Rijndri Load of rubbish!!

ScoobyMint Disappointment for a huge fan!

TaryBiggBall It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

HottWwjdIam There is just so much movie here. For some it may be too much. But in the same secretly sarcastic way most telemarketers say the phrase, the title of this one is particularly apt.

Falconeer The way in which "Hercules the Avenger" was made is fascinating and incredible from a cinematic point of view. Using scenes from two earlier "Hercules" films, and then creating a fantastic new story and an entirely new film; one which is superior to the films it borrowed from. This is a dark entry in the series, free of any suggestion of comic relief. Greek mythology comes alive as Gia, the Sun Goddess, desires revenge on Hercules for slaying the Hydra. Imprisoning Hercules in a delirious, neon -colored Hades, she sends her own evil son, Anteo, to Earth, to annihilate the family of Hercules, as well as their Kingdom. Anteo is an incredible villain, cruel and sociopathic and full of hatred for all mankind. As Hercules tries to rescue his son from the evil spell of Gia, Anteo takes the throne of Hercules, murdering men, women and children without a thought. Why people have a problem with the way this movie was conceived, is beyond me. All that matters is the end result. "Hercules the Avenger" takes the finest elements from Mario Bava's "Haunted World," and excises everything that dragged that lesser film down, such as the silly characters, the slapstick comedy, and continuity errors. The end result is a colossal film, filled with vast sets, jaw-dropping special effects, and a hypnotic struggle between Good and Evil. This film is supposedly an allegory to the rise of Fascism in Italy. Some of the set pieces are incredible, like the destruction of the city, as well as an impressive lion hunt that culminates in the on-screen slaying of at least one real lion. This practice of killing animals on screen is thankfully, a thing of the past. But to see actual "real" lions in place of the ridiculous CGI that we are all used to, is quite a surreal experience. And the volcano eruption that wipes out the city makes the similar destruction in the recent "Pompeii" look like a joke. Honestly, this film is INSANE. I would love to watch this on a huge screen with surround sound. This is one film that deserves a Bluray restoration, complete with the original Italian audio. To date it is my favorite Hercules movie. Highest recommendation.

Brian Lindsey More or less "Reg Park's Greatest Herc Hits", since huge chunks of this film are lifted lock, stock and barrel from HERCULES IN THE HAUNTED WORLD and HERCULES AND THE CAPTIVE WOMEN (both 1961). A wraparound story is concocted about Hercules questing for his missing son Xanthus, who is imprisoned in the supernatural domain of Gia the earth goddess. Meanwhile, Gia's evil son Antaeus — himself a demigod — impersonates Hercules and takes over the city-state of Syracuse with the help of its ambitious queen. Ruling as a mad, barbarous tyrant, Antaeus (Giovanni Cianfriglia) starts exiling and slaughtering people at whim, generally soiling the name of Hercules something fierce. Naturally, the real Herc takes umbrage at this...If you've already seen HAUNTED WORLD and/or CAPTIVE WOMEN then there's really no point in watching this one. All of AVENGER's monster action and FX scenes are borrowed from those films, only with different dialog dubbed in. Its main cheesy pleasure is Gianfriglia's Antaeus. A schoolyard bully in a he-man's body, he's such a cruel, arrogant jerk that you keep watching for the moment when Herc finally kicks his butt. He's at least good for a few laughs, as when barking commands such as, "Drive them into the Valley of Agony... and block the way out!"

Woodyanders Hercules' son gets severely wounded during a lion hunt that goes awry. Hercules (a solid and engaging performance by the beefy Reg Park) has to venture into an eerie and dangerous alternate dimension ruled by the evil and vengeful Gia the Earth Goddess (a deliciously wicked portrayal by Gia Sandri) and battle various monsters in order to save his son's soul. Meanwhile, Gia's equally nasty son Antaius (a perfectly hateful turn by Giovanni Cianfriglia) poses as Hercules and takes over an entire city as a cruel and ruthless tyrant. Director Maurizo Lucidi relates the engrossing story at a steady pace and maintains a serious tone throughout. This film begins a little slow, but really starts cooking once Hercules enters the misty and perilous subterranean spirit world: Rousing highlights include Hercules grappling with a humanoid lizard beast, Hercules climbing a giant gnarled tree, and Hercules being attacked by a bunch of creepy rotting zombies. Better still, the bizarre spirit world just reeks of spooky atmosphere (gotta love that persistent thick swirling fog!). The strenuous rough'n'tumble mano-a-mano major physical confrontation between Hercules and Antaius likewise totally rocks. Of course, we also get a big mondo destructo climactic volcanic eruption as well. Allvaro Mancori's crisp widescreen cinematography gives the movie an impressively expansive sense of scope. Ugo Filippini's robust, rousing score has a nifty majestic sweep to it. Okay, so this flick is an obvious cheapo cute'n'paste job that uses copious footage from both "Hercules in the Haunted World" and "Hercules and the Captive Women," but it's still an extremely lively and entertaining romp all the same.

Dukey Flyswatter MILD SPOILERS.The other reviewer remarked that this film copies Hercules and the Huanted World. I can see where he got that impression because ten minutes of this movie was lifted from Hercules And The Haunted World. I believe that the fight with the giant rubber Iguanna came from Hercules and the Captive Women and the Volcano scene looks very familiar as well.That aside this entry in the beefcake sweepstakes is fairly is easy to take largely to do to Reg parks charisma and the smarminess of the chief villain who impersonates our hero and gives him a bad name.The Oracle is a hottie but the rest of the female cast is not as spicy or saucy as the toga babes of past efforts.Not bad if you're bored.