Review of Hercules in the Haunted World (1961) by Visitorq S — 14 Sep 2010

Early effort from Mario Bava (with assistance from Franco Prosperi) is easily one of the strangest and best of the Italian sword and sandal epics. Despite its low-budget, Bava manages a surreal visual spectacle with some fun vintage special effects and his trademark atmospheric color photography.

The plot is silly, but also fast-paced and full of memorably bizarre set pieces - a battle between Hercules and a gang of the undead is particularly impressive. Bava would go on to make much better films, but his visual style is firmly in place in this early effort.