‘Silence! What is this bibble babble?’
The previously loyal Maciste has allied himself with the Assyrians and is marching on Thebes. Meanwhile, a nightclub entertainer with a fake strongman act is mistaken for the real thing by an advisor to the Pharaoh and is appointed to deal with the invading army…
Amiable spoof of the Peplum, ‘Sword and Sandal’ genre, based around the comic personality of popular entertainer Totò. Fernando Cerchio directs, and Samson Burke takes the role of Maciste.
Totokamen (Totò) and his manager Tarantakamen (Nino Taranto), arrive in Thebes to perform their act in local nightclubs. The former is an illusionist, relying on tricked-out props to sell himself as an unlikely strongman, son of the God Ammon. Meanwhile, evil Queen Faraona (Nadia Sanders) is conspiring against her older husband, Pharaoh Ramses (Nerio Bernardi), to take his throne. Using drugged wine, she bewitches loyal hero, Maciste (Burke) and convinces him to gather the Assyrians under his command to attack the city.
When he learns of Burke’s defection, Bernardi desperately looks for a champion to oppose Burke. Fortunately, his chief dignitary (Nino Marchetti) caught Totò’s act the night before and is convinced that his strongman chicanery is the real thing. The duo are invited to the palace by armed guards and charged with challenging Burke and the Assyrians. Unable to escape without exposing their fraud, the hopeless double act search for a way out while Burke’s forces close in on the city.
Given the huge popularity of the Peplum genre and the prodigious film output of veteran comedian Totò, it’s perhaps not surprising that the two should meet on the big screen. It’s perhaps unfortunate, however, that Cerchio’s film is so specifically tailored to his star, as the opportunity for satirising the abundant clichés of the genre is largely bypassed.
Instead, this is the familiar tale of two hapless cowards mistaken for heroes who spend most of the runtime bickering with each other and failing to mount a viable exit strategy. Switch Totò and Taranto out for Abbot and Costello or Martin and Lewis, and practically no one would notice. It’s the exact same formula that Italian comics Franco and Ciccio would hammer remorselessly into the ground over the next six or seven years (with massive domestic box office success, to be fair).
The only real attempt to spoof the genre occurs early on when Sanders slips Burke the old goblet of drugged wine. One sip turns him into her love slave, of course, and makes him forget all about his true love, Nefertiti (Gabriella Andreini), who happens to be the Pharaoh’s daughter. But, to a large extent, all the supporting characters are sacrificed to keep Totò and Taranto centre stage as much as possible. Sander’s villainous Queen doesn’t even get a name, ‘Faraona’ simply being Italian for ‘Pharaoh’s Wife’. This remorseless focus means that the comedy inevitably gets wearing after a short while because there’s so little variation, and the gags just become repetitious.
The film is also completely studio-bound, which betrays a limited budget. The few outside shots, such as those of the competing armies, are obviously appearing with the kind permission of another film. Angelo Lotti’s cinematography is good but doesn’t quite match the older footage. As already mentioned, none of the supporting cast gets a chance to shine, and Burke’s contribution as Maciste is largely to display his impressive muscular development.
Enjoyment of the film will depend entirely on comedic taste. To his credit, the 60-something Totò displays a lot of energy and enthusiasm, and his rubber-faced contortions are likely to raise a mildly amused smile from time to time. However, the usual frantic shenanigans and high-volume dialogue are often overbearing. Italian humour doesn’t tend to travel too far, and like many of its contemporaries, this comedy doesn’t seem to have made it to the English language market on release.
The improbably named Samson Burke was a Canadian with the actual birth name of Samuel. At college, he won State swimming titles and even competed in the Olympic Games in the 200m Butterfly. His bodybuilding achievements found him crowned ‘Mr Canada’, and he became a successful wrestler after moving to California, winning a World Title and competing in exhibitions against famous boxers such as Primo Canara and the legendary Joe Louis. He made his screen debut as Ursus in ‘The Revenge of Ursus/The Vengeance of Ursus/La vendetta di Ursus/The Mighty Warrior (1961) and took the next logical step up the muscleman food chain with ‘The Three Stooges Meet Hercules’ (1962). Scattered roles followed throughout the remainder of the decade, and, in later years, he settled in Hawaii, where he worked in some uncredited capacity on the hit TV show ‘Magnum P.I.’ As of writing, he still appears to be with us and approaching his centenary on this planet.
An easygoing, lightweight experience. Just don’t expect anything interesting, memorable or very funny.