Hercules the Avenger (1965) – Review

Welcome back to the land of loincloths, muscle oil, and poorly synced dubbing. Today, I bring you Hercules the Avenger, a sword-and-sandal B-movie in all its bravado and bare-chested, bronze-age glory. This is for those who have ever wanted to see Hercules wrestle an evil doppelganger, get lost in the underworld, and suffer some serious angst.

Reg Park reprises his role as the brawniest demigod in Italy, Hercules. While he certainly looks like he could lift Mount Olympus, he spends much of the film looking confused, which, to be fair, is kind of his default setting In fact, this movie is a clever (read: cost-saving) Frankenstein’s monster of recycled footage from earlier Park adventures, most notably Hercules in the Haunted World and Hercules and the Captive Women.

“I’m tired, just play some of my greatest hits.”

This entry starts with Queen Leda of Syracuse (Gia Sandri) having a royal headache. Her husband just died—tragic—and before the funeral figs have even been cleared, every prince in a 300-mile radius is suddenly pounding on her palace gates with marriage proposals. Not out of love, mind you, this isn’t a Disney movie, it’s all about land grabs and power plays. Basically, they’re suitors in the streets, warlords in the sheets. It’s giving Penelope-lite, with a strong “Odysseus is definitely not coming back” energy. But hey, if you’re going to swipe plot points for your Hercules flick, might as well borrow from the original Mediterranean soap opera…The Odyssey.

“Are any of you asshats good at stringing a bow?”

Meanwhile, at the home of Hercules (Reg Park), we find our muscle-bound hero kicking back with his wife, Deianira (Adriana Ambesi), getting a nice massage while bemoaning his immortality. Clearly, no one understands how tough it is to be a demigod. Sadly, existential crises have to be put on hold when Hercules’ teenage son Xantos (Luigi Barbini) declares wants to become a man, which in ancient Greece means you have to go out and kill a lion. This is when disaster strikes. On his first lion-hunting jaunt, Xantos is grievously injured, and his soul is snatched into Hades by a spiteful Earth goddess, Gaea. Naturally, Hercules must descend into the underworld to save him. It’s a dad thing to do.

“You must venture into the land of Mario Bava.”

In the meantime, tired of the endless royal Tinder swipe-lefts and following some cryptic, incense-fuelled advice from the local Oracle (who probably moonlights as a therapist), Queen Leda decides to track down Hercules. Because when diplomacy fails, send in the biceps. However, with the big guy (a.k.a. Hercules) off on an underworld vacation, Queen Leda has to settle for Plan B: Anteus (Giovanni Cianfriglia), the second strongest man in the world, which is kind of like bragging about having the second-best gladiator on Yelp. Anteus is also the son of Gaea, the local troublemaker goddess who’s been gleefully throwing wrenches into Hercules’ life like it’s her divine hobby. Normally, this is Hera’s job, but I guess she was busy appearing in a better Hercules movie.

Mythology Note: Gaea was considered the ancestral mother of all life. She is the wife of Uranus as well as the mother of the Titans, the Cyclopes, and the Giants. More than that, she had no beef with Hercules and often sided with his father, Zeus, in his power struggles.

Queen Leda does her best to roll with the punches—royalty’s tough like that—and teams up with Anteus, putting out the royal press release that he’s totally Hercules, you guys, trust us. It’s a bold move, especially since anyone with half a brain and two working eyes can tell this guy is about as Herculean as a soggy pita. Unfortunately for her, Anteus proves he’s less “heroic demigod” and more “raging jerk with delusions of grandeur.” To keep his fake identity under wraps, he knocked off the Queen’s handmaidens like he was starring in a very bloody HR violation. Then he shifts gears into full tyrant mode, slapping ridiculous taxes on the kingdom like he’s trying to finance a solid gold protein shaker.

“Behave, or I’ll tell my mother on you.”

Naturally, this kind of nonsense can’t go unchecked. And just when things are looking bleak, the real Hercules returns from his underworld sabbatical, sees what’s been going on, and says, in so many words, “Oh nope, not today.” It’s time for the original, 100% certified, god-approved Hercules to lay the smackdown on this budget knockoff. Get ready for a brawl: Herc vs. Herc-ish! The ending feels like it was made up on the spot. Hercules tosses around some boulders – one of his favourite pastimes – which causes a volcanic eruption and a panicked populace. He then tracks down the villainous imposter, stomps the bastard, who ran underground to get protection from his mommy, but after a brief wrestling match, the mighty Hercules prevails.

So ends the tale of a bargain basement Hercules.

Stray Observations:

• Queen Leda is given the standard prophecy you’d get from an Oracle, which means it will be immediately misinterpreted and lead to much misfortune.
• Hercules goes full existential; he spends a good chunk of the movie brooding about death, the soul, and fate. Yes, that Hercules, the guy who usually wrestles lions, is now pondering the afterlife like he’s in a Bergman film.
• It’s never explained why Xantos goes on his first lion hunt with some family friend and not his dad, you know, the demigod.
• The villains have that “Community Theatre of Evil” energy. With over-the-top eyebrow-raising, sinister chuckles, and dramatic hand gestures, the bad guys seem to be auditioning for a pantomime production of Oedipus: The Musical.
• Time has no meaning. Scenes transition with little logic. Characters teleport. Plot threads vanish. Honestly, it feels more like a dream you had after eating too much feta than a coherent story.

A dream where you are watching a better movie.

What saves Hercules the Avenger from total cinematic oblivion is the pure charm of its genre. Painted backdrops, foam boulders, rubber monsters, and operatic shouting fill the screen with glorious cheese. Park’s physique is genuinely impressive, and when the fighting finally kicks off (with that unmistakable Italian fight choreography, part ballet, part bar brawl), there’s a kind of dopey joy to it all. He grunts, glowers, and throws foam boulders like a champ. He’s not exactly delivering Shakespeare, but his physical presence is undeniably Herculean. Director Maurizio Lucidi keeps things moving briskly enough, and the melodramatic music makes sure you feel every moment, even if you’re not entirely sure what’s going on. Sadly, we spend a little too much time with discount Hercules, and all the borrowed footage in the world can’t quite save this film.

Mythology Note: Antaeus was a giant, the son of Poseidon and Gaia. He was known for his incredible strength, particularly in wrestling, which was renewed each time he touched the earth. He was defeated by Hercules, but he never had a personal grudge against him.

In conclusion, Maurizio Lucidi’s Hercules the Avenger is half flashback, half fever dream, but 100% vintage Italian fantasy absurdity.   It’s not a good movie by traditional standards, and is made up of approximately 60–70% recycled footage, but if you’re in the mood for campy heroics and brawny nonsense, it’s a dumb delight. Bring wine, friends, and your best “By the gods!” impression.