HERCULES
AGAINST THE MOON MEN (1965)Director: Giacomo Gentilomo
Retromedia
HERCULES
AGAINST THE MOON MEN (1965)If there was ever a film made for the drive-in, matinee, creature feature or DVD, its HERCULES AGAINST THE MOON MEN. Released here in 1965, after the sword and sandal cycle had pretty much given up the ghost. I'm willing to bet this was the very last 60s Hercules film to have theatrical release in this country. Its an amazing little film with no pretensions, and exists only to entertain.
Hercules (Alan Steele) is beckoned
by the oppressed people of Samar to lead them against the "monsters in
the mountain of death." It seems eons ago, a metorite crashed into the
mountain, depositing the moonpeople who once thrived, but are now down to two
and some big rock men/monsters. Samar is kept in check by forced sacrifices
of its young every full moon cycle. Worse yet, the Queen of Samar (Jany Clair)
is in league with the vile moon people!
Hercules arrives and is immediately met with bandits sent by the queen. Herc easily dispatches the "ruffians" and meets up with his old friend Claudius. Claudius and his daughter Agar have been secretly trying to stage a revolt against the queen and the moonmen, but to no avail. Thinking only they know Herc is there, Claudius takes Herc to the rest of the rebels, but Agar notices that they have been spied upon. She rushes to stop her father and Hercules but is to late. Claudius is killed and Herc is dropped into a well that is quickly filled with water!
Herc escapes the watery trap,
only to be confronted with the tusked monkey monster in the next chamber! Herc
beats the monkeyshines out of it, and meets up with Agar, who takes him to the
rebels. Meanwhile, the
queen's half sister is eager to marry the nephew of the queen. But Queen Samara
wants to sacrifice her to the moonmen, who with her blood, can revive their
old queen and start a new reign of power over the earth. The aliens hustle Samara
with the old "we will give you all 
the
power you want" trick for her trouble. To make matters worse, the groom-to-be
is the leader of the rebels! As
you can see, everything is staged for the showdown between Hercules and the
interlopers from space for a battle royale!
Alan Steele played second fiddle to American born Hercs until he started starring in his own features (as Maciste mostly). I have always liked how Steele essays the part, he is almost always smiling, like he can't believe he is there. He plays it for as real as he can, and it shows. Sexy Jany Clair can go from bitchy to sweet in the blink of an eye! She makes a great evil queen who still had time for sin on her mind. Look for her in HERCULES AGAINST THE MOLOCH where she plays the victim/heroine for contrast.
The one "moonman" and
the rock creatures are cool, and legendary in fantasy cinema circles. It's a
common complaint that they are not given enough to do. You certainly wish for
more fight sequences than are ultimately played out.
And yes, the "sandstorm" scene is padding at its worst, as is the mismatched stock footage volcano and storms, but there is more to like about this film than to be remembered for these transgressions.
Retromedia has once again proven to be the DVD company of the fan. While their print is full-frame, it is the most complete print I have ever seen (anyone who has relied on their Goodtimes VHS print knows what I mean) The colors are surprisingly deep for the slightly grainy print, with only brief emulsion scratches here and there on the film itself. The audio is not without its crackle in places, but it does not interfere with the overall experience. Disc extras includes the trailer, a still gallery and six chapter scene selection. Also included is a reproduction of the "Men-How to be a Hercules" handout originally distributed with the movie! An ingenious way to promote the film, the booklet features different stretching exercises for both men and women, wrapped between advertisements for the film!
I highly recommend this release of HERCULES AGAINST THE MOON MEN. (Mark Suggs)