Samson and the 7 Miracles of the World (1961) User Reviews (15)

Impressive and colorful oriental adventure with a bouncing Gordon Scott helping a princess in distress

[ma-cortes · 6/10 · 7 February 2012]

Maciste or Samson in the court of the Great Khan is an amusing and entertaining muscle-men movie . This time our hero , the mightiest of them all , known as Maciste renamed Samson for Americans is in the 13th century battling a nasty emperor and Mongol warlords . The emperor of China besieged by the Tartars asks for help the chief of Mongols , but this one rules over the empire . The Mongol (Dante DiPaolo) supported by a wicked woman (Helene Chanel) and a hoodlum (Franco Ressel) kill the emperor and take care the sons . One time grown , the Mongol orders to close the daughter (Yoko Tani) in a convent and kill the son but he's saved by Samson (Gordon Scott) from a tiger . He very Earth itself shakes when our hero goes into battle . Meanwhile , Sanson or Maciste or Hercules helped by a rebel (Gabrielle Antonini) and the high priest (Valery Inkjinoff) must rescue a beautiful Chinese princess from a marauding horde of warriors .

¨Samson and the 7 miracles of the world¨ also titled ¨Goliath and the golden country¨ is an enjoyable sword and sandals movie with historical backstage , action , thrills , love , battles and spectacular scenarios. Being one of the best vehicles of its kind Italy ever produced . However , it contains a silly final in which Samson absurdly eliminates enemies by means a shaking . With the massive exterior sets, lavish interior sets and a multitude of Asian extras left over from ¨Marco Polo¨ by Piero Pirotti and Hugo Fregoneses , was realized this ¨ Maciste alla Corte del Gran Khan¨ , a good fashion sword-and-sandal/mythological Muscleman epic , placing hero Maciste in a Chinese setting . Genre specialist Riccardo Freda was brought in to direct, Gordon Scott was cast as Maciste (renamed "Samson" for the U.S. version) and Yoko Tani was kept on as the female lead . It became regarded as one of the better films of that genre . Gordon Scott is top-notch, as the historic hero who finds many dangerous situations while attempting save China and confronting several risks against the Great Khan . Strong and robust Gordon Scott was a magnificent muscle-man . He was one along with Ed Fury, Brad Harris, Kirk Morris, Reg Park, Mark Forest, among others, whom to seek fortune acting absurdly muscle mythological figures, but anybody topped Steve Reeves and Gordon Scott in popularity . He played other epic characters : ¨Coroliano hero without country¨ , ¨Gladiator of Rome¨ , ¨Hero of Rome¨ , ¨Hercules and Princess of Troy¨ , ¨Conquest of Micene¨ , though also made some Spaghetti as ¨The tramplers¨ and ¨Buffalo Bill ¨, Spy-genre as ¨Secretissimo¨and ¨Death ray¨ and of course his famous Tarzan movies as ¨Tarzan and the trappers ¨ .

Evocative and glimmer cinematography bu Pallotini . Stirring and imaginative musical score by Carlo Inocennci and in US version composed by Lex Baxter . The motion picture finely written by an usual Spaghetti Western , Duccio Tessari , is well directed by Riccardo Freda who used a number of aliases during his career, including Robert Hampton or George Lincoln and as screenwriter Riccardo Freda . Freda along with Vittorio Cottafavi continued to realize films in the historical-spectacular style , at which he developed a considerable skill and mastery . From the mid-50s Freda's liking make for atmospheric and colorful scenes of shock began to itself apparent , especially in such musclemen epics as ¨Teodora¨ , ¨Spartacus¨ , ¨Giants of Thessaly¨ , ¨The seventh sword¨ , ¨Maciste all's inferno ¨, the latter a gripping/horror Peplum and of course ¨Maciste in the court of the Great Khan¨, one of his best films . In the early 60s , he was a pioneer in Italy of horror-fantasy films frightening audiences the world over , especially with ¨I Vampiri¨ and ¨L'Orrible Segreto del Dottor Hitchcock¨ as he combined with that wide-staring of actress , the British-born Barbara Steele . He also made adventures as ¨Black Eagle¨ , ¨The son of Black Eagle¨ , ¨White devil¨ , ¨Son of D'Artagnan¨ , and uncredited ¨Daughter of D'Artagnan¨ ¨. From there he went to melodrama and spy films as ¨¨Mexican Slayride¨and ¨Coplan FX18¨ and even made some western as ¨No killing without dollars¨ with Mark Damon and signed under pseudonym as George Lincoln . Strong on visual style, Freda's movies had popular appeal , and were usually commercial hits . Several were French/Spanish/Italian or other European co-productions . He has been called a filmmaker "who brings some style to exploitation pictures", and has something of a cult following . Rating : 6 , acceptable and passable sword and sandals movie .

