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Rating: 
Summary: Attack of the Muscle Men !
Review: First of all, let's not kid ourselves--"Hercules Against the Moon Men " ( HAMM ) and the "Witch's Curse" ( WC )are pretty bad movies. However, for people like me who remember those dubbed, Italian "spear and sandal" epics from the early 60s, these films still provide good fun. If you are expecting big-budget production values, plots that make sense and great special effects--stay away !HAMM gives us "Alan Steel" as Hercules--he certainly has the physique but, for me, Steve Reeves was, and always will be, the best Hercules. Reeves was always knocked for his acting--well, Steel makes Reeves look like Olivier ! Basically Herc has to overcome one obstacle after another to battle forces from the Moon ( don't expect too much here ) and the evil queen who is under their control. Probably the highlight is when our hero is captured, and placed between two slabs of wood with huge knives pointing toward him--as those nasty points get closer, Steel gets to flex his muscles all over the place. This is a classic moment for Hercules' fans. Actually, I found the finale of the film very quick and disappointing. Overall, if you like a healthy seving of cheese and muscle, HAMM delivers. As another reviewer has pointed out, an error occurred in the transfer of HAMM--figures seem abnormally stretched--if a corrected version is released will my friends at Amazon send a replacement ( hint--hint )? WC is even more outlandish--it is 17th century Scotland--everyone is heavily clothed ( Scotland can be chilly ! )--and here comes muscle-bound Kirk Morris running around in briefs. This is one of many smiles you will get from this "so bad it's good" movie. Again, in his search through the underworld for an evil witch, our hero--Maciste--must use all of his strength to defeat various phony-looking monsters, and avoid one scrape after another. This is a very bizarre movie, but I found that I had to keep watching it. The transfer of WC is not great--but it is not poor enough to spoil your fun. Overall, a fascinating double bill--what's that expression--" they don't make them like that anymore " !
Rating: 
Summary: So bad it can be great
Review: If you love bad films - I mean really bad films - this double feature is incredible. The gladiator cycle of the 1950's and 1960's that started with Steve Reeve's very decent Hercules was running out of ideas and was becoming increasingly far fetched in plots. In Hercules versus the Moon Men, we enter science fiction territory as Herc battles silly masked aliens, cardboard rock monsters, and an ape creature with a serious lower jaw problem (how does he eat?). There's also a dust storm that lasts forever. In Witch's Curse we are in Mario Bava's Black Sabbath territory as our hero Maciste is in 17th century Scotland (without much clothes, where people have no Scottish accents) and literally goes to hell to save an innocent woman accused of witchcraft (the first thing he meets is a lion - how does he eat?). Logic and consistency are never allowed to stand in the way of advancing the plot. If you demand things in movies like believability or halfway decent acting, these are not for you. Otherwise, enjoy. The DVD is loaded with tons of tongue in cheek extras but no commentary - you get to supply that on your own. This has "MST3K fodder" written all over it.
Rating:
Summary: So bad it can be great
Review: If you love bad films - I mean really bad films - this double feature is incredible. The gladiator cycle of the 1950's and 1960's that started with Steve Reeve's very decent Hercules was running out of ideas and was becoming increasingly far fetched in plots. In Hercules versus the Moon Men, we enter science fiction territory as Herc battles silly masked aliens, cardboard rock monsters, and an ape creature with a serious lower jaw problem (how does he eat?). There's also a dust storm that lasts forever. In Witch's Curse we are in Mario Bava's Black Sabbath territory as our hero Maciste is in 17th century Scotland (without much clothes, where people have no Scottish accents) and literally goes to hell to save an innocent woman accused of witchcraft (the first thing he meets is a lion - how does he eat?). Logic and consistency are never allowed to stand in the way of advancing the plot. If you demand things in movies like believability or halfway decent acting, these are not for you. Otherwise, enjoy. The DVD is loaded with tons of tongue in cheek extras but no commentary - you get to supply that on your own. This has "MST3K fodder" written all over it.
Rating:
Summary: Somewhat lacking --
Review: The main feature, "Hercules Against the Moon Men" to my eyes looks very compressed. The figures are stretched out as if they spent time on a Medieval torture rack. The images call to mind old Cinemascope movies mooshed together to be shown on fullscreen TV. Sort of hard to watch. Nice, bright, colorful pictures, though. The back-up feature "The Witch's Curse" is so-so. Many of these things are bought on the basis of the extras. HOWEVER: Many of the "coming attractions" trailers for the peplum movies are in black and white.
Rating:
Summary: Somewhat lacking --
Review: The main feature, "Hercules Against the Moon Men" to my eyes looks very compressed. The figures are stretched out as if they spent time on a Medieval torture rack. The images call to mind old Cinemascope movies mooshed together to be shown on fullscreen TV. Sort of hard to watch. Nice, bright, colorful pictures, though. The back-up feature "The Witch's Curse" is so-so. Many of these things are bought on the basis of the extras. HOWEVER: Many of the "coming attractions" trailers for the peplum movies are in black and white.
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