List of films based on classical mythology
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This is a list of films based on classical mythology (Greek and Roman mythology).
| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| La Regina delle Amazzoni | 1960 | a.k.a. Colossus and the Amazon Queen |
| Le Gladiatrici | 1963 | |
| Le Amazzoni - donne d'amore e di guerra | 1973 | |
| The Amazons | 1973 | |
| Dschungelmädchen für zwei Halunken | 1974 | |
| Gold of the Amazon Women | 1979 | TV film |
| Hercules and the Amazon Women | 1994 | TV film |
| Wonder Woman | 2008 | |
| Wonder Woman | 2017 | |
| Wonder Woman 1984 | 2020 |
| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Atlantis: End of a World, Birth of a Legend | 2011 | |
| Atlantis | 2013–2015 | TV series |
| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasia | 1940 | The Pastoral Symphony segment by Ludwig van Beethoven of the film features centaurs courting Centaurides/"centaurettes". |
Italian film series
[edit]The Sword-and-sandal series (1957-1965) includes numerous films depicting Hercules that go by various titles depending by country of release. Below is a list (chronological order) that begins with the film's U.S.-release title, followed by the original Italian title and translation:[i]
| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Hercules | 1958 | Italian: Le Fatiche di Ercole, lit. 'The Labors of Hercules', starring Steve Reeves. |
| Hercules Unchained | 1959 | Italian: Ercole e la regina di Lidia, lit. 'Hercules and the Queen of Lydia' starring Steve Reeves. |
| Goliath and the Dragon | 1960 | Italian: La Vendetta di Ercole, lit. 'The Revenge of Hercules' |
| Hercules vs The Hydra | 1960 | Italian: Gli Amori di Ercole, lit. 'The Loves of Hercules' |
| Hercules and the Captive Women | 1961 | Italian: Ercole alla conquista di Atlantide, lit. 'Hercules at the Conquest of Atlantis'; UK: Hercules Conquers Atlantis |
| Hercules in the Haunted World | 1961 | Italian: Ercole al centro della terra, lit. 'Hercules at the Center of the Earth' |
| Hercules in the Valley of Woe | 1961 | Italian: Maciste contro Ercole nella valle dei guai, lit. 'Maciste vs. Hercules in the Vale of Woe' |
| Ulysses Against the Son of Hercules | 1962 | Italian: Ulisse contro Ercole, lit. 'Ulysses vs. Hercules' |
| The Fury of Hercules | 1962 | Italian: La Furia di Ercole |
| Hercules, Samson and Ulysses | 1963 | Italian: Ercole sfida Sansone, lit. 'Hercules Challenges Samson' |
| Hercules Vs. the Moloch | 1963 | Italian: Ercole contro Molock; a.k.a. Conquest of Mycene, starring Gordon Scott |
| Son of Hercules in the Land of Darkness | 1964 | Italian: Ercole l'invincibile, lit. 'Hercules, the Invincible' starring Dan Vadis |
| Hercules vs. The Giant Warrior | 1964 | Italian: il Trionfo di Ercole, lit. 'The Triumph of Hercules'; a.k.a. Hercules and the Ten Avengers starring Dan Vadis |
| Hercules Against Rome | 1964 | Italian: Ercole contro Roma |
| Hercules Against the Sons of the Sun | 1964 | Italian: Ercole contro i figli del sole |
| Hercules and the Tyrants of Babylon | 1964 | Italian: Ercole contro i tiranni di Babilonia |
| Samson and His Mighty Challenge | 1964 | Italian: Ercole, Sansone, Maciste e Ursus, gli invincibili, lit. 'Hercules, Samson, Maciste, and Ursus: the Invincibles' |
| Hercules and the Princess of Troy | 1965 | a.k.a. "Hercules vs. the Sea Monster" starring Gordon Scott |
| Hercules, the Avenger | 1965 | Italian: Sfida dei giganti, lit. 'Challenge of the Giants' |
Other Hercules-related films
[edit]| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| The Three Stooges Meet Hercules | 1962 | |
| Hercules | 1964 | Indian Hindi-language adventure film by Shriram in the style of the Italian peplums, starring Dara Singh in the titular role of the hero.[1][2] |
| Son of Hercules | 1964 | another Indian film in Hindi by Sultan. It follows the story of Hercules' son and his fight with a dragon.[3] |
| Tarzan Aur Hercules | 1964 | Indian Hindi-language action film by Mahmood, featuring a character based on Hercules who helps Tarzan win a princess.[4][2] |