Gordon SCOTT as Maciste in China and Mongolia

[ZeddaZogenau · 5/10 · 6 January 2024]

Gordon Scott as Maciste at the Chinese Emperor's court

Maciste was actually an invention of the Italian author Gabriele D'Annunzio. The hero from the history of Carthage, blessed with Herculean powers, first appeared on the screen in the Italian monumental silent film "Cabiria" (1914). Bartolomeo Pagano (1878-1947) became a silent film star with this role. When the Peplum craze began in Italy at the end of the 1950s after Steve Reeves' hit Hercules films, Maciste was virtually recycled as a hero. This time he was not only used in ancient Carthage, but wherever and whenever a muscle-bound hero was needed.

So it happens that in this film the American bodybuilder Gordon Scott (1927-2007) has to intervene in a dispute between the Mongolian Great Khan and the Chinese emperor. Since a size smaller is not possible, Maciste has to use his bearish strength to trigger an (all too ridiculous) earthquake. Yoko Tani, Gabriele Antonini and Helene Chanel can be seen in other roles. During those years, the Franco-Japanese actress Yoko Tani (1928-1999) was married to Roland Lesaffre, Marcel Carne's favorite actor.

Definitely not the best Italian-made sandal film, even if director Riccardo Fredda has cult status among fan circles.

Maciste is the man who can

[Chase_Witherspoon · 4/10 · 27 April 2012]

Not bad as far as peplum goes, with former Tarzan Gordon Scott plying his trade as Maciste (or Samson in the English dub), go-to man of steel helping a Chinese princess (Tani) return to her people after she's captured by the evil Garak (Severini) who then wages war upon the poor villagers and Monks to retrieve her and his pride.

Scott is capable and ably supported by French-Japanese actress Yoko Tani, while French beauty Helene Chanel belies her youth in a physically demanding role of the imperial turncoat who helps Maciste smuggle the Princess out of the fortified compound in which she's held.

Stuntwork is creditable and there's a chariot-execution scene in which big Gordo flexes his frame to save the heads of a few petty thieves, but otherwise, it's very much more of the same. As usual, the sets and costumes are lavish and if you're partial to peplum movies, then this Maciste instalment should be mildly entertaining.

Another glorified muscleman movie expertly exploited by American International into drive-in big bucks.

[TheVid · 24 March 2003]

Ex-Tarzan Gordon Scott is the beefcake in this low-budget but exotic sword-and-sandal potboiler, set, oddly enough, in China. The set pieces are convincingly done for a mini-epic of this sort, and Scott appears to have done some amazing stuntwork in a chariot sequence. Les Baxter's recognizable GOLIATH AND THE BARBARIANS score has been superimposed once again by American International to good effect. One of the better retro-stud peplums for those interested.

Crap...but what the hell?

[refrankfurt · 2/10 · 9 February 2006]

Somehow I managed to miss this turkey whenever it was originally released. I recently found it on one of those two-movies-for-a-buck DVD's they sell at the Dollar Tree, and am happy to report that it was worth every penny of the 50 cents it cost. I may even watch it again some time, if I can get drunk enough.

