My Son, the Hero (1962) Poster

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7/10
Italian/French /Spanish co-production shot in Spain that blends Greek Gods , fights , feats , and humor
ma-cortes13 March 2015
This amusing Muscleman epic picture has mythological remarks , as it appears , ¨Los Titanes ¨, in Classical Greek mythology, they were members of the second order of divine beings, descending from the primordial deities and preceding the Olympian deities . Based on Mount Othrys, the Titans most famously included the first twelve children of the primordial Gaia (Mother Earth) and Uranus (Father Heaven). They were giant deities of incredible strength, who ruled during the legendary Golden Age, and also composed the first pantheon of Greek deities. As they had overthrown the primordial deities, the Titans were overthrown by younger gods, including many of their own children - the Olympians - in the Titanomachy (or "War of the Titans"). The Greeks may have borrowed this mythology from the Ancient Near East . The film deals with a nasty King called Cadmo (Pedro Armendáriz) makes a covenant with an evil devil in order to get away after murdering his wife , marrying his lover Ermione (Antonella Lualdi) and subsequently defies the Greek Gods . Likable Krios, (Giuliano Gemma) the youngest of the Titans, is assigned by the Olympian deities to punish Cadmo , as he may be the least strong of the seven brothers whose strength comes from their mother , earth-goddess Gaia . He arrives on Crete, the kingdom of the mighty king Minos , impresses him as gladiator , gains his trust, falls in love with his daughter , a gorgeous young called Antiope (Jacqueline Sassard) , joins forces with another gladiator , Rator , and faces off mortal soldiers as well as Medusa who has on head plenty of serpents . But then he is caught and chained to wall . With help his brothers , The Titans , Krios finds out both Minos's human sacrifice-cult and a dark conspiracy to seize power helped by hidden forces .

The picture is a fun sword and sandals epic with stirring adventures , struggles , absurd humour , irony , bizarre scenarios and turns out to be quite entertaining . This is a giant spectacle shot in Spain with acceptable production design , colourful cinematography and evocative soundtrack . There is plenty of action in the movie , guaranteeing some shots or stunts every few minutes . Funny and thrilling screenplay , including tongue-in-cheek, by prolific Ennio De Concini , adapted by the same filmmaker Duccio Tessari . The comic relief in charge of Crios/Gemma character was written by scriptwriter/director Duccio Tessari , who often uses humorous touches , for example , his various Spaghetti Western . Nice acting by Gemma as a sympathetic Titan , he is by far the smartest , and thus their natural leader . Giuliano is very fine , he ravages the screen , he jumps , bounds and leaps , hit and run . Gemma as a brave and two-fisted Titan is terrific , subsequently the would play similar role in other Péplum and Spaghetti . Gemma , along with Anthony Steffen and Gianni Garco , results to be one of the greatest stars of the Spaghetti genre . Gemma in his beginning worked as stunt-man , practiced many sports in his life, boxing, gymnastics, such as is well proved at the movie . Then the director, Duccio Tessari, gave him the first role as protagonist in the film " The Titani" and the first spaghetti western films where he often worked under the name of Montgomery Wood , playing Western as ¨A pistol for Ringo¨, ¨The return of Ringo¨ and others as ¨Adios Gringo¨, ¨Arizona Colt¨, ¨The price of power¨ , ¨Day of anger¨ and later ¨California¨. However, his first big opportunity came with the important Italian director, Luchino Visconti in ¨El Gatopardo¨ this was followed by important roles in "Angelica" , ¨Tenebre¨ , ¨Young Lions¨ and ¨The master touch¨. Then he played his most significant roles in ¨Il Deserto Dei Tartari¨ and ¨Il Prefetto Di Ferro¨ . In the movie appears usual support actors from Peplum as well as Spaghetti . Being a France/Italy/Spain co-production turns up several Spanish actors such as Fernando Rey , Rafael Albaicín and Fernando Sancho , Spaghetti Western regular . Besides , appearing famous Eurotrash babes such as Jacqueline Sassard , Antonella Lualdi Tanya Lopert and Ingrid Schoeller . As usual , colorful cinematography by Alfio Contini with gaudy colours and groundbreaking atmospheres . It was shot on location in Manzanares Del Real , Colmenar Viejo , Madrid , Spain , where in the sixties and seventies filmed a lot of Spaghetti/Paella Western . Agreeable music score being well conducted and splendid leitmotif ; it's full of enjoyable sounds and lively score by Carlo Rustichelli .

