Reg Park films

Reg did five peplum films, also known as word and sandal, a genere very popular in the end of the 50s and the half of the 60s. three films acting as Hercules. One as Maciste and one as Ursus

Hercules and the conquest of Atlantis

The first of theses films was Ercole alla conquista di Atlantide (English Translation: Hercules at the Conquest of Atlantis) filmed in 1961, An Italian-French international co-production. Directed by Vittorio Cottafavi. The film is also known as Hercules Conquers Atlantis in the United Kingdom, and Hercules and the Captive Women in the USA. As Hercules and the Captive Women,

Plot

When strange atmospheric events occur in the disunited city states of Ancient Greece, a forum debates what action to take. As there is no agreement, Androcles King of Thebes seeks the assistance of his friend, the legendary Hercules. Hercules, now married to Deianira with a son named Hylas, does not wish to leave the comfort of his family, though Hylas is keen for adventure. Androcles takes matters in his own hands by drugging and kidnapping Hercules and placing him aboard a ship manned by a disreputable collection of former slaves and criminals. The only members of the expedition Androcles can trust are his sidekick, Timoteo the dwarf and Hylas who has to hide below deck from Hercules lest he face his wrath for leaving home. Rather than being angry Hercules merely lazes away on deck without offering any assistance. Continuing their voyage, a storm wrecks the ship with all of them separated. Hercules sees a vision of Androcles begging for his help. Coming ashore on a mist shrouded island he sees a woman held captive not only chained to a cliff, but gradually becoming a part of the rock formation. When he rescues her he has to fight Proteus a god able to change form into various creatures. Defeating Proteus, Hercules discovers the woman he rescued is Princess Ismene, daughter of Antinea, the Queen of Atlantis that is where Hercules has landed. Hercules soon discovers his son Hylas and Timoteo and bring the rescued Princess to Antinea.

Though welcomed at first, Ismene discovers that she has been selected for sacrifice as a prophecy foretells that if she is not killed Atlantis and its population will be destroyed. The death of Proteus has already stripped Atlantis of its protective fog that keeps it unseen by the outside world. Ismene is recaptured and taken for execution. Antinea denies all knowledge of Androcles, however Androcles memory has been taken away and he is hidden from his friends. During a celebration Hercules discovers that children are selected and taken away from their parents for an unknown reason. Things fall into place when Hercules and his companions not only rescue Ismene but a large group of prisoners in a pit. The rescued prisoners explain that children are taken to a special stone that either transforms them either into blonde supermen or disfigures the weak ones who are placed in the pit. A priest explains that the stone is from the blood of Uranus. The power of Uranus’s stone has created Antinea an invicible army of black uniformed blonde supermen that she plans to conquer the world with.

Hercules in the haunted world

Hercules in the Haunted World (Italian: Ercole al centro della terra) is a 1961 Italian sword-and-sandal film directed by Mario Bava. British bodybuilder Reg Park plays Hercules while British actor Christopher Lee appears as Hercules' nemesis Lico. Shooting at Cinecittà, director Mario Bava used some of the same sets from the earlier Hercules and the Conquest of Atlantis which had already starred Reg Park.

Plot

Upon his return to Italy from his many adventures, the great warrior Hercules learns that his lover, Princess Deianira (Daianara), has lost her senses. According to the oracle Medea (Gaia Germani), Daianara's only hope is the Stone of Forgetfulness which lies deep in the realm of Hades. Hercules, with two companions, Theseus and Telemachus, embarks on a dangerous quest for the stone, while he is unaware that Dianara's guardian, King Lico, is the one responsible for her condition and plots to have the girl for himself as his bride upon her revival. Lico is in fact in league with the dark forces of the underworld, and it is up to Hercules to stop him. The climax has Hercules smashing Lico with a giant boulder and throwing similarly large rocks at an army of zombies.

Maciste in the king Solomon mines

is one of the oldest recurring characters in cinema, created by Gabriele d'Annunzio and Giovanni Pastrone in the early XX century. He cuts a heroic figure throughout the history of the cinema of Italy from the 1910s to the mid-1960s. He is usually depicted as a Hercules-like figure, utilizing his massive strength to achieve heroic feats that ordinary men cannot. Many of the 1960s Italian films featuring Maciste were retitled in other countries, substituting more popular names in the titles (such as Hercules, Goliath or Samson).

Samson in King Solomon's Mines (Italian: Maciste nelle miniere de re Salmone is a 1964 Italian peplum film written and directed by Piero Regnoli. Despite the title, Maciste in King Solomon's Mines bears no apparent link to the famous H. Rider Haggard novel aside from the African setting. This location helps to set the film aside from the normal Pepla and explains the presence of Maciste in place of Hercules - an entirely fictional creation of the early Italian silent movie epics, Maciste has no ties to any particular historic period and appears in films set from Ancient Greece through to the 17th Century - the era of this particular film is never explained in the story.

