Coming at the tail-end of the sword-and-sorcery cycle spun off by CONAN THE BARBARIAN (1982), I really did not expect much from this one and, frankly, only acquired it on account of director Deodato (whom I personally met in Venice)'s involvement. Noted for his unremittingly grim and stomach-churning cannibal movies, this at least exudes a sense of fun amid the intermittent savagery and inherently bleak setting (these were, after all, The Dark Ages). The end result, therefore, proves mildly enjoyable – if decidedly forgettable and still marred by Pino Donaggio's incongruous electronic score.
Typically, the nonsensical plot centers around the good-vs.-evil contention over some magical artifact, whose secret is guarded by a princess who has taken refuge with a band of itinerant artists; among the latter are a trio of kids – two male twins and a female. The film starts off with the circus falling prey to an ambush by the chief villain (Richard Lynch)'s army of grotesques; they fight valiantly but still lose the monarch and children to them though not before one of the boys has bitten off two of Lynch's fingers! Gradually, the latter is besotted with the caged noblewoman (despite having a harem of girls at his disposal!) and, while the enslaved boys are separately beaten and shaped into fighting machines, the little girl manages to escape their clutches.
The years pass and the twins have unaccountably grown into muscle-men (though their behavior is bafflingly, and irritatingly, asinine!): each believing the other had been killed, they are surprised to find themselves engaged in a duel to the death (amusingly decked-out in an iron mask like the one worn by their individual tormentor!) in Lynch's arena – presided over by THE HILLS HAVE EYES (1977)'s Micheal Berryman (who had actually already collaborated with Deodato on one of his cannibal epics i.e. CUT AND RUN [1985]). Anyway, the two escape and seek to rejoin the circus: along the way, they also meet up with a spirited female captive who is eventually revealed to be their childhood companion (though she is now known by another name). The barbarian brothers (actually, an alternate moniker for the film – incidentally, the opening credits supply not one but 3 consecutive titles!) go in search of weapons so as to re-enter Lynch's fortress and liberate the princess: to get them, however, they have first to win an arm-wrestling match with "Euro-Cult" stalwart George Eastman where the loser is also prone to a bite from the latter's own snake!
To cut a long story short, the all-important jewel had been hidden away in a swamp to begin with and, before long, the parties involved converge on that location only to be (predictably) met with a variety of monsters! In the end, the princess dies (Lynch himself expires when single-handedly taking on the twins at once) and, after the young girl's true identity has been established and the fabled diamond fits exactly into her belly-button(!), she is made her successor.
Typically, the nonsensical plot centers around the good-vs.-evil contention over some magical artifact, whose secret is guarded by a princess who has taken refuge with a band of itinerant artists; among the latter are a trio of kids – two male twins and a female. The film starts off with the circus falling prey to an ambush by the chief villain (Richard Lynch)'s army of grotesques; they fight valiantly but still lose the monarch and children to them though not before one of the boys has bitten off two of Lynch's fingers! Gradually, the latter is besotted with the caged noblewoman (despite having a harem of girls at his disposal!) and, while the enslaved boys are separately beaten and shaped into fighting machines, the little girl manages to escape their clutches.
The years pass and the twins have unaccountably grown into muscle-men (though their behavior is bafflingly, and irritatingly, asinine!): each believing the other had been killed, they are surprised to find themselves engaged in a duel to the death (amusingly decked-out in an iron mask like the one worn by their individual tormentor!) in Lynch's arena – presided over by THE HILLS HAVE EYES (1977)'s Micheal Berryman (who had actually already collaborated with Deodato on one of his cannibal epics i.e. CUT AND RUN [1985]). Anyway, the two escape and seek to rejoin the circus: along the way, they also meet up with a spirited female captive who is eventually revealed to be their childhood companion (though she is now known by another name). The barbarian brothers (actually, an alternate moniker for the film – incidentally, the opening credits supply not one but 3 consecutive titles!) go in search of weapons so as to re-enter Lynch's fortress and liberate the princess: to get them, however, they have first to win an arm-wrestling match with "Euro-Cult" stalwart George Eastman where the loser is also prone to a bite from the latter's own snake!
To cut a long story short, the all-important jewel had been hidden away in a swamp to begin with and, before long, the parties involved converge on that location only to be (predictably) met with a variety of monsters! In the end, the princess dies (Lynch himself expires when single-handedly taking on the twins at once) and, after the young girl's true identity has been established and the fabled diamond fits exactly into her belly-button(!), she is made her successor.