¨Arrivano i Titani" also titled "Sons of Thunder" or "My Son, the Hero" or "The Titans¨ was well directed by Duccio Tessari . This Italian writer / filmmaker Duccio Tessari so consistently mixed the good with the mediocre that it became quite impossible to know what to expect from him next . He wrote several Westerns as ¨A fistful of dollars ¨, ¨A train to Durango ¨Seven guns for McGregor¨ , ¨The return of McGregor¨ . He directed five Western with abundant touches of humor as ¨Vivi o Preferibilment Morti¨, ¨Don't turn the other cheek¨ and ¨Zorro¨ with Alain Delon and of course ¨Ringo ¨and sequel , mostly starred with his fetish actor Giuliano Gemma . Rating : 7 , entertaining and amusing movie that will appeal to ironic Peplum buffs .
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6/10
The Crimson Titan
Bob-4516 May 2001
Cadmo, the King of Crete (Pedro Armandarez) has learned the power of immortality from his mistress. He kills his wife and takes his mistress as a wife. For this, the Oracle tells him he will `die' at the hand of infant young daughter's future love. Should King Cadmo kill his daughter, he will perish at the same moment. Cadmo locks his daughter away. The only man she can see is Cadmo. The Greek god Jove, visits Hades, where his children, the Titans, are bound in eternal torment for their transgressions. Like Hercules, the Titans are half-men, half god. Jove directs the youngest of the Titans, Krios (Giuliano Gemma), who is the savviest, but physically weakest of the Titans, to deliver Cadmo to Hades. In return, Jove will free all of the Titans.

Dubious subject matter for a comedy. But, after a slow start, that's just what this `sword and sandal' adventure is, largely thanks to a witty performance by Gemma as Krios, good `Jackie Chan' or `Crimson Pirate' style stunts and a few good sight gags, the funniest being the `sword' which Krios must use to fight Rator (Serge Nubret). In fact, the film bares a lot of resemblance to `Crimson Pirate,' right down to a mute sidekick. That is not to say `My Son the Hero' is as good as the classic `Crimson Pirate,' but it is DEFINITELY work a look.

Terrible dubbing, but good color cinematography, fine sets, fairly good special effects and amusing, tone-setting music.

The Turner Classic Movies print is pristine. Too bad they showed `My Son, The Hero' in `pan and scan.' Hopefully, they have a letterbox copy sitting in their vault somewhere.
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6/10
Did Sam Raimi ever see this one?
12-string10 June 2005
Warning: Spoilers
I taped this pic off Turner Classic Movies about 4 years ago but for some reason never got around to watching it until today. Made about 1961, this is a slightly pre-deluge entry in the peplum fest that was Italian cinema until the sudden burst of spaghetti western in the middle 1960s.

Cadmus, King of Crete, and his new wife Hermione (they killed the previous Mrs C), in angry response to a prophecy, declares himself a god and drives the worship of Jove out of his kingdom. If the mills of the gods grind fine, they also grind exceeding slow, since it takes Jove 18 years to get around to this case! But finally Crios, the youngest and most clever of the Titans, is sent to Crete to take on Cadmus. If he's successful, his brother Titans will get their release from Hades, so the ball is definitely in Crios' court.

Crios has the usual run of adventures -- a gymnastic brawl with the royal guards that leaps from street to rooftop and back again ad lib, then imprisonment and being forced to do small arena gladiator work. He also manages to catch a glimpse of, and fall in love with, Antiope, daughter of Cadmus and the first Mrs C. Now things begin to get complicated. See, the prophecy is that when Antiope falls in love, that means the Big Sleep for her evil daddy. So, natch, it's in his interest to keep her away from guys.

