Maciste is just a simple man. He lives off on his own, doing good where he can and asks nothing in return. It is not too soon that he is dragged into a web of intrigue though, one made by man and gods that sees him rescuing the son of Queen Penope before the child is found by a rival queen who goes by the name of Capys. Queen Capys must sacrifice the boy, the last descendant of Ulysses and for whatever reason; it must be to the Cyclops that is held prisoner inside a cavern. If Queen Capys should fail to do so, she will become a slave to the darkness and to that effect, when Maciste stumbles into her life, she is unsure if she will be able to sacrifice the child when she gets a hold of him because she has fallen in love with Maciste who protects the boy.

As far as Peplums go, this Italian-made film which is also known as Atlas in the Land of the Cyclops despite the lack of anyone named Atlas, is quite decent. It is a little hokey of course and a little over the top, especially with the romance angle between Capys played by Chelo Alonso and Gordon Mitchell who plays Maciste. The two do make a handsome couple, Mitchell all rippling muscles which are focused upon more than once by director Antonio Leonviola and Alonso is all kinds of seduction and you can see the two becoming a couple in a perfect world. Yet, as Capys wants to kill the child to save herself and is willing to kill as many people as she has to so that she might glean the location of the boy, that little bit of evil comes between her and Maciste and prevents the story from giving Capys that happy ending.

For the most part, the action scenes are a little silly, almost like the choreographer had no idea what he was doing. There were a few good moments in the film, the best being the when Capys’ henchman decides to take matters into his own hands and kill Maciste by having the man’s arms attached to ropes while two groups of men play tug-of-war over a pit of lions. It then sees our hero with his incredible strength trying to remain balanced and pulling the men on either side into the pit. The fight with the lion near the beginning of the film was decent as was the battle with the Cyclops towards the end, but visually and emotionally as it was packed with suspense and excitement, the scene over the pit stole the show.

There are better sword and sandal films out there, movies that feature better scripts and more exciting stories, but this one never failed to entertain you in the slightest. Like most peplums, it features the hero’s quest, has a lot of beautiful women and a monster of some sort to kill, in this case a giant cyclops which looked quite impressive. If you are looking for matinee-fair, Maciste nella terra dei Ciclopi is perfect escapism.

3 out of 5

2015 Edition

First Entry – Trapped in the… – Valley of the Dragons (1961)
Second Entry – Can You Feel the… – Tremors (1990)
Third Entry – Beauty and Danger Collide in… – Viking Women and the Sea Serpent (1957)
Fourth Entry – Dance the Night Away in the… – Village of the Giants (1965)
Fifth Entry – It Was a Time… – When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth (1970)
Sixth Entry – Do Not Fall Into the Grasp of… – The Giant Claw (1957)
Seventh Entry – Who Knew They Could Give Birth? – Tremors 2: Aftershocks (1996)
Eighth Entry – So Many to Choose From – The Loves of Hercules (1960)
Ninth Entry – Should Have Stayed Down Below – Up From the Depths (1979)
Tenth Entry – Snakes On a Boat! – Anaconda (1997)
Eleventh Entry – Think Twice Before You Cheat – Attack of the 50 Foot Woman (1958)
Twelfth Entry – Back to the Trough – Tremors 3: Back to Perfection (2001)
Thirteenth Entry – Past and Present Collide in… – Mega Shark Versus Mecha Shark (2014)
Fourteenth Entry – Mating Season – Anacondas: Hunt for the Blood Orchid (2004)
Fifteenth Entry – A Land Before Time – One Million Years B.C. (1966)
Sixteenth Entry – Battle of the She-Titans – Attack of the 50 Foot Cheerleader (2012)
Seventeenth Entry – Look Out for The Hoff! – Anaconda 3: The Offspring (2008)
Eighteenth Entry – Impossible Dangers on… – The Lost Continent (1968)
Nineteenth Entry – You Will Wish the Legend Was Over – Tremors 4: The Legend Begins (2004)
Twentieth Entry – Going Global – Tremors 5: Bloodlines (2015)
Twenty-First Entry – They Had Discovered… – The Land That Time Forgot (1975)
Twenty-Second Entry – They Were… – The People that Time Forgot (1977)
Twenty-Third Entry – Dare You Enter… – The Lost World (1960)

Last Year’s Creatures…

Giant Monster Gamera (1965)
The Monolith Monsters (1957)
Gamera vs. Barugon (1966)
Tarantula (1955)
Gamera vs. Gyaos (1967)
Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957)
Gamera vs. Viras (1968)
The Cyclops (1957)
Gamera vs. Guiron (1969)
Monsters (2010)
Gamera vs. Jiger (1970)
The Killer Shrews (1959)
Gamera vs. Zigra (1971)
The Deadly Mantis (1957)
Space Monster Gamera (1980)
King Dinosaur (1955)
Gamera: Guardian of the Universe (1995)
The Black Scorpion (1957)
Gamera 2: Attack of Legion (1996)
Them! (1954)
Gamera 3: The Revenge of Iris (1999)
The Giant Gila Monster (1959)
Gamera the Brave (2006)
Frankenstein Conquers the World (1966)