After 'The Odyssey': 10 more sword-and-sandal cinema and TV projects to stream

Are you not entertained?

This immortal line that Russell Crowe bellows on the sands of the gladiatorial arena in the 2000 film "Gladiator" neatly sums up how moviegoers feel about Christopher Nolan's "The Odyssey." Indeed, they are entertained.

'THE ODYSSEY' REVIEW: Christopher Nolan's epic 'The Odyssey' hits like a hammer to the head

Nolan's re-telling of Homer's epic poem about one man's journey across the gods-and-monsters world of Ancient Greece raked in $51 million on Friday, its first full day of release, and that follows on the heels of the $17.6 million earned through Thursday night screenings. At this pace, "The Odyssey" will be, swords down, the film of the summer.

The movie's mammoth success could spur a revival of interest in sword-and-sandal cinema (or sometimes called "peplum films"), a once popular genre of action movies set thousands of years ago, often in the lands along the Mediterranean. Though sometimes thought of as just an excuse to show off scantily clad actors, bruising fights and cheesy effects, they could also be a platform for some of the most celebrated directors of their generation, from Stanley Kubrick ("Spartacus") and William Wyler ("Ben-Hur") to Ridley Scott ("Gladiator") and now Nolan.

If you can't get enough of the Old World brutality in "The Odyssey," here are 10 suggestions for other films and TV series that are available to stream. And, there are so many more. You could even include the tangential "Game of Thrones," "Conan the Barbarian," or "The Lord of the Rings" which are set in fantasy ancient worlds, and not our real one. And if you really want to wander down the rabbit hole, there are such sites as peplumtv.com and greekgodsparadise.com/category/entertainment.

MOVIES

1 'Ben-Hur' (1959)

Yes, it might be nearly 70 years old but "Ben Hur" holds up magnificently. Set in the time of Christ, it tells the story of a Jewish man, Judah Ben-Hur, who's sold into slavery by a Roman friend. Judah, suffering a major case of "with friends like this, who needs enemies," then comes back for revenge. Starring a fierce Charlton Heston and featuring a chariot race that still thrills, "Ben-Hur" was "The Odyssey" of its day, earning $147 million globally (the equivalent of $1.5 billion today) and winning 11 Oscars, including best picture. Avoid the 2016 remake and go straight for the OG version. Similar movies of the era worth investigating are Cecil B. De Mille's epic, 220-minute "The Ten Commandments" and Mervyn Leroy and Anthony Mann's "Quo Vadis."

2 'Spartacus' (1960)

Kirk Douglas totally rules as the slave Spartacus who becomes a gladiator and leads an uprising against the Roman establishment. Written by lauded yet blacklisted author Dalton Trumbo ("Exodus," "Roman Holiday," "Johnny Got His Gun") and directed by a young Kubrick within the parameters of a Hollywood studio system that he would ultimately upend, "Spartacus" is a fascinating blend of ambitions while the fight scene between Spartacus and Draba remains a highlight. And the Spartacus legend continues to enchant with a 2004 mini-series and the blood-soaked five-season TV series that began in 2010.

3 'Gladiator' (2000)

Russell Crowe and Joaquin Phoenix went head to head in Scott's forceful re-imagining of Ancient Rome in which a slave turned gladiator goes up against the emperor who killed his family. The cast also includes Derek Jacobi (a shout-out to the fantastic Roman-set "I, Claudius" TV series in which Jacobi starred), Richard Harris and Oliver Reed. You can skip the 2024 "Gladiator II," despite Denzel Washington's scene-stealing performance. 

4 '300' (2006)

Based on Frank Miller's graphic novel, which itself was very loosely based on the real-life battle between the Persians and the heavily outnumbered Greeks at the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC, Zack Snyder's "300" has a starkly original look and feel that separates it from other movies of its type. 

5 'Jason and the Argonauts' (1963)

6 'Clash of the Titans' (1981)

Long before contemporary CGI and AI, technical wiz Ray Harryhausen was creating strikingly original special effects for a variety of B-movies that were sometimes mocked in their day. But his work is most striking in Don Chaffey's "Jason and the Argonauts," in which a Greek hero goes in search of the Golden Fleece, and Desmond Davis' "Clash of the Titans," in which the mythical Perseus fights Medusa and the dreaded Kraken.

TELEVISION

1 'Rome' (2005)

HBO's "Rome," co-created by director John Milius ("Conan the Barbarian") and starring James Purefoy, Ray Stevenson and Kevin McKidd, should have been one of the cable network's most successful series. Beautifully shot, thoughtfully written and well-acted, it could also be intensely brutal as it followed the lives of ordinary Romans in extraordinary times. Unfortunately, due to high production costs, it was canceled after two seasons though it was intended to have a five-season arc.

2 'The Odyssey' (1997)

In 1997, a year before Nolan's first film, "Following," NBC's "The Odyssey" was a two-part miniseries that brought Homer into America's living rooms. While it cost $32 million to make (huge for a TV project at the time), it brought in massive ratings and won two Emmys. And, well before the controversy over Nolan's casting of Lupita Nyong'o as Helen of Troy and her sister Clytemnestra, Russian director Andrei Konchalovsky cast a Black actress, Vanessa Williams, as the sea nymph, Calypso. Also along for the journey are Armand Assante (as Odysseus), Greta Scaachi, Bernadette Peters, Eric Roberts and Christopher Lee. Francis Ford Coppola, of "The Godfather" fame, was an executive producer.

3 'Hercules: The Legendary Journeys'

4 'Xena: The Warrior Princess'

These campy take-offs on the tropes of sword-and-sandal sensibilities - one starring Kevin Sorbo, the other Lucy Lawless - were executive produced by Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert, the masterminds behind the original "Evil Dead" films. And it is their attitude that keeps tongues firmly planted in cheek throughout their six-season runs.

5 The 'Spartacus' Pentology: 'Blood and Sand' (2010); 'Gods of the Arena' (2011); 'Vengeance' (2012); 'War of the Damned' (2013); 'House of Ashur' (2025)

Sam Raimi and Robert Tapert also co-created the "Spartacus" series for Starz along with showrunner Steven S. DeKnight who came out of the "Buffy: The Vampire Slayer" universe. As you might imagine, the combination of the two "Evil Dead" guys, a "Buffy" guy and the looser restrictions of premium cable meant that the graphic violence, steamy sex, and "Heated Rivalry" homo-eroticism that was only hinted at in previous incarnations of the genre, moved front and center.

This is sword-and-scandal, "Hercules" and "Xena" unchained, uncensored and, often, unclothed. Watch the Kirk Douglas version and then put this on and your head will explode. This "Spartacus" may not be historically accurate - it's probable that neither slaves, warriors nor royalty in Ancient Rome had such flawless skin, perfect teeth, ripped abs and, apparently, easy access to GLP-1 drugs - but, hey, it's a heck a lot of fun.

Subscribe

Read this story on houstonchronicle.com