Pic is a little long, at 112 minutes, but it doesn't drag. Think of it as watching 3 arced episodes of "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys" back to back, but w/o the commercials. Tone of the production is similar to the Herc series, since it's full of mostly slapstick violence. The Titans, on earth, have no power other than their strength, so we get plenty of knock 'em down and bang 'em around scenes. Only at the very end does the violence get moderately serious, and even then, it's still well within a PG rating. Leonard Maltin's TV movies book says this was dubbed for comedy effect, a la "What's Up, Tiger Lily?" but if he's referring to the sound track on this version, it's quite misleading. The American dialogue track is breezy, though not the Valley dude and surfer boy yak of the Raimi series, and we're not within light years of "Tiger Lily" or "Ferocious Female Freedom Fighters" here. Anyway, it's obvious from the start that this pic was meant as a comic take on the peplum.

Giuliano Gemma plays Crios in full bleach-blonde mode. He grins a lot, but he always seems smarter than the average peplum lead of the 60s, and he's not called on to throw around papier-maché rocks from time to time like a Son of Hercules. Jacqueline Sassard, as Antiope, is a looker and a half. (Movie eschews several script opportunities to show her soaking wet.) Pedro Armendariz, in one of his last roles, is dubbed as Cadmus and brings only his presence to the US version of the film. Antonella Lualdi, as Hermione, doesn't get a lot to do but is something in the red wig she wears at the start, when she's young and hot. Since Gemma is just an ordinary-built guy, the muscles are supplied by Serge Nubret, a black man, as Rator, a fellow slave who becomes Crios' ally.

Production values are higher than average for the genre; the Cretan palace is really nice-looking and seems quite spacious. You might wonder why several of the Titans are shown as blonde, including Sisyphus and Prometheus, while they are in Hades, but when they eventually show up on earth to help out Crios, they're all dark-haired guys with facial hair. (At least, I wondered about it.) Light-hearted costume actioner is fun, without the cheap grinder looks the genre took on as production increased and budgets fell. I wish I'd seen this when I was about 12, but they'd have had to make it some years earlier than they actually did.

One complaint: the print shown on TCM is 1.33 ratio. The original was obviously shot in a wider ratio, perhaps 1.77 or 1.85 (no reference to 'scope in the credits or the AFI catalog). As a result, the framing is not always satisfactory. (Isn't it awful how letterboxed DVDs have spoiled us all when it comes to aspect ratios?) On the IMDb scale, I give this a solid 6.
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7/10
Non scary Gorgon, funny Cyclops n spaghetti western actor with blond eyebrows, good fun though.
Fella_shibby21 January 2018
Few years back my dad asked me if i can get him a dvd copy of Sons of thunder. Well, i was puzzled as there was no movie of this name showing on imdb. Lots of internet browsing n i finally concluded that Arrivano i titani aka My son, the hero aka Sons of thunder is one n the same movie. Had vague childhood memories of it. Revisted it recently on a dvd. It is a typical sword n sandal movie with humour n less fight sequences. The lead actor Giuliano Gemma did some amazing stunts, good gymnastics n free style running but his blond eyebrows were lol. In this we get to see a non scary Gorgon, funny Cyclops n competitive bodybuilder Serge Nubret.
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Mixed bag of mythology
dbdumonteil12 November 2011
The screenwriters do not seem to take this story seriously;neither does Giuliano Gemma ,who dyed his hair in blond (?),and whose dynamism and good humor save the movie from absolute tedium.The writers cash in on all sides,from Oedipus's curse to the Cyclop;we even catch a glimpse of Prometheus (ouch!my liver!) and the gorgon in a cock and bull story.The rest of the cast includes Italian Beauty Antonella Lualdi ,with a hideous hairdo and Jacqueline Sassard,who disappears from the screens after Chabrol's "les Biches " -she remains one of the French cinema biggest mysteries:what happened?some even said ,without any evidence,that she was dead;see for that matter the site "Etoiles Filantes"-and who is very good-looking (and good natured in the film,for she falls for the hero,in spite of his macho words about marriage).Serge Nubret ,who plays the dumb gladiator, was a famous body builder and he passed away recently.