Plot

Deep in Africa, the remote and walled city of Zimba has existed for centuries on top of the fabled mines of Solomon and their amazing wealth. King sees this potential wealth as being a source of suffering and has never dug into the mines, however his assistant Riad is tempted by the promise of so much gold and makes a pact with a local tribe lead by Queen Fazira to lead them into the castle and to help him take rule over the city. Fleeing the distruction, Samara - nanny of the future King - is sent to find Maciste (Reg Park) and summon his help, but when the great hero is tricked by the Queen into losing his memory and working in the mines, all hope seems lost for the now enslaved people of Zimba.

NOTE: this film is not complete in youtube. Only there are two small displays

Hercules prisioner of Evil

Following Buddy Baer's portrayal of Ursus in the classic 1951 film Quo Vadis, Ursus was used as a superhuman Roman-era character who became the protagonist in a series of Italian adventure films made in the early 1960s. When the Hercules film craze hit in 1959, Italian filmmakers were lookg for other muscleman characters similar to Hercules whom they could exploit, resulting in the nine-film Ursus series. Ursus was referred to as a "Son of Hercules" in two of the films when they were dubbed in English (in an attempt to cash in on the then-popular Hercules craze), although in the original Italian films, Ursus had no connection to Hercules whatsoever. In the English-dubbed version of Reg's film (retitled Hercules, Prisoner of Evil), Ursus was referred to throughout the entire film as Hercules.

Hercules, Prisoner of Evil (Italian: Ursus il terrore dei Kirghisi, lit. 'Ursus, Terror of the Kirghiz') is a 1964 Italian peplum film directed by Antonio Margheriti and an uncredited Ruggero Deodato. Deodato, the official assistant director, replaced Margheriti as he was busy with the completion of the film The Fall of Rome. Deodato actually directed most of the film in actuality but Margheriti was credited as the director. The film is filled with a variety of horrific themes and elements, featuring a killer werewolf, and is as much a horror film as it is a peplum.[

Plot

Ursus (Reg Park), a prominent member of the Cherkessi tribe, is caught in a love triangle: his lover Aniko (Mireille Granelli) is the daughter of the recently deceased Khan, and therefore the rightful queen of the kingdom of Sura. However her cousin Zereteli (Furio Meniconi), leader of the Kirghisi tribe, has taken advantage of the ensuing power vacuum to steal the throne for himself. He hopes to seal the deal by forcing Aniko to marry him, much against her wishes, but she reluctantly agrees in the hope of saving her own life and that of Ursus. Ursus also has a beautiful blonde servant girl Kato (María Teresa Orsini), who was rescued by him when they were both children and she was found wondering, her memory lost. She was adopted into the tribe and has been caring for Ursus ever since. She clearly loves him, but he does not return her affection, stating merely that he "loves her like a brother."

Meanwhile some sort of monster stalks the land, killing villagers, despite Ursus' attempts to hunt it down. The English subtitles call it a monster, but in the Italian dialogue it sounds like they are referring to is as "avvoltoio" or "the Vulture," possibly because of the strange bird-like noises heard when it approaches. When we see the monster leap out of the shadows, it is a man of great strength, his features distorted and disfigured. Zeretili takes advantage of the panic caused to claim that Ursus is behind the monster, using it to kill Kirghisi people. Zereteli knows this is not actually true, but takes political advantage and declares war on the Cherkessi and secretly sends a man to kill Ursus.

Ursus eventually wakens, having been healed by the tribe's wise man, after hearing the screams of Kato. She was alarmed by the approach of one of Zereteli's men who had been laying wait to kill him. Suddenly her memory seems to be returning, as she screams "Assassin! I know who you are! You murdered the Great Khan!" The man confesses, after a soldier hurls a knife into his back, that he did indeed kill the Khan on Zereteli's orders. But how does Kato have knowledge of this? This knowledge gives Ursus and the tribe of Cherkessi the justification it needs to go to war against Zereteli and the Kirghisi, and a huge battle commences. Meanwhile Ilo, thrown into jail by Zereteli, has finally learned the shocking truth about Aniko. The real daughter of the Khan is Kato, and the woman claiming to Aniko is actually a witch, determined to rule the kingdom with Ursus as her zombie slave. Can Ilo save Ursus before it is too late? Of course he can.

Hercules the avenger

Hercules the Avenger (La sfida dei giganti / Challenge of the Giants) is a 1965 Italian adventure film directed by Maurizio Lucidi. It was composed mostly of re-edited stock footage from Reg Park's two 1961 Hercules films, Hercules at the Conquest of Atlantis and Hercules in the Haunted World. Anyhow, if you see the film forgeting that you have already seen the other films named above, is a normal ans sometimes even entertaining

Plot

Reg Park returns to his antics of old as the man of iron in HERCULES THE AVENGER. The Son of Jove undertakes another journey into the nether realms battling zombies and monsters in order to rescue his son, allowing goddess Gia an opportunity to place her own slacker son in Hercules' sandals. There's something for everyone: ghouls, dragons, sweating men and girls in skimpy outfits. But the final fight is the best and the hardest of the Reg Park's films ones.

Sources:

http://www.wikipedia.com for all the films technical information and the plot of all the Hercules films

http://www.mondo-esoterica.net/Maciste%20in%20King%20Solomons%20Mines.html

http://blogheriti.blogspot.com.es/2017/06/hercules-prisoner-of-evil-1964.html