| Sheba and Hercules | 1967 | Indian Hindi-language action film by B. S. Chowdhary. It features characters with allusions to Hercules and the Queen of Sheba.[5] |
| The Return from Olympus | 1969 | Russian: Возвращение с Олимпа [USSR], animated film by Alexandra Snezhko-Blotskaya |
| Hercules in New York | 1969 | starring Arnold Schwarzenegger |
| Hercules | 1983 | starring Lou Ferrigno |
| Hercules 2 | 1985 | Italian: Le Avventure dell'incredibile Ercole starring Lou Ferrigno |
| Heracles and Admetus | 1986 | [USSR] animated film by Anatoly Petrov |
| Hercules and the Amazon Women | 1994 | |
| Hercules and the Circle of Fire | 1994 | |
| Hercules and the Lost Kingdom | 1994 | |
| Hercules in the Underworld | 1994 | |
| Hercules in the Maze of the Minotaur | 1994 | |
| Hercules | 1997 | animated Disney film |
| Young Hercules | 1998 | direct-to-video |
| Hercules and Xena - The Animated Movie: The Battle for Mount Olympus | 1998 | direct-to-video |
| The Legend of Hercules | 2014 | |
| Hercules | 2014 |
TV series
[edit]| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Hercules: The Legendary Journeys | 1995–99 | |
| Xena: Warrior Princess | 1995–2001 | spinoff of Legendary Journeys |
| Young Hercules | 1998–99 | |
| Himcules | 1998–99 | animated |
| Hercules | 2005 | miniseries |
Sons of Hercules
[edit]Sons of Hercules was a syndicated television show that aired in the US in the 1960s. The series repackaged 14 Italian sword-and-sandal films by giving them a memorable theme song and a standard intro relating the lead character in each film to the Greek demigod Hercules any way they could. The first title listed for each film was its American television title, followed by the original Italian title in parentheses:
| Title | Notes |
|---|---|
| Mole Men versus the Son of Hercules | (Maciste, The Strongest Man in the World) starring Mark Forest as Maciste |
| The Terror of Rome versus the Son of Hercules | (Maciste, Gladiator of Sparta) starring Mark Forest |
| Fire Monsters Against The Son Of Hercules | (Maciste Vs. The Monsters) starring Reg Lewis as Maciste |
| Triumph Of The Son Of Hercules | (The Triumph Of Maciste) starring Kirk Morris as Maciste |
| Son Of Hercules In The Land Of Darkness | (Hercules The Invincible) starring Dan Vadis as Hercules |
| Ulysses Vs. The Son Of Hercules | (Ulysses Against Hercules) starring Mike Lane as Hercules |
| Son Of Hercules In The Land Of Fire | (Ursus In The Land Of Fire) starring Ed Fury as Ursus |
| Ursus, Son Of Hercules | (a.k.a. Ursus, a.k.a. Mighty Ursus) starring Ed Fury |
| The Tyrant Of Lydia Vs. The Son Of Hercules | (Goliath and the Rebel Slave) starring Gordon Scott as Goliath |
| Messalina Against the Son Of Hercules | (The Last Gladiator) starring Richard Harrison as Glaucus |
| Devil Of The Desert Vs. The Son Of Hercules | (Anthar The Invincible) starring Kirk Morris as Anthar |
| Medusa Vs. The Son Of Hercules | (Perseus The Invincible) starring Richard Harrison as Perseus |
| Beast Of Babylon Versus The Son Of Hercules | (Hero Of Babylon) starring Gordon Scott as Prince Nippur |
| Venus Against The Son Of Hercules | (Mars, God Of War) starring Roger Browne as Mars |
| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Helena | 1924 | |
| Helen of Troy | 1956 | Set in western Anatolia during the Trojan War, largely based on the epic poems Iliad and Odyssey by Homer. |
| The Trojan Horse | 1961 | Italian: La Guerra di Troia |
| Electra | 1962 | [Greece] |
| The Trojan Women | 1971 | [UK, USA, Greece] |
| Iphigenia | 1977 | [Greece] - Set in the port town of Aulis, Greece immediately before the Greek expeditionary force set sails to attack Troy. Due to unfavorable weather conditions, king Agamemnon of Mycenae offers his daughter Iphigenia as a human sacrifice to the goddess Artemis. The film is based on the theatrical play Iphigenia in Aulis by Euripides. |
| Les Troyens | 1984 | [US] - TV movie |
| Helen of Troy | 2003 | TV miniseries set in western Anatolia during the Trojan War, loosely based on the epic poem Iliad by Homer. |
| Troy | 2004 | |
| Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief | 2010 | |
| Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Sea of Monsters | 2013 |
Aeneas
[edit]| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| The Avenger | 1962 | Italian: La Leggenda di Enea, lit. 'The Legend of Aeneas' |
| Eneide | 1971 | [Yugoslavia/Italy] - TV miniseries |
| Dido & Aeneas | 1995 | [UK] - TV movie |
| Dido and Aeneas | 1995 | [Canada] - filmed production of the opera |
Odysseus/Ulysses
[edit]| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| The Island of Calypso: Ulysses and the Giant Polyphemus | 1905 | French: L'Île de Calypso: Ulysse et le géant Polyphème |
| Odissea | 1911 | |
| Ulysses | 1955 | |
| L'Odissea | 1968 | Italy - TV mini-series |
| The Return of Ulysses to His Homeland | 1973 | [UK] - TV movie |
| Uliisses | 1982 | Germany |
| Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria | 1985 | [Austria] - filmed production of the original opera |
| Nostos: The Return | 1989 | [Italy] |
| The Odyssey | 1997 | TV miniseries |
| The Animated Odyssey | 2000 | [US] - animated TV movie |
| O Brother, Where Art Thou? | 2000 | based on the Odyssey |
| L'Odyssée | 2003 | [Canada] - TV movie |
| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Hercules | 1958 | Italian: Le Fatiche di Ercole, lit. 'The Labors of Hercules' starring Steve Reeves |
| Jason and the Argonauts | 1963 | US film - The story of Jason and Argonauts, a band of heroes in Greek mythology, who in the years before the Trojan War (around 1300 BC) accompanied Jason to Colchis in his quest to find the Golden Fleece. |
| Argonauts | 1971 | Russian: Аргонавты USSR - animated film |
| Argonavtebi, or, a Merry Chronicle of a Dangerous Journey | 1986 | USSR - TV movie |
| Jason and the Argonauts | 2000 | US - TV miniseries |
| The Spirit | 2008 | US - features the Golden Fleece and the blood of Heracles. |
| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| The Man Who Smiles | 1937 | |
| Oedipus Rex | 1957 | |
| Antigone | 1961 | |
| Oedipus Rex | 1967 | |
| Oedipus the King | 1968 | |
| Funeral Parade of Roses | 1969 | |
| Night Warning | 1982 | |
| Oedipus Wrecks | 1989 | |
| Edipo Alcalde | 1996 | |
| Oldboy | 2003 | |
| Oldboy | 2013 | Remake of the 2003 Oldboy |
| Music | 2023 |
| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Orphée | 1950 | France |
| Black Orpheus | 1959 | Portuguese: Orfeu Negro) [Brazil] |
| Evrydiki BA 2O37 | 1975 | [Greece] |
| Metamorphoses / Winds of Change (1978-79 Sanrio film) | 1978 | [USA] |
| Orfeu | 1999 | [Brazil] |
| Moulin Rouge! [6] | 2001 | Set in 1899 |
| Orpheus | 2005 | |
| The Book of Life | 2014 |
| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Perseo l'invincibile | 1963 | a.k.a. Medusa vs The Son of Hercules |
| Perseus | 1973 | [USSR] |
| Metamorphoses / Winds of Change (1978-79 Sanrio film) | 1978 | |
| Clash of the Titans | 1981 | |
| Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief | 2010 | |
| Clash of the Titans | 2010 | |
| Wrath of the Titans | 2012 | |
| Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters | 2013 |
| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Pygmalion | 1937 | |
| My Fair Lady | 1964 | |
| Weird Science | 1985 | |
| Mannequin | 1987 | |
| Mighty Aphrodite | 1995 |
| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Romolo e Remo | 1961 | starring Steve Reeves and Gordon Scott as the two brothers. |
| Duel of Champions | 1961 | about the Roman legend of the Horatii |
| Romulus and the Sabines | 1961 | starring Roger Moore as Romulus. |
| The Rape of the Sabine Women | 1962 | starring Wolf Ruvinskis as Romulus. |
| Romulus & Remus: The First King | 2019 | starring Alessandro Borghi and Alessio Lapice. |
| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Harpya | 1979 | Belgian short film |
| My Little Pony: Equestria Girls – Rainbow Rocks | 2014 | featuring the sirens of Greco-Roman mythology in a modern setting. |
| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Minotaur, the Wild Beast of Crete | 1960 | Italian film starring Bob Mathias, loosely based on the mythological story |