If you do not want to think too hard.....
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7/10
Arrival of the Titans (My Son, the Hero)
trimbolicelia13 February 2023
Warning: Spoilers
Ok early 60's Italian, French co-produced color sword-and-sandal adventure. One of the Seven Titans (he appears to be the youngest, smallest brother) falls in love with a sequestered princess and fights her evil despotic father. At times it is played somewhat for laughs, but it has some good action. The leads are attractive. The Creature Feature Videos DVD-R is very good quality. The color is brilliant, and the picture is clear. Some of the dialogue, near the beginning, is in Italian but the rest is in English. There are no sub-titles. At 111 minutes it is rather long, but it appears to be the complete film. Since there appears to be no pressed DVD or Blu-ray available on this side of the pond, this burned DVD-R is worth getting.
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7/10
MY SON, THE HERO (Duccio Tessari, 1962) ***
Bunuel19763 May 2011
To begin with, this was another early TV recollection though I recently saw snippets from it on the "Stracult" Italian TV program. The film cemented handsome and likable Giuliano Gemma's leading-man status, but also marked his first of a long-running and felicitous collaboration with the director that spanned 9 films (not counting the recently-viewed MESSALINA, IMPERIAL VENUS {1960} which Tessari only co-scripted and where the star had a small part). After looking high and low for a copy of the film (a recent Cable TV screening was obviously in Italian and widescreen but reportedly proved problematic), I landed a pan-and-scan edition of the English-dubbed version; still, being in a peplum frame-of-mind, I thought better of revisiting it in this manner rather than wait for a more congenial edition and which may never even happen!; incidentally, the English title is quite lame (the original translates to HERE COME THE TITANS). Anyway, while I had anticipated a low-brow and comedy-oriented offering, it emerged a superior and reasonably stylish genre effort.

The narrative involves the titular band, banished by the Gods who were jealous of their superhuman strength but now called upon to cut ruthless King (and self-proclaimed deity) Pedro Armedariz – making for a dry-run to his similar invulnerable character in the above-average and effects-filled fantasy-adventure CAPTAIN SINDBAD (1963) – down to size! He has killed wife Jacqueline Sassard in order to marry Antonella Lualdi (interestingly cast as a villainess but then served a dismally underwritten part!); the King is nonetheless bound by a prophecy which dictates that he is doomed to die when the child (also played, delightfully, as a grown-up by the waif-ish yet gorgeous Sassard) falls in love – so, when he tries to kill her, the Gods add another clause, as it were, that he will himself perish instantly if the girl does!; therefore, he tries to work his way around this by locking her up…only, when she reaches the age of 18, Sassard is to be presented as a Vestal Virgin to the Gods. It is in the temple that she happens to come face to face with Gemma – sent to pave the way for the Titans' 'atonement' in view of his cleverness and agility – since, at the time of the ceremony, he is a prisoner in the dungeons below (having deliberately insulted the King so as to be taken before him and lead his soldiers on an acrobatic roof-chase!) and decides to take a look!

To cut a long story short, he becomes a sort of gladiator (though the bouts take place indoors and only consist of wrestling matches) where he triumphs over his opponent by rubbing himself in oil and slipping his grip at every turn(!) and eventually wins favor with Armendariz (which naturally allows him to get close to his love); still, the latter turn-of-events obviously does not please the King and Gemma finds himself at the receiving end of his ire. Rallying support from some of his old prison/arena colleagues and later joined by the liberated and spoiling-for-a-fight Titans themselves, we get to the climax which sees Armendariz being literally whisked all the way down to Hades when the earth opens up beneath his feet…and Sassard is now left to govern the people of Crete with Gemma at her side. The highly-entertaining film (running for a hefty but fast-paced 111 minutes) looks very nice despite the misframing and is further blessed with a bouncy score by the ubiquitous Carlo Rustichelli (he has scored the lion's share of the peplums I watched throughout the month!).
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7/10
Funny adventure.
tomimt4 June 2007
Warning: Spoilers
'Arrivano i titani' is a charming little movie, that does not try to be anything else than it really is: a silly comedy bound around a story about man gods, real gods and half gods.

King of Crete Cadmo (Pedro Armendáriz) kills his wife after he has learned a secret of immortality. He then marries his mistress, who has taught him the secret, but in doing so he hears a of his fate: when his daughter Antiope (Jacqueline Sassard) falls in love will he meet his doom, but he can't prevent that by killing the girl, as he will die at the same moment the girl.

