Queen Tenefi (Ljubica Otasevic) is the ruler of Memphis. The captain of the guard, Themail (Aldo Bufi Landi) and his soldiers go out to collect tribute for the queen from the various villages in her domain. If they don’t have the tribute the soldiers take the women from village for sacrifice. Every day a young woman is given to the monstrous Yuri Men for sacrifice to the God of Fire whose temple is in the Mountain of Thunder. When an elder from one of the villages pleads to Maciste (Kirk Morris) for help, he and the men from his village attack the soldiers and free the women. One of the women is Antea (Cathia Caro). She had been in the village because her village had been destroyed by Themail and his minions. She asks Maciste if she can go with him to his village. She pledges her loyalty to him.
In the meantime the rightful heir to the throne of Memphis has been in hiding since he was a child. Prince Iram (Piero Leri) and his mentor and bodyguard Santos (Bruno Tocci) visit the local oracle Yalis (Carla Calo). She tells them that to gain the throne back they need to enlist the aid of Maciste. While the prince and Maciste are discussing a plan they are overheard by a silk merchant named Omnes (Giulio Donnini). Omnes is aware that there is a price on Maciste’s head from freeing the last batch of sacrifices. Omnes betrays Maciste to Themail and he is captured.
After making Maciste perform a trick, Queen Tenefi uses her magic scepter to make Maciste her slave. Antea seeks help from \Yalis the Oracle. Yalis gives her an antidote to Queen Tenefi’s drug. Antea gives the drug to Maciste and brings him to his senses but she gets caught and is sentenced to be sacrificed. If Maciste can’t save her she will be given to the Yuri Men for their fire god.
“Triumph of the Son of Hercules” AKA “The Triumph of Maciste” AKA “II trionfo di Maciste” was released in 1961 and was directed by Tanio Boccia. It is a sword and sandal film and one of the 14 Italian films that were dubbed into English and repackaged as part of the “Sons of Hercules” for the American audience. This one stars Kirk Morris as Maciste and, of course, features the “Sons of Hercules” theme song.
The movie is your standard sword and sandal film. The highlight is when Maciste is being pulled apart by two teams of horses and chariots. The scene is a little longer than need be but since the purpose of it is to highlight Morris’ bulging muscles I guess it’s to be expected. He does a few other feats of strength but the chariots are the highlight.
Other than that there isn’t anything really memorable about the film and nothing that sets it apart from the dozens of other sword and sandal films. Morris is better looking than some of the other bodybuilder-actors in peplum films but no better an actor than any of the others. Some of the footage of Maciste in the climax’s “Mountain of Thunder” was used in Morris’ film “The Witch’s Curse” 1962.
Kirk Morris was actually an Italian bodybuilder named Adriano Bellini. He won the 1961 Mr. Italia Bodybuilding contest. This was Morris’ first film. He did a whole bunch of sword and sandal films before moving on to the next genre. He also played Belsy in “Star Pilot” AKA “2+5 Mission Hydra” 1966.
Supposedly the scene where Maciste is tied to two horses and has to strain to keep them from tearing him in half was used in a deodorant commercial in the late 60’s but I haven’t been able to find it.