Atlas Against the Cyclops (1961) Maciste nella terra dei ciclopi (original title)

Director:

Antonio Leonviola

Writers:

Oreste Biancoli (screenplay)
Oreste Biancoli (story)
(more)

Release Date:

14 April 1963 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Fantasy

Plot:

Strongman Maciste must battle the one-eyed Cyclops monster that is ravaging the land of Sadok, while at the same time fending off the advances of the evil Queen Capys, who wants to do a little ravaging of her own.

Plot Keywords:

Cyclops | Monster | Chain | Blindfold | Dungeon

Cast

Gordon Mitchell	...	Maciste (as Mitchell Gordon)
Chelo Alonso	...	Capys
Vira Silenti	...	Penope
Dante DiPaolo	...	Ifito
Aldo Bufi Landi	...	Sirone
Giotto Tempestini	...	Aronio
Raffaella Carrà	...	Eber (as Raffaella Pelloni)
Paul Wynter	...	Mumba
Massimo Righi	...	Efros
Tullio Altamura	...	Un ufficiale
Antonio Meschini	...	Un soldato
Germano Longo	...	Re Agisandro
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Pietro Ceccarelli	...	Warden
Moira Orfei
Aldo Pedinotti	...	Ciclope (as Aldo Padinotti)

Directed by
Antonio Leonviola		(as Leonviola)

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Oreste Biancoli		screenplay
Oreste Biancoli		story
Gino Mangini

Produced by
Luigi Carpentieri	....	producer
Ermanno Donati	....	producer

Original Music by
Carlo Innocenzi

Cinematography by
Riccardo Pallottini

Film Editing by
Mario Serandrei

Production Design by
Alberto Boccianti

Set Decoration by
Ennio Michettoni

Costume Design by
Giuliano Papi

Makeup Department
Galileo Mandini	....	hair stylist
Piero Mecacci	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Giorgio Baldi	....	production supervisor
Piero Donati	....	production manager
Livio Maffei	....	production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Giovanni Fago	....	first assistant director
Mariano Laurenti	....	first assistant director

Sound Department
John Hart	....	dubbing director: English
Maurice Laroche	....	sound (French version)
Giannetto Nardi	....	sound

Special Effects by
Giovanni Corridori	....	special effects technician

Visual Effects by
Joseph Nathanson	....	matte shots (as Joseph Nathanson)

Camera and Electrical Department
Galileo Mandini	....	montage photographer
Stelvio Massi	....	camera operator

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Massimo Bolongaro	....	assistant costume designer

Music Department
Carlo Franci	....	musical director

Other crew
Paola Salvadori	....	script girl
Carlo Zanotti	....	secretary to producer

Production Companies

• Panda Film

Distributors

• Medallion Pictures (1963) (USA) (theatrical) (dubbed) (as 'Atlas Against the Cyclops')
• Medallion Television (1963) (USA) (TV) (as 'Atlas Against the Cyclops')
• Alpha Video Distributors (2005) (USA) (DVD) (as 'Atlas Against the Cyclops')
• Retromedia Entertainment (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Cire Films (????) (Spain) (theatrical)
• Mad Monster Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Sinister Cinema (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Something Weird Video (SWV) (????) (USA) (DVD) (DVD-R) (as 'Atlas Against the Cyclops')
• Something Weird Video (SWV) (????) (USA) (VHS) (as 'Atlas Against the Cyclops')
• Synergy Entertainment (????) (USA) (DVD) (as 'Atlas Against the Cyclops')

Other Companies

• Istituto Nazionale Luce  printing (as Istituto Nazionale Luce - Rome)
• L.C.P. di Pompei  footwear (as Pompei - Rome)
• Rocchetti  wigmakers (as Rocchetti - Rome)
• Tani  weapons (as Tani - Florence)
• Tigano Lo Faro  costumes (as Tigano Lo Faro - Rome)

Also Known As:

"Maciste nella terra dei ciclopi" - Italy (original title)
"Atlas in the Land of the Cyclops" - USA (TV title)

Runtime:

100 min | Italy:94 min

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-16

Company:

Panda Film

Trivia:

The symbolic design on the large rayed solar disk which can be seen on a wall in the queen's palace imitates the font and spiral design found on the mysterious Phaistos disc (~1700 B.C.), which remains yet to be deciphered.

Goofs:

Miscellaneous: When Maciste saves the small child from the lion, the shots of the real lion (with Gordon Mitchell's stand-in for the sequence) show that the claws are not out and the paws are not being used to strike but rather happily returning the hug it's receiving.

Quotes:

Capys:[to Maciste] I'm not really as evil as you think.

Maciste Rides Into The Sunset

Atlas Against The Cyclops finds Gordon Mitchell as Maciste battling the evil one eyed creature who together with the daughter of Circe is taking vengeance against the descendants of Ulysses. If you'll remember your classical Greek tales, Ulysses freed himself from Circe and blinded the Cyclops. Now their descendants are wreaking what they consider just desserts to the Ulysses family.

It might have gone all right for them except that Circe's evil granddaughter queen of Circe falls big time for Maciste and all those muscles. She forgets her mission with one look at the big guy.

There was a black body builder named Paul Wynter who was appearing in these peplums at the time and truth be told he was far better built than Gordon Mitchell. Why she was bothering with Maciste when she had Wynter's character Mumba in the palace is beyond me.

Still Maciste performs all the deeds required of him and even rides a horse into the sunset like a good cowboy hero would.

Nothing special here though.