The Lion of Thebes

1964 film

The Lion of Thebes (Italian: Il leone di Tebe, French: Hélène, reine de Troie) is a peplum film written and directed by Giorgio Ferroni.^[2][3][4]

Plot

When the Greek army conquers Troy, Helen is exiled from her city. Her loyal guard Arion and Helene ends up shipwrecked on the shores of Egypt, they meet a caravan in the desert and escape from them to Thebes. In the Egyptian city, the Pharaoh Ramses falls in love with Helen, and this ends up making her numerous enemies during her stay in Egypt. She ends up being blamed for the assassination of Ramses, and its up to Arion to save her from those who wish to harm her.

Cast

• Mark Forest as Arion
• Yvonne Furneaux as Helen of Troy
• Massimo Serato as Tutmes
• Pierre Cressoy as Ramses
• Alberto Lupo as Menelao
• Nerio Bernardi as Xesostus
• Rosalba Neri as Nais
• Carlo Tamberlani as Amenofis
• Nello Pazzafini as Gaor
• Tullio Altamura as Elnà
• Enzo Fiermonte as Tutmès' henchman

Production

The film was shot at the De Paolis studios in Rome.^[5]

Release

The Lion of Thebes was released in Italy with an 88 minute running time on June 28, 1964.^[1] It was released in 1965 in the United States.^[1]

References

1. Kinnard & Crnkovich 2017, p. 107.
2. Roberto Chiti; Roberto Poppi; Enrico Lancia; Mario Pecorari (1991). Dizionario del cinema italiano. I film. Gremese Editore, 1992. ISBN 8876055932.
3. Patrick Lucanio (1994). With fire and sword: Italian spectacles on American screens, 1958-1968. Scarecrow Press, 1994. ISBN 0810828162.
4. Paolo Mereghetti (2010). Il Mereghetti* - Dizionario dei film. B.C. Dalai Editore, 2010. ISBN 978-8860736260.
5. Howard Hughes. Cinema Italiano - The Complete Guide From Classics To Cult. I.B.Tauris, 2011. ISBN 9781848856080.

Sources

• Kinnard, Roy; Crnkovich, Tony (2017). Italian Sword and Sandal Films, 1908-1990. McFarland. ISBN 978-1476662916.

External links

• The Lion of Thebes at IMDb
• The Lion of Thebes at Variety Distribution