Ercole al centro della terra (1961)

Directors:

Mario Bava
Franco Prosperi

Writers:

Mario Bava (screenplay)
Mario Bava (story)
(more)

Release Date:

April 1964 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Fantasy | Action | Horror

Tagline:

An All New Height in Fright and Might!

Plot:

Hercules must journey in Hades itself to retrieve the magic stone that will free his love from the powers of darkness.

Plot Keywords:

Hercules | Magic Stone | Oracle | Apple | Beautiful Woman

Cast

Reg Park	...	Hercules (Ercole)
Christopher Lee	...	King Lico (Licos)
Leonora Ruffo	...	Princess Deianira
George Ardisson	...	Thesus (Teseo)
Marisa Belli	...	Aretusa
Ida Galli	...	Persephone
Franco Giacobini	...	Telemachus (Telemaco)
Mino Doro	...	Keros
Rosalba Neri	...	Helena (as Rosalba Neri c.s.c.)
Ely Drago	...	Jocasta (as Ely Dracò)
Gaia Germani	...	Medea
Raf Baldassarre	...	Leader of the cutthroats
Elisabetta Pavan	...	Tamar
Aldo Pedinotti	...	Sunis (as Aldo Padinotti)
Claudio Marzulli
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Monica Neri
Grazia Collodi	...	Electra (uncredited)

Directed by
Mario Bava
Franco Prosperi

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Mario Bava		screenplay
Mario Bava		story
Sandro Continenza		screenplay
Franco Prosperi		screenplay
Duccio Tessari		screenplay

Produced by
Achille Piazzi	....	producer

Original Music by
Armando Trovajoli

Cinematography by
Mario Bava

Film Editing by
Mario Serandrei

Production Design by
Franco Lolli

Art Direction by
Franco Lolli

Costume Design by
Mario Giorsi

Makeup Department
Renzo Francioni	....	makeup artist
Franco Palombi	....	makeup artist
Nicla Palombi	....	hair stylist (as Nicla Pertosa)

Production Management
Danilo Marciani	....	production manager

Art Department
Antonio Sarzi-Braga	....	assistant set designer
Italo Tomassi	....	manager of art department (uncredited)

Sound Department
Tonino Cacciottolo	....	special sound effects
Luigi Puri	....	sound

Special Effects by
Tonino Cacciottolo	....	special effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Joe D'Amato	....	assistant camera (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Maria Luisa Onorati	....	wardrober
Valeria Sponsali	....	wardrober

Other crew
Emilio Cigoli	....	voice dubbing: Reg Park (Italian version)
Lauro Gazzolo	....	voice dubbing: Christopher Lee (Italian version)

Production Companies

• SpA Cinematografica

Distributors

• Omnia Deutsche Film Export (1962) (worldwide) (theatrical)
• Golden Era Film Distributors (GEF) (1962) (UK) (theatrical)
• Woolner Brothers Pictures Inc. (1964) (USA) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• International Film Distributors (1964) (Canada) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• Comptoir Français du Film (CFF) (1962) (France) (theatrical)
• Astro Distribution (1999) (Germany) (VHS)
• Astro Records & Filmworks (Germany) (VHS)
• European Video Corporation (EVC) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Fantoma (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Hollywood's Best (video)
• Image Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Kinowelt Home Entertainment (2007) (Germany) (DVD)
• Network Enterprises (video)
• Oktoberfest Video (video)
• Rhino Video (video)
• Ryko Distribution (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Saturn Productions (video)
• Sinister Cinema (2007) (USA) (DVD) (dubbed)
• Skyline Video (UK) (VHS) (Betamax)
• Something Weird Video (SWV) (video)
• Zodiac Video (Greece) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Digitmovies Alternative Entertainment  soundtrack

Also Known As:

Hercules at the Center of the Earth (International: English title) (literal title)
Hercules in the Center of the Earth (International: English title)
Hercules in the Haunted World (USA)
Hercules vs. the Vampires
Sword and Sandal (Australia) (TV title)
The Vampires vs. Hercules
With Hercules to the Center of the Earth

Runtime:

France:76 min | Italy:91 min | UK:77 min

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | UK:U | West Germany:12

Company:

SpA Cinematografica

Trivia:

Christopher Lee's voice was dubbed by another actor for the English-language version.

Goofs:

Continuity: Near the beginning of the film Thesus tosses his lover (Dania?) in to a river to keep her safe from their attackers. But moments later, after Hercules rescues them, she is completely dry and not a hair out of place.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Reg Park: The Legend (2009) (V)

Excellent Hercules film -- the best of all!

HAUNTED WORLD is, hands down, the best of the hundreds of Hercules films churned out in Italy in the 1960's (if you think Hollywood today is an assembly line -- look at all the Hercules/ James Bond flicks done in Italy in the 60's -- there are more than stars in the sky, literally.) HAUNTED WORLD is all about Bava ... Bava ... Bava. He's the difference between this and any of the other hundreds of Hercules films -- some very good, some decent, some appalling -- and it's a prime example of why Mario Bava was, arguably, the greatest pulp director, ever. Reg Park is a terrible actor -- but it doesn't matter. Christopher Lee is dubbed -- but it doesn't matter. The producer had about twenty bucks and change for visual effects -- doesn't matter. What counts here is BAVA. He, through sheer force of visual genius (and I'm not kidding -- watch a bunch of other cut-rate fantasy/sci-fi films and you'll go back to Bava every time) -- well, he elevates this into something like psychedelic poetry, dammit. The scenes of Hercules going to the masked Oracle are probably my favorite ... the way she moves her arms, and the lights flicker ... it's the Grateful Dead at the Fillmore West, it's early Pink Floyd at the UFO Club. It's pure, unadulaterated movie magic for Chrissakes. This ranks with DANGER: DIABOLIK and the sadly unavailable ERIK THE CONQUEROR as pure Bava escapism. Dive in.