| Labyrinth | 1971 | Russian: Лабиринт Soviet animated film by Alexandra Snezhko-Blotskaya |
| Minotaur | 2006 | |
| Immortals | 2011 | Loosely based on the Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur and the Titanomachy. |
The Titans and Prometheus
[edit]| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Arrivano i titani | 1962 | Italian comedy including the mythological characters Cadmus and the Titans, starring Giuliano Gemma and Pedro Armendáriz. |
| Prometheus | 1974 | Soviet animated film by Alexandra Snezhko-Blotskaya |
| The Lighthouse | 2019 | takes on themes from the story of Prometheus |
| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Artémis, cœur d'artichaut | 2013 | [France] |
| Uchu Sentai Kyuranger the Movie: Gase Indaver Strikes Back | 2017 | [Japan] |
| Uchu Sentai Kyuranger vs. Space Squad | 2018 | [Japan] |
| Lupinranger VS Patranger VS Kyuranger | 2019 | [Japan] |
Ursus
[edit]Ursus is a super-human pseudo-Biblical/Roman character who is the hero in a series of Italian films made in the 1960s. There were a total of 9 Italian sword-and-sandal films that featured Ursus as the main character, as follows:
| Title | Release date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ursus | 1961 | a.k.a. Mighty Ursus and Ursus, Son of Hercules starring Ed Fury |
| La Vendetta di Ursus | 1961 | The Revenge of Ursus starring Samson Burke |
| Ursus e la Ragazza Tartara | 1961 | Ursus and the Tartar Princess; a.k.a. Ursus and the Tartar Girl and The Tartar Invasion starring Joe Robinson |
| Ursus Nella Valle dei Leoni | 1962 | Ursus in the Valley of the Lions; a.k.a. Valley of the Lions starring Ed Fury |
| Ursus Nella Terra di Fuoco | 1963 | Ursus in the Land of Fire; a.k.a. Son of Hercules in the Land of Fire starring Ed Fury |
| Ursus il Gladiatore Rebelle | 1963 | Ursus, the Rebel Gladiator starring Dan Vadis |
| Ursus, il terrore dei Kirghisi | 1964 | Ursus, the Terror of the Kirghiz; a.k.a. Hercules, Prisoner of Evil starring Reg Park |
| Ercole, Sansone, Maciste e Ursus, gli invincibili | 1964 | Hercules, Samson, Maciste and Ursus: The Invincibles; a.k.a. Samson and the Mighty Challenge and Combate dei gigantes starring Yan Larvor as Ursus |
| Gli Invincibili Tre | 1964 | The Invincible Three, a.k.a. The Three Avengers Ursus is the lead hero, played by Alan Steel |
See also
[edit]
- Swords-and-sandals
- Lists of movie source material
- List of films based on Greek drama
- List of films based on Germanic mythology
- List of films based on Slavic mythology
- List of films set in ancient Greece
- List of films set in ancient Rome
- List of films set in ancient Egypt
 |
References
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^ A number of English-dubbed Italian films that featured the Hercules name in their title were never intended to be Hercules movies by their Italian creators: Hercules, Prisoner of Evil was actually a retitled Ursus film; Hercules and the Black Pirate and Hercules and the Treasure of the Incas were both retitled Samson movies; Hercules and the Masked Rider was actually a retitled Goliath movie; and the films Hercules Against the Moon Men, Hercules Against the Barbarians, Hercules Against the Mongols, and Hercules of the Desert were all originally Maciste films. Likewise, most of the Sons of Hercules movies shown on American TV in the 1960s had nothing to do with Hercules in their original Italian incarnations.[citation needed]
Citations
[edit]- ^ Ernest Mathijs; Jamie Sexton (22 November 2019). The Routledge Companion to Cult Cinema. Taylor & Francis. p. 227. ISBN 978-1-317-36223-4.
- ^ a b Rajadhyaksha, Ashish; Willemen, Paul (1999). Encyclopaedia of Indian cinema. British Film Institute. ISBN 9780851706696. Retrieved 12 August 2012.
- ^ "Son of Hercules (1964)". Indiancine.ma.
- ^ Lupton, Robert Allen. "Tarzan and Hercules". ERBzine.
- ^ Barnum, Mike (28 July 2018). "SHEBA AND HERCULES (1967)". Cinema Jadoo.
- ^ Billboard 113(49) Nielsen Business Media, Inc. December 18, 2001. p. 79. Retrieved April 18, 2020.