Get it while it's hot!
By JS Davidson
52 pages, published 3/7/2024
Magazine on the PEPLUM genre! For those who love movies with stories set in the past, such as Biblical, Epic or the Greco-Roman kind, this magazine covers it all.
Monday, April 22, 2024
BY THE GODS! Spring 2024 issue
BY THE GODS! Spring 2024 issue can now be purchased.
Get it while it's hot!
Get it while it's hot!
PEPLUM Movie Poster
British poster of TRIUMPH OF THE TEN GLADIATORS (1964)
Maybe not the greatest art but at least we know the movie was released in cinemas in Britain, obviously with an English dub.
Friday, April 19, 2024
Image of the week!
A pensive Goliath (Gordon Scott) plans a counter-attack after his village was burned down in GOLIATH AND THE VAMPIRES (1961)
Lobby Cards Set: HERCULES IN THE HAUNTED WORLD (1961)
Italian lobby cards set of HERCULES IN THE HAUNTED WORLD starring Reg Park, Leonora Ruffo and Christopher Lee. Beautiful and colourful set. I believe there are more cards since Italian sets were big but this collection is pretty good.
Thursday, April 18, 2024
Musings!
Deborah Kerr and Robert Taylor in QUO VADIS (1951)
The odd thing about this spectacular epic is the two leads 'romantic' relationship. It doesn't work. Oddly enough, the actors' individual performances are good but the romantic aspects fall flat. It' not really believable. It's really the only big liability of this often maligned film. Maybe the actors didn't get along. I don't know but this problem is often seen in other PEPLUM movies with boring romantic plot lines of the lead characters.
Behind-the-Scenes
Wednesday, April 17, 2024
Clip of the week: THE LION OF THEBES (1964)
Arian (Mark Forest) is up for some wrestling! With Yvonne Furneaux + cast. Mark's stuntman is Giovanni Cianfriglia.
Tuesday, April 16, 2024
SPFX DEPT.
Scenes from KING OF KINGS (1961)
Two scenes with excellent matte paintings. The one on top is one of the best mattes I've ever seen in a movie. It's almost seamless. The one below is also very good, in a very subtle way. A small group of matte painters are responsible for the few but excellent work in this epic from Hollywood.
Vintage Article
Small article on Chelo Alonso and her emerging career. It lists a couple of PEPLUM films including ATTACK OF THE MOORS (1959).
Monday, April 15, 2024
Musings!
Maciste (Kirk Morris) fights a troll-like creature who creates the thunders in MACISTE IN THE VALLEY OF THE THUNDERING ECHOES (1964)
Sorry about the murky screenshot. There aren't any clear copies out there. I like this Kirk Morris movie. It's definitely one of my favourite of his. The entire movie is fun but this ending, which many might find goofy, really makes it memorable. I wish the fights were longe and a bit more violent but they're still fun to watch. Those troll-like creatures are original. A very colourful PEPLUM movie.
PEPLUM Movie Poster
German poster of HERCULES (1958)
The German title translates as THE INCREDIBLE ADVENTURES OF HERCULES. A nice photo montage.
Friday, April 12, 2024
BY THE GODS! Spring 2024 issue
BY THE GODS! Spring 2024 issue can now be purchased.
Get it while it's hot!
Get it while it's hot!
By JS Davidson
52 pages, published 3/7/2024
Magazine on the PEPLUM genre! For those who love movies with stories set in the past, such as Biblical, Epic or the Greco-Roman kind, this magazine covers it all.
Image of the week!
Kira (Rosalba Neri) is about to heal a wound on Seymuth (Mimmo Palmara) with a scorching hot iron in KINDAR THE INVULNERABLE (1965)
Thursday, April 11, 2024
Musings!
Kirk Morris, as Hercules, and Andrea Scotti in CONQUEROR OF ATLANTIS (1965)
This scene happens at the beginning of the movie. Hercules wears his usual clothes (or lack thereof). Once the adventure starts, Hercules ditches the short toga and wears anachronistic pants. I like this movie but this is the only big error in it. Hercules should have remained as he was at the beginning. It reminds us he's Hercules, you know, who's not your average man. It was sign that the PEPLUM genre was slowly dying off.
