BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment

AniInterview Sorry, this movie sucks

Humaira Grant It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

Geraldine The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Dalbert Pringle I can't help it. I can't.In spite of all of its many flaws and inadequacies, I quite enjoyed Ursus In The Valley Of The Lions (UITVOL). Of course, muscle-man Ed Fury, as Ursus, was this film's main attraction. Without Fury UITVOL (with its inferior "everything") wouldn't have amounted to very much as worthwhile entertainment.UITVOL's story has a lot more in common with that of Tarzan rather than it does with Hercules.Though he doesn't know it (until much later), Ursus is of noble blood. As a wee baby both his parents (the King and Queen of Atlea) were savagely murdered when evil King Simud ordered his ruthless army to conquer their tiny kingdom.Shortly after this tragedy occurs Ursus is taken under the care of a pride of lions, who, instead of eating him up for a snack, raise him to adulthood as though he were one of their own.Years later, now fully-grown, the brutally handsome and powerfully strong, (prince) Ursus soon ventures out to discover the great, big world beyond his home of the lion pride.At this point evil King Simud plots to eliminate our hero Ursus, thus preventing him from reclaiming his royal birthright.Released in 1961 - UITVOL, featuring a mighty impressive Ed Fury, is a fairly entertaining "Sword And Sandal" Epic-Adventure. But, with that all said, I sure am curious to know which one of those absolutely darling lions it was who cut Ursus' hair, regularly shaved him, taught him to speak perfect English and picked out his footwear for him.

zardoz-13 "Ursus nella valle dei leoni" (1961) cannot compete with some of the better known muscle man movies starring Steve Reeves, Mark Forest, Gordon Scott, Alan Steel, and Reg Park. Nevertheless, this tyrant-versus-a-strongman saga with Ed Fury in the title role ranks a notch above the usual run-of-the-mill peplum potboilers. At best an uneven but entertaining epic, this first part of this adventure opus opens with an expository prelude with a kingdom being overrun by barbarians, then relies on comedy in its first half before it reverts during its second half to the standard he-man heroics about the lost son of a ruler who topples the murderous miscreant (Albert Lupo of "Herod the Great") who ran Ursus' unarmed father through with a sword, ascended the throne, and then enslaved the population. Invaders attack the kingdom but baby Ursus survives the sword after his mother packs him off to safety in a basket on horseback. Soldiers attack the queen and her minions and she skewers herself with a sword before they can take her. The safety proves to be short-lived for Ursus, and the basket containing future warrior falls off the horse during flight. Ursus winds up alone in the wilderness surrounded by a den of lions that nurse him. Sound far-fetched? Of course, it is! However, "Ursus in the Valley of the Lions" is no more outlandish than the actual legend about the brothers Romulus (Steve Reeves) and Remus (Gordon Scott) who founded Rome in director Sergio Corbucci's classic "Duel of the Titans" (1961), where wolves supposedly nursed the brothers to maturity. Wisely, seasoned Italian director Carlo Ludovico Bragaglia, who also helmed a lesser Hercules movie "The Loves of Hercules" (1960) and the Victor Mature ancient military yarn "Hannibal," dwells only momentarily on Ursus' unusual childhood. Imagine a lioness changing diapers, much less nursing a squalling infant, and you can understand why Bragaglia leaps forward to Ursus as an adult. In a sense, Ursus has more in common with Tarzan of the Apes than Hercules, Samson, or Ulysses. Whatever the case, Ursus' idyllic life among the big cats changes for the worst when a wagon transporting a load of female slaves blunders into one of the strongman's animal traps and loses a wheel. The strongman has to push their vehicle single-handedly out of the pit. Ursus takes a shine to one of the maidens and she stays behind while the rest head off to the kingdom. The tyrant who sits on the throne learns about Ursus from a medallion that one of the slave girls has and realizes the threat that he poses to him if the public should learn about him. The ruler dispatches his bow & arrow toting soldiers to the lions' den, and they poison all the lions with tainted meat and capture Ursus with a net. Indeed, the villain here is a dastard! Mind you, Ursus knows nothing of all this intrigue and would have preferred to have lived out his life in blissful ignorance until the evil king intruded into his affairs. The action shifts gears from comedy to adventure after the villains put Ursus into chains and imprison in a dark cell. The ruler doesn't want anybody to get wind of who Ursus really is and even offers to free him if the strongman will keep silent about his heritage. Eventually, Ursus manages to escape with the help of a palace insider and finds his way out of a den of hyenas. In the execrable, full-frame, Sinister Cinema black & white print that I own of this movie, you cannot tell the difference between Ed Fury and the animal trainer and that is a plus. Ed Fury or the animal wrangler--when either shares scenes with the beasts--doesn't battle with a stuffed lion's head like Mark Forest did in "Son of Samson." The hyena scenes in the prison are pretty creepy, too. Ed Fury's Ursus doesn't go around hurling giant rocks, battling mythical entities, or collapsing architecture, but he is splendidly dubbed with a loud voice that never leaves you in doubt about what he says. The villains are worthy enough to make Ursus' struggle a challenge. Incidentally, this was Ed Fury's second film as a muscle bound hero after "Colossus and the Amazon Queen" (1960). Ruggero Deodato, who later helmed such exploitation classics such as "Jungle Holocaust" and "Cannibal Holocaust," handled second unit directing duties on this movie, too.

dbborroughs The print I saw was a very worn black and white one from Sinister Cinema and as the film went on it rapidly became clear that the print's lack of quality and color work against real enjoyment of the film.The good king and queen of some far off kingdom are brought down by an evil invader, however the queen escapes with their infant son. She soon commits suicide rather than be taken prisoner, but does so only after getting the baby away. The baby ends up being raised by lions. Years later the adult Ursus ends up captured by the evil king who killed his parents and moves to prevent him from ever taking the throne. There's more to it than that but it at least gives you the basic idea of the plot.The movie is a step or two above the normal sword and sandal film thanks to a largely knowing translation that has Ursus speaking of wanting to become the special friend of a slave girl he's carried off. I know you're saying why would Ursus carry off a slave girl, simple he was raised by lions. The acting isn't bad and the translation seems to match the lip movements.Is this a movie your going to watch over and over again? Probably not but should you run across it on TV late one night you'll find yourself entertained.

django-1 This was Ed Fury's second film in the Ursus character, and in this one we learn that Ursus, of noble blood, was raised among lions. When he enters the "human" world, he is wide-eyed and naive, but gradually adapts to the ways of the world, saves a beautiful woman who loves him, and overthrows an evil dictator. Fury plays the various phases of the character's evolution (from naivete to a kind of disgusted smirking to a regal heroic bearing) well. The scenes among the lions and the wolves will be an easy mark for those who want to nit-pick, but the techniques used here will be familiar to any fan of low budget films and won't bother anyone familiar with the concept of "willing suspension of disbelief." As is common among budget-conscious Italian "spectacle" films, the art direction and production design are quite imaginative and suggest a lot for a few lira. I've got to give some credit to a film that takes a lot of chances, and this film is, like an old serial, so over-the-top in its entertainment value that anyone looking to have some fun and set aside any critical questions should have an enjoyable 90 minutes with Ed Fury and crew. I've been digging out the old Ed Fury films recently, and I must say that he brings a special charm to the peplum genre--it was nice to see him honored with a retrospective at UCLA last year. Director Carlo Ludovico Bragaglia has credits dating back to the 1930s, but his 1960s credits tend to be costume adventures and comedies. With this film, he's created a unique mix of peplum heroics, fantasy, and wit that I found quite entertaining.