Maciste, the World's Greatest Hero

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04/25/2010 This predictable, but scenic standard-issue beefcake melodrama benefits enormously from top-flight production values, a good cast, and a believable storyline. Nothing supernatural occurs in “Goliath and the Sins of Babylon.” The mighty Babylonians defeated the small kingdom of Nefer in the Persian Gulf after four bloody years of combat. Consequently, the Neferians must pay Babylon a tribute of thirty virgins according to the peace treaty. The film opens with a girl (Eleonora Bianchi of "Ulysses against the Son of Hercules") bidding farewell to her family before the soldiers come for her as one of the thirty. She struggles to escape from the Babylonian troops. Goliath intervenes on her behalf and then winds up fighting with them himself. A resourceful little person warns Xandros and his friend about Goliath and they ride to his rescue. They literally pick him up by his brawny biceps and carry him away. Goliath threatens to unhorse them unless they reveal their identity. The soldiers pursue them, but the little fellow shuts the city gates before the Babylonian soldiers can get to it. The leader of an underground movement against the monarchy, Evandro (Livio Lorenzon of “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly”), persuades Goliath (Mark Forest of “Son of Samson”) to join them so that they are 42 in number. The mischievous dwarf Ninneto (Arnaldo Fabrizio of "Samson and the Mighty Challenge") chimes in “42 and a half” and joins them, too. Sure, Ninneto serves as comic relief and he is pretty funny knocking out unsuspecting warriors three-times his size. The pottery scene where he eludes the soldiers is better than you’d imagine. "Colossus of the Arena" director Michele Lupo stages an okay sea battle, a careening chariot race, and several clashing swordfights. Mind you, the chariot race is nothing compared to “Ben-Hur,” but the setting is spectacular. Lupo is particularly adept at creating interesting transitions and the one involving the gong being struck is really good. The only thing lacking is the usual trials that the strongman hero endures to prove his strength. Displays of brawn do not appear as often as they do in other better peplum movies. One of the big scenes shows Goliath chained to a slab in the dudgeon. Above him are several holes and each hole conceals a wicked looking spear. The spears are released by means of cutting the rope holding them and then this pointed weapons travel downward toward its victim. It is a cop-out that none of the spears actually strike our hero. The spears stop several inches from his important body parts while he patiently waits and then later rips out the irons restraining him. Giuliano Gemma co-stars as Xandros. Mark Forest makes a good strongman hero and the villains are slimy enough to hate. Overall, Lupo does a good job with “Goliath and the Sins of Babylon” and this widescreen presentation on Retromedia looks fantastic. This is one of the most polished looking Peplums ever with pristine looking sets. This marked lenser Mario Sbrenna’s debut as cinematographer and he makes everything appear epic. No, we never get to witness any of the sins of Babylon, short of people being fed to lions. See more Read all reviews

Maciste, the World's Greatest Hero

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