Attila the Hun * (1954, Anthony Quinn, Sophia Loren, Henri Vidal, Irene Papas, Ettore Manni, Claude Laydu) – Classic Movie Review 3493

Anthony Quinn stars as an unconvincing Hun in director Pietro Francisci’s risibly fumbled 1954 Italian historical epic spectacular focusing on the infamous warrior Attila and his band of the barbarian Huns and called by the Romans The Scourge of God. Attila and co sweep onto the Italian peninsula, defeating the Roman armies, until they prepare to take Rome itself.

Attila the Hun is largely sunk by poor performances from an ill-chosen cast and a screenplay by Ennio de Concini, Primo Zeglio and Richard C Sarafian that is in turns violent and sentimental but always generally undistinguished and sometimes inept. On the plus side are the big budget production and Aldo Tonti’s Technicolor cinematography.

Sophia Loren has a star supporting role as the girl Honoria who tries to catch Attila’s eye. Also in the cast are Henri Vidal, Irene Papas, Ettore Manni, Claude Laydu, Eduardo Ciannelli, Gigi Perreau, Christian Marquand, Anthony Pawley, Richard Bakalyan.

Producers Carlo Ponti and Dino De Laurentis’s movie originally ran a fairly short 80 minutes – surprising for an epic – but the US cut version runs only 77 minutes.

Jack Palance plays Attila in Sign of the Pagan (1954) with Jeff Chandler, Ludmilla Tchérina and Rita Gam. The story was remade for TV by director Dick Lowry in 2000 as Attila the Hun, with Gerald Butler as Attila the Hun.

© Derek Winnert 2016 Classic Movie Review 3493

Link to home page for more reviews derekwinnert.com