Goliath and the Sins of Babylon (1963)

Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

I thought that "Goliath and the Sins of Babylon" was one of the weaker Italian-made sword and sandal movies I have seen to date. I admit it could have been a lot worse, because buried in the movie are some positive traits. For one thing, it does deliver some nice eye candy, most particularly with the production design. The props and sets are quite lavish at times, from gigantic ocean going ships to areas. And often when these good production values are on display, there are some decent action sequences that do raise the pulse of the movie momentarily when they are unfolding.Unfortunately, the eye candy and the action only take up a small portion of the eighty minute or so running time. Most of the movie is quite boring, with a lot of dry chat and more plot points that are necessary. And the movie's main protagonist (played by Mark Forest) isn't all that engaging. He doesn't seem to have that much that differentiates him from his brothers in arms that are fighting the antagonists, and as a result he comes across as quite bland.This movie could have been a lot worse, but as I said, there's not all that much that makes it stand out from the dozens of other Italian sword and sorcery movies made in this period.

Goliath helps to free the Babylonian people from it's own evil rulers that demands 30 virgins to be sacrificed each year. Mark Forest is in the lead strongman role of Maciste / Goliath / Marcellus.It's an average peplum, nothing all that great. A few of the costumes look really cool and that's about as far as it gets with me.What I disliked strongly is the fact that they enjoy putting little people in the comic-relief roles and here is another prime example of that. It's a shame to waste talent this way.Another Mill Creek film from the Warriors 50-pack. Color faded. 2/10

Pretty good sword and sandal "epic" if you will with using that term. Mark Forrest, who played second fiddle to the immortal Steve Reeves in most of the Hercules type films coming out of Italy, plays the legendary so called "Maciste" in the Italian version and is given the name "Goliath" in the American release of this film. Forrest as usual comes to the rescue of the populace in Babylon, where according to a peace treaty signed with warring Nephyr that 30 virgin girls a year must be either sent or sacrificed whatever as tribute. Naturally a secret band of rebels, led by the ever sword and sandal favorite, Livio Lorenzon with that patented bald head leads a revolt to stop the sacrifice. Forrest joins in with those bulging biceps on display throughout the film and leads the slaves to victory....pretty good chariot race, ala "Ben Hur" in the film with Goliath winning out over the Queen of Babylon, who by terms of the race must marry the winner. Goliath realizes that the queen is in love with another man, one of the slaves leading the revolt and he promises to get them back together at all costs. Plenty of action with fighting ships, and lions on the loose after being led out of dungeons in the city. Forrest displays some bulging pecs and biceps in one scene where he is pinned down on a table with dangling spears falling down one by one intent on keeping him guessing which one will inevitably kill him. Guess what, the biceps rip off the shackles and Goliath escapes...!! One of the better sword and sandal films. All it was missing was Steve Reeves or Gordon Scott to round out the cast.

Goliath returns to a kingdom (Nefer?) on the Persian Gulf which has fallen under the cruel domination of Babylon. Each year a number of the kingdom's most beautiful virgins must be sent off to serve the evil Babylonian king. Goliath unites with some local rebels to end this domination, destroying by fire the city of Babylon in the process.This "peplum" comes with a lot of action: the usual fights, a chariot race, a sea battle, and a climactic conflagration. There's also a touch of romance, (though not involving Goliath), and for comic-relief we're offered one of those midget sidekicks so dear to the hearts of Italian audiences. As usual our hero is subjected to a torture or test-of-strength. In this case he's spreadeagled face-up on a sloping table while spears drop toward him from holes in the ceiling. Some of these spears crash into the table just to one side of the hero's flesh while other spears are halted in their downward plunge mere inches above various parts of the hero's body. (The spear that hurtles toward Goliath's groin is a real attention getter!) Fans of such goings-on will probably find this an adequate way to pass 80 or so minutes, but there's little to distinguish these goings-on from numerous similar movies. Had Steve Reeves played the lead, the situation might have improved, but here we have Mark Forest (born Lou Degni), a bodybuilder who has the necessary pecs but is short on charisma. Something about the way the skin crinkles around his eyes whenever he smiles makes him look a bit "wimpy."