I can only recommend this gladiator horror film as a chance to visit Hades for the massively muscular Kirk Morris who hides little to the imagination after strolling in after the burning of a witch at the stake, then his heading into hell to prevent an ancestor of hers from being burnt thanks to a curse she put. It's obvious from the moment that Morris goes to the underground world here that he's entered Dante's Inferno, a superb rendering of what hell would look like, and it's up to the imagination to guess what's going on as he looks in on the tortured withering around in the rocky abyss. After aiding Greek king Sisyphus from the falling rock he has been condemned to eternity to push up the hill, Morris locates the location of the damned witch and heads through several dangers to get to her. Along the way, he has flashbacks of previous adventures and helps a bound man escape from a deadly vulture. Another demon tries to prevent him from crossing a canyon on a tree bridge, and other dangers including a fiery gate keep him from reaching his goal as well. But where there's a muscular hero, there's always a victory, and frankly, it isn't too interesting as to how he achieves his goal of reversing the curse. Without the hellish setting, this would have just been another dull and pointless sword and sandals movie. With it, though, it becomes almost artistic, even if made cheaply and featuring a print that is creaky and badly dubbed.

I saw a version of MACISTE IN HELL under the boneheaded title of THE WITCH'S CURSE. That version was OK but nothing really remarkable. While watching the film, I realized it was cut down to pieces, that I wasn't watching the original version but even so I thought, meh. Lo and behold, I got a hold of the original uncut Italian version in beautiful crystal clear widescreen and the difference was WOW! MACISTE IN HELL is, suffice to say, a Peplum masterpiece. It's a stand-out S&S remake of the silent version, which, obviously doesn't look anything like this 1962 version. Aside from a few weak points and an ending that doesn't rise to the occasion, the rest is a visual masterpiece directed by maestro Riccardo Freda. 15 minutes were cut for the US version, THE WITCH'S CURSE, and those 15 minutes make a HUGE difference. What looked like amateur night suddenly looks like a super smooth atmospheric classic fantasy filled with at times jaw dropping visuals. By cutting those 15 minutes, the careful pacing and mood was destroyed/eliminated and what was left was a clunky simplistic adventure. The film is, first and foremost, an atmospheric film. There's almost no plot and the film follows a lone Mascite (played to uber beefcake perfection by Kirk Morris, aka Adriano Bellini) going from one feat to another. In other words, except for the intro, the dialogue is minimal. Even the Scottish scenes, which looked somehow out of place and silly in THE WITCH'S CURSE suddenly look just right in the uncut version. The contrast between the somber gray, colorless prison setting with the colorful, eye-filling world of Hell is remarkable. Having Maciste appear almost out of nowhere half-naked in Scotland suddenly makes sense with the expanded scenes that show Maciste as some sort of Hero who's not bound by time and space, thanks mainly to stock footage taken from ATLAS IN THE LAND OF THE CYCLOPS, SAMSON AND THE 7 MIRACLES OF THE WORLD and MACISTE IN THE VALLEY OF THE KINGS (SON OF SAMSON). This film looks so good in its original state that they should re-release it on the big-screen. It would be like seeing an all new film. Some might find some of the effects risible, like when Maciste fights with a giant, but I think they just add to the surreal aspects of an adventure that takes place in Hell. But there are several standout, beautifully realized effect scenes that would wow current moviegoers including a trail of flames following Maciste's footsteps, Maciste's walk through a landscape of damned people or Maciste holding a boulder over his head to protect him from a shower of flames. The latter is the film's highlight. It's also a very sensual film. It's not just a standard S&S action film but it's a film of the senses. The way Kirk Morris (and Helene Chanel) is shot, the cave settings, the music, all add up to a wonderful experience that often transcends its Peplum root. In essence, the story is about Maciste, who represents spiritual and physical purity and how primordial it is for his spirit and (his clearly exposed) body to remain pure amidst all the temptations or dangers around him, such as Fania or whatever attacks him and tries to kill him. This new angle to a familiar story is, for a film made in 1962, cool and somewhat daring. The uncut version of MACISTE IN HELL is a classic fantasy waiting to be re-discovered. It's a must see for fans of Peplum or any genre films.

In the 16th century, a witch is burned at Scotland, not forgetting to leave a curse behind. A hundred years later, the curse drives people mad - some kill themselves, some see ghosts in the shadows, some suffer from ridiculous overacting (don't miss the fat woman yelling „The witch is back again! It's the end for all of us!"). Suddenly Maciste rides into town, he looks like he came to the set of the wrong movie. It wasn't the only case of Maciste in the wrong millennium (see „Zorro Contro Maciste" by Umberto Lenzi), but if he is in Scotland, he should get a proper costume instead of the stone-age loincloth that was outdated in ancient Greece already. He tries to put an end to hysteria and terror by going down to hell and find the witch! „He can strangle the lion, but there's no man alive who can conquer the devil", they say, but where there's muscles, there's always a way. Director Freda knew what the public wanted, he made enough other movies including Maciste flicks - there even is a flashback to previous adventures -, so you get the fires, the beasts, the drama and all. My only regret is I had to watch this as a full screen copy with poor colors, because in the original wide screen format, it must be quite a show. (Edit 2017) Nine years after my review above, I got the opportunity to watch a restored version in original scope format, running 88 minutes instead of 75 minutes (among the scenes cut from the old American DVD were a fight against a snake, Maciste crossing the rain of fire, and a flashback showing him in Ancient Egypt). I was right, it's quite a show in proper quality.

There's no way I could NOT like a combination Italian horror film (of the traditional kind) AND Italian "spear and sandal" film, including this one, which I never saw till two years ago. The "hell" scenes were worthy of "Hercules in the Haunted World," which I also never saw till recently. It seems to be a direct sequel to another "peplum" film (I don't know which), because of flashbacks and little references. As much as I like these movies AS movies, instead of as "camp," even I found it funny when the "Maciste" character arrived in this 17th (?) century Scottish town (and yes, in his loincloth), without anyone wondering anything about him.