So what's a badly dubbed, Anglo-Saxon muscleman doing in thirteenth-century China, fighting the Mongols? Apparently he just wanders the globe, selflessly righting wrongs and fighting oppressors. Sort of an oily, loincloth messiah. And that, of course, is what makes these movies fun to watch. No matter how lousy the acting, no matter how ridiculous the dialogue, no matter how fragmented the continuity, no matter how asinine the plot, the bad guys always get killed in nasty ways, and the oppressed good guys liberated, by a hero who just walks off into the sunset at the end, demanding neither money, nor sex, nor even bus fare. Wouldn't that be nice?

Of course, Gordon Scott did do some nifty stunt work with the killer chariot, and he really made hash out of that stuffed tiger. And watch for a brief cameo appearance by a bug crawling across the camera lens during the big smackdown at the end. It is probably the most natural piece of acting in the whole movie.

Gordon Scott In A Loincloth

[Rainey-Dawn · 1/10 · 21 January 2017]

Bwahaha Gordon Scott is the only one in the film running around in a loincloth - that is funny. Everyone else is dressed appropriately. But the muscular build of Gordon Scott must be fully shown I guess.

Maciste / Samson is in 13th Century China and must rescue a Chinese princess from a marauding horde of warriors - the Tatars (Turkic peoples)! The Mongol Empire, established under Genghis Khan.

It's not a film for me really. I'm not saying it's an awful film, I'm just saying I didn't care for it. I think I can find other films to watch and other things to do instead of watching Gordon Scott looking like Tarzan in a boring film.

1/10

The only miracle here is Gordon Scott's body

[gridoon2024 · 4/10 · 9 March 2019]

Gordon Scott, at the peak of his physical form, proudly displays his chiseled body in nothing more than a rather fetching orange loincloth, often glistening with sweat (only Helene Chanel gives him any competition for sexiness). The film itself is far from exciting, but it's slightly more bearable than others of its ilk, with a basic "save-the-princess" story and a mini-earthquake climax. *1/2 out of 4.

Gordon Scott frees the Chinese People

[bkoganbing · 3/10 · 11 December 2010]

Gordon Scott carries over his Tarzan character for Maciste/Samson at the Court Of the Great Khan. In various countries this film was either dubbed for Samson or Maciste.

If it was Samson it was past biblical times as you can tell by the title. The Mongols as a dynasty did not rule China long for only between one hundred and two hundred years. I assume the folks that Scott is helping are the Mings.

He rescues a prince and princess at various times aiding the rebels against the Great Khan. The climax involves Scott coming out of a sealed tomb and causing an earthquake that shakes the Khan right out of his throne. Japanese actress Yoko Tani escapes the fate worse than anything little Nell had to face, marrying a most repulsive Mongol Emperor.

Why did Gordon Scott give up Tarzan?

Enjoyable old-fashioned peplum romp

[Leofwine_draca · 7/10 · 7 December 2016]

Sumptuous sets, a foreign locale, and assured direction from Italian horror director Riccardo Freda give this low-budget peplum adventure a kind of epic feel. For once, the film has a wide-reaching story, even if it does amount - in the end - to the usual "muscular hero fights evil and commits heroic acts" template that the peplum genre was so fond of. Once again the American re-titling is misleading, and it's amusing to note that there are only about three at the most events that can be called "miracles" in this film - the rest? Who knows, but the title sounded good.

Although the film is set in ancient China, it's amusing to note that all of the leads are played by one American and five or so Italians - I guess the foreign pull wasn't THAT strong at the box office! As usual, it's difficult to judge the quality of the acting, because of the dubbing process used, but I think it's safe to say that Gordon Scott gives one of his best performances as the hero in this film. He's both charismatic and athletic when he needs to be, and I would rate his turn here as just below his fine portrayal in MACISTE AGAINST THE VAMPIRE. Yoko Tani plays a Chinese princess who is also the romantic love interest, and she puts in an assured performance as a heroine who is actually required to think and make her own decisions on occasions - a step up from the usual buxom-yet-dumb females they put in this film. My only complaint with the cast is that the lead villain is a lovable jolly-looking bloke and not a snide, scheming Fu Manchu-alike as he should be.

