Known in Italy as Maciste Nella Valle Dei Re, but in the USA as Son of Samson and Maciste in the Valley of the Kings, this is one of many sword and sandal films that dominated Italian cinema during the sixties. There were many films with Hercules, Samson, Maciste, Goliath among others that had beefcake…
Pulsating Peplums, Manic Mondos and Sexy Subversions: A 1960s Italian Genre Marathon
As a follow-up to my previous marathon of Italian genre films of the ’70s, I thought I’d step back in time and do the same for the swinging ’60s. While the blood and gore might not be as generous in this decade, the Italians still hopped from genre to genre with shameless aplomb, latching onto…
Messalina / Messalina Venere Imperatrice Blu-ray review
British actress Belinda Lee, who passed away much too young, plays the lead role as Messlina in director Vittorio Cottafavi’s 1960 Italian sword and sandal film Messalina (aka Messalina Venere Imperatrice) which was one of her final films. In this story, Valeria Messalina is arranged to be married to an older man Claudius, who just…