Behind-the-Scenes
Richard Egan and Rudolph Maté have a chat on the set of THE 300 SPARTANS (1962)
I just found a website that colourizes old B&W photos. So I tested it with this photo. It's nice but Richard's uniform is red not the blueish one the site used. I still like it.
Wednesday, April 10, 2024
Tuesday, April 9, 2024
BY THE GODS! excerpt
Gordon Scott and Jacques Sernas in GOLIATH AND THE VAMPIRES (1961)
I will posts excerpts of BY THE GODS! magazine from time to time, as a preview of sorts. Here, I wrote about this movie and even this part of the movie to explain how a movie can have more than one genre. Sernas' character looks like he's straight out of a FLASH GORDON comic book. This movie is a mash-up of different elements to create a fun and action packed movie.
You can buy BY THE GODS! Spring 2024 issue at this link.
Same posts, different websites
I posted this article back on April 17, 2919.
So many steal stuff from my blog. Not cool.
Who wore it best?
Usually it's a showdown between two celebs but this time it's four (there's actually another one but they altered the necklace too much to be included):
1 - Sophia Loren in ATTILA (1954)
2 - Irène Tunc - APHRODITE - GODDESS OF LOVE (1958)
3 - Anouk Aimée in SODOM & GOMORRAH (1962)
4 - Linda Cristal in THE PHARAOHS' WOMAN (1960)
So who wore that necklace the best?
Anyway, someone took this post and uploaded to their website and instagram. I came upon this totally by accident.
They gave credit to this website at their website but they didn't link it directly to the post, which makes the credit pointless. I won't link this to their website.
While they didn't give any credit on their Instagram post which got over 11,000 likes (and most likely more views). Here's a screenshot of their instagram post.
So many steal stuff from my blog. Not cool.
Monday, April 8, 2024
Musings!
Ricardo Montalban and Carmen Sevilla in DESERT WARRIOR (1957)
This movie is always under the radar. I don't know why since the production, the cast, the widescreen cinematography, the stunning locations, the fast pace, all make for one entertaining film. It's one of the first big European adventures shot in widescreen. Everything about is top of the line and yet no one knows about it. I'm probably the only one who repeatedly wrote about it. I even made the first Fan Dub of it. Oh we'll...I need this in HD. It will be stunning!
Friday, April 5, 2024
Image of the week!
Hercules (Steve Reeves) starts hearing voices after drinking from the Waters of Forgetfulness in HERCULES UNCHAINED (1959)
VHS Covers: TWO NIGHTS WITH CLEOPATRA (1954)
VHS covers of TWO NIGHTS WITH CLEOPATRA (1954)) starring Sophia Loren and others. Good selection but with average covers. No Cinematic Confusion. The US yellow one is funny.
Another US VHS cover. The front cover is funny but at least the photos on the back are from the movie.
US VHS cover with racy image of Sophia taken for movie.
Italian VHS package.
German VHS cover. Title is different than theatrical release.
VHS cover from FRANCE.
Thursday, April 4, 2024
Musings!
Spartacus (Massimo Girotti) saves Amytis (Ludmilla Tchérina) in SPARTACUS - SINS OF ROME (1953)
There are Fan Dubs (fan adding audio to film) and there are Fan Subs (fan adding subtitles). And now there are Fan Colour: someone adding colour to a Black & White movie. This rxcellent movie is in Black & White and someone decided to colourize it. The screenshot above is taken from it. You can find it on Youtube. The image is murky and mostly messed up but it's nice to see some scenes in colour. I personally dislike colourization because most of them are terrible but when it's done right, like the one for THE LAST DAYS OF POMPEII (1935), it's nice to see. I posted screenshots of it here on the blog.
Behind-the-Scenes
Gianna Maria Canale and Georges Marchal have a chat on the set of THEODORA - SLAVE EMPRESS (1954). This is the massive chariot race set. I posted this photo at a *new* X account dedicated to actresses of the PEPLUM genre. Click here to view and please follow the account.