Sword and sandal films are a genre of cinema that originated in the early 20th century, with Italian films being popular in the 1900s. They are often poorly made and full of anachronisms, but some have become cult classics. The genre deteriorated when body builders replaced seasoned actors in lead roles. The popularity of the genre resurged with the success of Conan the Barbarian in 1984 and Gladiator in 2000. Recent films in this genre include King Arthur and Kingdom of Heaven. Some films, such as The Passion of the Christ and 300, have unique takes on the genre. Older films like The Seven Voyages of Sinbad and Ben Hur are suitable for children.
Sword and sandal films refer to a genre of cinema that dates back to the early 20th century, with the silent version of Ben Hur in the 20th. The term can refer to the entire genre or to the popularity of cheap Italian films from the early 1907s, predating the Spaghetti Western. By the latter definition, these films were an inexpensive way for Italian directors to make films loosely based on classical mythology, the life of gladiators, or biblical subjects.
Such films have often made their way to many other countries where they have become popular, even though many are examples of extremely poor cinema, full of anachronisms and terrible dialogue, which has not been improved by dubbing. Many of these films are now cherished for their shortcomings, and some have provided laughs for Mystery Science Theater 3000. Stylistically, most Italian swords and sandals films are no match for the innovative filmmaking and direction of many Spaghetti Westerns.
These Italian films mimicked America’s big-budget epics such as Spartacus, The Ten Commandments, and Claudette Colbert and Elizabeth Taylor’s versions of Cleopatra. Unlike Italian films, many of the early swords and sandals films are excellent examples of filmmaking. The genre began to deteriorate as interest in casting body builders in lead roles grew. When seasoned actors like Charlton Heston, Kirk Douglas and Richard Harris were replaced by good looking but not particularly good actors like Steve Reeves, Mark Forest and Dan Vadis these films took a downward turn.
In fact, many 1960s sword-and-sandals movies are closely known for their beefcake factor and have been associated with homoeroticism, not the filmmakers’ initial intent. Some movies have even bordered on R- and X-rated territory due to graphic sexual content. Most were more traditional productions aimed at general audiences, and television even tried to revive some of the Italian films such as those based on Hercules in the late 1960s.
The swords and sandals film genre began to enjoy greater popularity in the United States with the film Conan the Barbarian in 1984. The film was certainly not for children and featured a body builder, Arnold Schwarzenegger, relatively little dialogue and value low budget production. However, its commercial success has prompted a resurgence of this genre by US filmmakers. Some of these have remained rude and ridiculous, such as Red Sonja and Beastmaster. Others, especially in the early 21st century, have turned out to be exceptional.
The 2000 film Gladiator directed by Ridley Scott and starring Russell Crowe won the Academy Award for Best Picture, firmly establishing how successful sword-and-sandal epics could be. Other recent films of this genre include King Arthur and Kingdom of Heaven, another Ridley Scott film – both of which were quite well received by audiences and critics. Films like Troy and Alexander fared less well in box office returns and critical reviews. Perhaps one of the most interesting films that theoretically fits into the sword and sandal genre is The Passion of the Christ from 2004. Unlike other films, Passion is not your typical popcorn movie, but a more accurate rendering of persecution and crucifixion of Christ.
Another film, 300, released in 2007, is a deconstructed sword and sandal epic. It is based on the work of graphic novelist Frank Miller and has a fascinating art direction, with illustrations on the actors. 300 represents an interesting meeting between the graphic novel and the swords and sandals movies. Again, like most modern films of this genre, these films are usually rated R and are not intended for children.
For kids who like to be swept up in swords and sandals movies, consider some of the movies from the 1960s or earlier. For example The Seven Voyages of Sinbad, The Clash of the Titans and Ben Hur are films suitable for older children. Sinbad and Titans are also excellent studies in the stop motion cinema pioneered by Ray Harryhausen.
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