through the movie), but when it comes to his character. We learn nothing about him, like how he got to this part of the world or what he feels or thinks about anything. In fact, he's off screen for big chunks of the running time. This might have been looked over had the movie done well in other areas, but it doesn't. While the awful dubbing does provoke a few chuckles here and there, it doesn't make up for the fact the movie is extremely dull. There's far more talk than action, and when there is action, it's staged and directed in a very feeble fashion. It didn't take long into watching the movie for me to wish that it would end much quicker than it actually did, and I suspect that you'll feel the same way as well.

Though Genghis Khan eventually sought peace with the West, his death in 1227 AD puts into power his three war-like sons: Sayan, Susdal, and Kin Khan. These sons quickly overrun the city of Tuleda and take prisoner Princess Bianca, though young Prince Alessio escapes. Hercules comes to the rescue of Bianca, winning her freedom in a tournament in exchange for becoming a slave himself.

This is actually a Machiste peplum not a Hercules one - despite the title - and it's an ok one with Mark Forest doing what he does best, giving the bad guys a hard time such as using a tree as a weapon as he takes on Sayan's Mongol cavalry and when he takes on a Lion with a iron bar. There's some good fight sequences as well as some by the numbers action with extras just running around amidst the battle. It keeps one watching, though it can get tedious and the plot doesn't flow neatly. Still it's enjoyable and plus there Maria Grazia Spina to ogle at - she plays a manipulative girlfriend of Genghis Khan's son, but sees the error of the ways when he turns on her.

I don't think I know how many of these exist. I do know I've wached many as a kid and thought or maybe believed I could be this guy. The all powerful male, fighting for the good or at least against evil. Not sure if I watched this specific one as a kid. Probably not, but I did watch it recently, as it is part of a 16 movie collection I purchased many years ago.

So another Sword and Sandal movie. It's quite decent, with the obvious fights but also some humor in spaces. It is what it is