Lets make a list of the best of the S&S films.

[cigar joe]

I guess we can start with the definite sub genres to the peplums/Sword & Sandal films:

Egypt
Greek Mythology
Greek vs Persians
Hercules
Machiste
Roman Empire
Rome vs Christians
Rome vs Barbarians
Biblical
Arabian

any others?

[cigar joe]

Here are some off the top of my head and some new sub genres.


Egypt - Land of the Pharohs
            Valley of the Kings


Greek Mythology - Clash of the Titans
                              Jason & The Argonaughts


Greek vs Persians - The 300

Miscellaneous Ancient History - Colossus of Rhodes

Hercules - Hercules

Machiste

Roman Empire - Gladiator
                          Spartacus
                          Last Days of Pompeii
                          Cleopatra
 
Rome vs Christians - The Robe
                                  Ben Hur
                                  Barabus
                                  Androcles & The Lion

Rome vs Barbarians - Quo Vadis

Biblical - The Greatest Story Ever Told
              The Bible

Arabian - Ali Baba & The 40 thieves
               Aladin
               Sinbad the Sailor
               The Seven Voyages of Sinbad

Barbarian - Conan

Viking - The Vikings

Arthurian - King Sthur & the Knights of the Round Table
                  Excaliber

Here is a link to lists I'll check them out too:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sword_and_sandal

[Noodles_SlowStir]

Biblical.....The Ten Commandments, King Of Kings, The Last Temptation Of Christ

Rome.....Julius Caesar

Greek.....Ulysses

[cigar joe]

Its funny but I used to got to quite a lot of films as a kid, I don't remember that many Westerns but I sure remember the peplum craze at the end of the 50's early 60's. I think I saw more of them along with Japanese Monster flicks than Westerns.

Off the top of my head the Westerns I remember saw in the theaters pre Leone were:

How The West Was One
The Hallaluia Trail
The Alamo
Nevada Smith

and maybe one or two more

I saw many more of them on TV

[Noodles_SlowStir]

   If you had been five years or so older going in early fifties to mid fifties it would of been quite a difference.  Amazing how those few years factor in.  I didn't see too many westerns in the theater.  I saw Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid in a second or third run theater when I was very young.  It was few years after it had been released. Actually may of been around the time The Sting was out. I guess Jeremiah Johnson.  I saw OUATITW in the early 80's at a university student theater.  I remember the peplums mostly from television.  They were quite popular for a long time.

[cigar joe]

Yea it doesn't take much does it.

I think I saw "Shenandoah" with James Stewart in a theater and "The Great Locomotive Chase" possibly also

[cigar joe]

Rome: Quo Vadis

I remember a ton of Machiste & Hercules flicks on TV too, I'd watch anything back then. 

[cigar joe]

Saturday afternoons and late night NY channels 9 & 13 had a lot of the Machiste flicks and also the various low budget Hercules & Samson films.

They were auwful but entertaining. One title of there that I do remember was  something like "Hercules Vists the Underworld."

[The Peacemaker]

and "The Great Locomotive Chase" possibly also

I like that movie.

Very interesting flick about a little known Civil War espionage campaign.

[cigar joe]

that film should have big budget remake or better yet something based on a similar story.

[Mw/NNrules]

Actually, a list of the best Sword and Sandals, would be a lot shorter then the one we have, even Colossus of Rhodes isn't that great  .  It just feels strung together, unlike his SW years.  It probably wasn't even his fault.  Sort of sad for me to say as a Leone fan.  Spartacus, I think, is a true masterpiece.

[The Peacemaker]

that film should have big budget remake or better yet something based on a similar story.

That wouldn't be a bad idea...

[cigar joe]

I forgot one

Demitrious & The Gladiators sequil to "The Robe".

[Arizona Colt]

CJ, here's a piece I did here a while back on these movies. I have close to a hundred of these in my collection. A lot of them are so-bad-they're-good, but there's also a lot of them that are quite well done such as THE TROJAN HORSE and SANDOKAN, THE GREAT, a peplum pirate flick starring Steve Reeves (the sequel, SANDOKAN, THE PIRATE OF MALAYSIA is even better) among others. The Maciste movies were always retitled here because the distributors figured Americans wouldn't recognize who Maciste was since he was strictly an Italian hero. However, in ATLAS IN THE LAND OF THE CYCLOPS (a MACISTE movie in its original title) starring Gordon Mitchell and Chelo Alonso, the dubbing refers to Mitchell's character as Maciste and not Atlas. Roger Moore even starred in one of these believe it or not. Dan Vadis, an actor I'm sure you're familiar with, did a number of these films before working with Eastwood. Also, one of Corbucci's first movies was a fusto flick entitled GOLIATH VS THE VAMPIRES aka MACISTE AGAINST THE VAMPIRES.

http://www.fistful-of-leone.com/forums/index.php?topic=5590.0

[cigar joe]

thanks, there used to be a lot of the Machiste flick on TV in the late 50's in NYC on WPIX & WOR.