The plot may be a familiar one, but for once there is a wealth of action in this film to enjoy. From the typical - a bar-room brawl, no less - to the unusual (Samson uproots a tree, thus knocking three soldiers who were hiding in it out), there are so many fights and skirmishes that you won't know where to look. Samson (or should that be Maciste?) gets to perform a whole load of heroic acts here, from moving rocks to the aforementioned uprooting trees, to fighting a fake tiger, to ringing the "bell of freedom" which no strongman has been able to do before. And to go one better, at the end he is buried alive (Poe would have been proud) and awakes to cause a major earthquake, thus destroying the Mongol city! Actually, although this ending sounds impressive, it's rushed and quite feeble when you watch it. This doesn't stop SAMSON AND THE SEVEN MIRACLES OF THE WORLD being an enjoyable romp in the old tradition with far better sets and scale than the usual low-budget constraints of such films.

Samson and the 7 Miracles of the World- true spectacle!

[jake j · 9/10 · 21 November 2001]

Bold as the fiery women of Atlanta, as explosive as Attila bursting out of the Balkans to ram his savage troops against all Europe- filmdom's greatest sword and sandal Titan- Samson(Machiste) faces and wins the cinema's most spectacular battle as he performs his 7 Miracles of the World in Colorscope and Stereophonic sound. Ancient Rome vividly comes alive as every nickle of the 4-million dollar budget is on the screen. enough of the P.R. from 1961, it's a poorly-dubbed overacted absolutely standard muscleman pic from the factory.......after failing with the original title, it was re-released often and often on triple-bills with Samson and 7 Miracles the most successful, and dishonest.

One of my Favorite Films

[dbborroughs · 9/10 · 12 February 2004]

Its not high art but it is highly entertaining. One of the many retitled Maciste films about a muscle man who wanders the world and helps out people in need. This time he's in China and helps a country find freedom by literally ringing the bell of freedom. It has a couple of good fights, the hero saving men buried up to their heads from having chariots with bladed wheels from running over them and of course the classic causing an earthquake as he frees himself from his burial place in a mountain. It has exotic locals and takes itself just seriously enough that you can buy whats going on. If you get the chance try it.

This "Samson" saga is might short on miracles

[zardoz-13 · 9/10 · 15 March 2005]

Call him Samson. Call him Goliath. Call him Maciste. Whatever you call him, former 1950s Tarzan star Gordon Scott calls himself Samson in this lavishly produced but low-budget sword and sandal epic set in China during the 13th century. Our beefy protagonist sets out to destroy murderous Mongol warriors who want to rule China by killing its virgin princess (Yoko Tani of "Koroshi") and sacrificing its prince to a tiger. Samson behaves like the Lone Ranger here roaming the world to right wrongs. Not surprisingly, Scott has been dubbed by somebody else, which is a real shame, because Scott ranks as one of the few big-screen beefcakes who possessed acting talent. "Lady Frankenstein" lenser Riccardo Pallottini gives this mediocre adventure a sprawling, larger-than-life look.

Anyway, Samson wanders in to save the day in customary style. All the guy wears is shoes and an elaborate red diaper. Mind you, the fight between Samson and a tiger appears apocryphal, but how else could they have staged it without a real live tiger? There's a complex chariot scene where our mighty hero saves the lives of several Chinamen buried up to their necks and awaiting certain death when the aforementioned chariot tries to run them down and cut their heads off. In fact, Scott does one of his own stunts as he clings for dear life to the tongue of the chariot as it careens around the open ground of an arena. The best thing about the screenplay penned by Oreste ("The Witch's Curse"—another 'fish out of water' strongman saga) Biancoli, based on a story that Duccio ("A Fistful of Dollars") Tessari and he wrote, is that it doesn't bog down in machinations. Clocking in at a really lean, mean 79 minutes, "Samson" doesn't linger. The best scene in what amounts to a generic rebellion plot occurs near the end when an apparently dead Samson precipitates an earthquake. Indeed, Samson's last act is truly his best act. After the villains capture an apparently dead Samson, they bury him in a claustrophobic vault in the bowels of a mountain of solid rock. They even go to extent of having a midget creep into the crawlspace of a tomb and shackle Samson in snugly, but when the strongman awakens to a priest's summons, nothing can keep him down.

