Hercules in the Haunted World (Ercole al centro della Terra)
Directed by Mario Bava and Franco Prosperi
Written by Mario Bava, Franco Prosperi, Sandro Continenza, and Duccio Tessari
1961/Italy
SpA Cinematografica
First viewing/Netflix rental
[box] King Lico: Oh god of evil, the great dragon has swallowed the moon. And now my destiny shall be fulfilled. The blood of Deianira shall be my blood. Eternal shall be my reign in thy name. Eternal shall be the sorrow of Hercules. And eternal shall be the night for the woman he loves.[/box]
The principal reason to watch this hoary “peplum” semi-thriller is for Mario Bava’s eye candy.
Hercules (Reg Park) and his horny friend Thesus journey to their home in Icalia for a reunion with Hercules’ fiancee Daianara. When they get there they find that the evil king Lico (Christopher Lee) is now in charge and Daianara has lost her memory.
At Lico’s suggestion, Hercules consults Medea who tells him the only way to save his beloved is to retrieve the stone of forgetfulness from Hades. First, the pair must fetch a golden apple from the Kingdom of the Night so that they can survive their journey to the underworld.
Many supernatural adventures ensue.
Bava’s use of color is effective and he manages to create creepy effects on what appeared to be a very low budget. Otherwise, the film is just about what you would expect from the title. I watched a dubbed version of the film. Christopher Lee certainly didn’t sound like himself! I’ve seen some pretty bad prints around but the DVD I rented looked great.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njdVh8jhaI0
U.S. Trailer