In order to escape this future Cadmo imprisons his daughter, so she can't see any men and announces himself as a god and denounces all old gods, who of course get upset and send a man, or actually a titan Kritos (Giuliano Gemma), who in the same time must redeem his brothers, who also have angered the great Jupiter. And guess who he falls in love with.

Anyway, this all gives a setting for rather witty word play, some funny physical comedy and so on. Friends are made and enemies are killed and the good guys always finish in the last moment. Nothing too complicated really, as in truth, this movie would be just as funny with out the supernatural aspect, though it doesn't hurt.

In style the style resembles a lot TV series like Hercules. The spirit is adventurous and only fools would take it too seriously.
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4/10
Somewhat better than average muscleman epic
JohnSeal12 May 2001
Here's one entry in the sword and sandal cycle that is pretty enjoyable, as it blends fantasy elements into the standard strong man vs evil king story. It even manages to foreshadow the 'stranger' themes of spaghetti westerns in its final scenes. Giuliano Gemma is the likeable hero who takes on the evil King Cadmus of Crete, who has struck a deal with the devil (so to speak)in order to get away with murdering his wife. Director Tessari seems to have had a reasonable budget here: too bad the pan and scan print is what is currently available. Incidentally, the rumours attributed to both the Maltin guide and the Psychotronic Film Guide are wrong: there's no evidence that any of the dubbing was done to achieve comic effect (though there are some intentionally funny moments).
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7/10
Delightful sword and sandals comedy
dopefishie10 March 2023
Delightful sword and sandals comedy!

First and foremost, this is a comedy masquerading as and action fantasy. So, don't take it too seriously. Giuliano Gemma owns the screen as our hero, Krios. He is charming and incredibly likeable. Serge Nubret is his sidekick, and he is so ripped his muscles have muscles. Jacqueline Sassard is the breathtakingly beautiful love interest that needs to be rescued not once but twice.

The plot is really just a series of excuses to setup funny adventure scenarios. There are many references to ancient Greek and/or Roman gods and legends. There's a gorgon and a cyclops and some ancient depictions of hell. It's a good time!
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2/10
ads were better than the movie
rgarfiel21 August 2010
This was meant to be a serious sword-and-sandal epic. However, in NYC, the TV ads for the film were made, believe it or not, by Mel Brooks! Mel made it seem like a quickie satire of the genre rather than the more-or-less straight story it was meant to be. The ads were hilarious; sample voice-over while showing scenes from the movie: "See hand maidens, foot maidens, all kinds maidens (this with a Yiddish accent). See the crazy lady with snakes in her hair; see a nice Cyclops. See 'My Son, the Hero'." The movie is long forgotten, but anyone who heard Brooks' promos have never forgotten them. It was a preview of the inspired lunacy to come.
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8/10
The Titans arrived!
andrabem1 October 2007
"Arrivano i Titani" is an Italian-made sword & sandal epic filmed by Duccio Tessari that would also be responsible for some westerns and even giallos.

It's a very entertaining film that tells a story extracted from the Greek mythology: King Cadmo (Pedro Armendariz), by his crimes and presumption, has provoked the wrath of the gods. They warned him through a messenger that the first time his daughter fell in love he would die, and it would be no use killing her, because in the minute her heart stopped beating, he would be no more. So Cadmo brings up his daughter Antiope (Jacqueline Sassard) in reclusion - she is destined to be a priestess in a temple. She has never met a man in her life.

Meanwhile one of the Titans (chained to the rocks in a cave of a mountain because of their rebellion against Jupiter) is released. He is Krios (Giuliano Gemma). His mission is to punish King Cadmo. Krios is divested of his divine powers - he's now a simple mortal and can only rely on his wits to succeed. If he's successful, he and his brother Titans will be forgiven......

"Arrivano i Titani" manages to mix action, fantasy, humor and even a naive sensuality and romanticism. Unlike the American epic films in which pretty women represent either sin or innocence, "Arrivano i Titani" (like other Italian epics) celebrates the joy of the senses - beautiful women and landscapes, ribald humor, action scenes that sometimes resemble circus acts and a joyous soundtrack that looks like a parody of "The Bridge on the River Kwai".

"Arrivano i Titani" was made on a low budget (if you compare it with the American epics), but it's certainly more creative and free than its American counterparts.
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