KnotMissPriceless Why so much hype?

SnoReptilePlenty Memorable, crazy movie

Roxie The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

Haven Kaycee It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film

Jonathon Dabell Pre-stardom Roger Moore is preposterously cast as Romulus, the founder of Rome, in this enjoyably awful peplum made by a largely Italian cast and crew. It's quite something to witness Moore - skinny-armed, skinny- legged and curly-haired – issuing orders to massed ranks of horny Roman citizens as they plead with him to allow women into their lives. The film is undoubtedly cheap and feeble stuff… but there's a degree of innocent charm to be found in some of these old sword 'n' sandal offerings, especially ones which feature a future superstar in a role which will one day come back to haunt him. Romulus And The Sabines (or whatever title you know it by, for it has many… Rape Of The Sabines, L'Enlevement Des Sabines, El Rapto De Las Sabinas, etc. etc.) is definitely amusing on a curiosity level – if you are a collector of Moore's movies, for instance, this long-lost obscurity is an irresistible hoot.As the story begins, Rome is little more than a village under the early stages of construction by various fugitives, travellers and vagabonds – all of them male - who have chosen to swear allegiance to King Romulus (Roger Moore). After months of hard toil, the men are growing weary and disillusioned. In particular, they long for women to be brought into their lives and rightly point out that their efforts will be for nought if no babies are being born to populate their newly built kingdom. Reluctantly, Romulus agrees to submit to their demands and asks Titus (Folco Lulli) - king of the neighbouring kingdom of Sabinia - if he will donate some of his women for marriage to the men of Rome. Titus refuses and instead sends a cartload of pigs to the Romans, greatly angering them. But Romulus comes up with another plan, to kidnap the Sabine women by force and bring them back to Rome to repopulate the rapidly expanding nation. Things are complicated further when Romulus finds himself falling desperately in love with Rhea (Mylène Demongeot) a vestal virgin and daughter of King Titus. Meanwhile, the Sabinian soldiers prepare to attack Rome and free their women… but the question is: do the women truly want to be rescued?There is some incredibly banal dialogue in the film at times. "Hey! There's no need to pull my hair!" declares a Sabine girl, rather prissily, as a Roman attempts to drag her away from her home and family forever. "She's a vestal virgin, Romulus. We have consecrated her to the Gods", warns Rhea's mother as he lecherously ogles the young princess. "Why didn't you consecrate her to the SONS of the Gods?" Romulus ruefully retorts, referring to his self-proclaimed title as the son of Mars. The whole film is stuffed with similarly over-ripe exchanges. Some of the crowd scenes and battle sequences betray the film's ultra-low budget, but there are a handful of decent moments amid the morass – the kidnapping of the Sabine women is enjoyably handled, and the climactic clash between the Sabinians and Romans (prematurely aborted at the discovery of a baby's birth which unites the bloodline of both kingdoms) is competently done. In other aspects the film is something of an embarrassment, especially its cringeworthy attempts to inject humour via a short-sighted Roman ambassador whose visual impairment results in numerous zany pratfalls. Overall, there can be no serious argument that Romulus And The Sabines has genuine artistic merit, nor that it is a neglected gem, but strictly on a curiosity level it has a degree of charm and interest.

Armand childish, heroic in few moments but not impressive. testimony of a time , in which blockbusters are skin for historical subjects, it is seductive only for cast. and for ambiguous intentions of director. sure, Roger Moore or Jean Marais are perfect names for epic but, in same time, important source of frustration. because the beautiful story is a strange mixture of feminism, myths, jokes and love story. all in same place, maybe the public is master of choices. the tale is thin, the fight scenes - nice, the beauty - not spectacular but interesting for understand sensitivity of a time. but the central error is its role of page from a movie type. after so many films inspired by Antiquity it is difficult to be happy at meeting with "Il ratto delle sabine". not for the force of the other creations - it is not Spartacus or Ben Hur - but for the ambition of director to say all in not well manner.

dbdumonteil ...for they do appear ,when Romulus is fast asleep ,and try to change his destiny:after all ,he is Mars's son .The God and the Goddess are played by earnest thespian Jean Marais and Italian beauty Rossanna Schiaffino :they would team up again ,this time as the principals in André Hunebelle's remake of "Le Miracle Des Loups" the very same year.Richard Pottier is an odd job man whose works are eclectic ,from the first version of "some like it hot" ("Fanfare D'Amour") to social concern (euthanasia in "Meurtres" ) to ...sword and sandals .His Peplum can be looked upon as the continuing story of Romulus which Sergio Corbucci began with "Romolo E Remo" the same year.Steve Reeves is replaced by Roger Moore who is not a muscle man but anyway was Romulus an athlete?Mylene Demongeot ,who provides the main love interest ,was considered a Brigitte Bardot clone and her career who brilliantly began with "Les Sorcieres De Salem" suffered accordingly.It seems that Pottier did not know what he intended to do:the movie is now a comedy nay a farce ,now a dramatic tale with lots of death.Historical interest is thin and the low budget does not help :Moore and vestal Demongeot wear the same costume during the whole film.Francis Blanche ,as a myopic potential husband provides the movie with its comic relief (comic,so to speak).Women ,ahead of their time don't want to be treated as cattle :they want to choose their husband !

MARIO GAUCI Below-par peplum which, more than anything else, serves to demonstrate that Roger Moore (playing Romulus, ruler of Rome and the son of a deity!) is as ill-suited to the genre as John Wayne or Alan Ladd had been!! Dealing with the popular legend of the Rape Of The Sabine Women - which also inspired the musical SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS (1954) - the film is strictly a potboiler, with colorful scenery but little real action and obligatory hit-or-miss comedy relief provided by Moore's pint-sized, myopic spokesman. Mylene Demongeot - who seemed to have been a fixture with this type of film - is, as ever, a most lovely heroine (sparring for Moore's attentions with the duplicitous Scilla Gabel, who eventually expires in an incredible manner by way of a deflected arrow); meanwhile, Giorgia Moll and Marino Mase' fill in for the secondary romantic interest - while the thing is given some measure of dignity by the presence of Folco Lulli, playing the jovial Sabine king, and cameos (in the film's most interesting scene) by Jean Marais and Rosanna Schiaffino as Roman Gods, respectively Mars and Venus, who appear before the sleeping Romulus - pretty much in the style of the Tom & Jerry cartoons! - to 'influence' his thoughts (i.e. whether to pursue the path to war or love). While not quite as bad as the similar (and similarly-titled) COLOSSUS AND THE AMAZON QUEEN (1960), the best film to incorporate the Battle Of The Sexes into the peplum genre remains AMAZONS OF ROME (1961; co-directed by Vittorio Cottafavi).