Thoroughly average in script and action, "Samson and the Seven Miracles of the World" is marginally entertaining. Scott makes a more than serviceable muscle-bound hero. An amusing scene takes place in a restaurant that Samson pretty much demolishes when he goes toe-to-toe with the many villains. Afterward, he discards a support beam as if it were a toothpick, then apologizes to the owner for all the destruction that he has wrought before leaving. People who love English dubbed Italian muscle man spectacles will enjoy this run-of-the-mill muscle man movie. Clearly, the Samson as he is so-called here has little in common with the Biblical Samson, because Gordon Scott wears his hair far too short. The version that I watched came from Alpha Video and they appear to have semi-letter-boxed their grainy print, so that its 2.35.1 ratio is squeezed down to 1.85.1, but a little letter-boxing beats none at all.

Samson and the 7 miracles

[coltras35 · 8/10 · 23 December 2023]

Hordes of sadistic Mongol warriors descend upon China, enslaving its people and plotting to assassinate the beautiful young princess (Yôko Tani) -until a musclebound hero (Gordon Scott) rises up and rouses the people to drive the Mongols from their nation's majestic mountainscapes.

Gordon Scott, my favourite Tarzan, once again dons the toga, brandishes the enemy with red pillars, flings them around like they are pillows and also gets to sprouts some sage dialogue like "justice doesn't know race or creed." It's actually a well-made Peplum with great photography and grand action - chariot-charging action where our hero goes under and clings on to it, a fearless tiger-wrestling stunts and an earthshaking climax is quite impressive. No CGI! Real stunts. Definitely one of the better peplums - Sets are big and spectacular to watch. The only gripe is that it's a bit overlong.

"Why Must I Be Surrounded By Idiots?!"...

[azathothpwiggins · 15 June 2021]

SAMSON AND THE 7 MIRACLES OF THE WORLD stars Gordon Scott as Maciste / Samson, the bipedal piledriver of the title. Set in China, those Mongols are up to mischief again.

Enter Samson, knocking over a tree, and tossing bad guys like dolls, before teaching a sedated -stuffed?- tiger a lesson. This allows him to save an abducted prince. Samson sets out to right the wrongs of Asia, finding ample opportunity to stand around shiny and shirtless in his red mini-skirt.

It's not long before Sam rescues a princess (Yoko Tani) as well! Needless to say, this involves swinging large objects, and tossing men around like packing pellets. Garak (Leonardo Severini), the Mongol leader, is not amused, and causes big trouble for Big S.

A thrilling adventure involving a hermit, death, and a dramatic resurrection unfolds, leading to the dynamite denouement, when Samson sends Mongols flying like dandelion seeds!

Entertaining throughout its running time, this movie rivals the Hercules epics!...

NEW BLU-RAY VERSION HAS MANY FLAWS

[larryanderson · 9/10 · 2 February 2024]

I bought the new Blu-Ray version thinking that it would be perfect. There is an Italian version in English and a so-called American International USA/Canada version. Both show the "ring the gong of freedom" scene but it was so DARK, you could barely see Gordon Scott. Just black screen in parts. Whereas the Oldies.com and others I have had, show that scene in clear color. Strange how they messed that up? When Samson is being chased by the guards, he runs up to the city stone wall and "appears" inside the palace in the dubbed Italian copy, but in their API copy, they show the HIDDEN DOOR which they clumsily edit in. (narrower screen and much different color. Also missing from the Italian copy is a Horseman riding across a river, which incidentally is taken from Goliath Against the Barbarians. It is in their AIP copy though. The commentator, doesn't even mention either of these two omissions. Their AIP copy has "small screens" "odd color" and seems to be strung together from many different versions, even though they say "it is the theatrical AIP version shown in theaters". It definitely is NOT. The only thing that is good about this release is the English dubbing on the Italian copy. Larry Anderson.