....but don't expect this film to put much of a fresh spin on the sword-and-sandal genre. Despite Alonso's top billing, the lion's share of the action is still done by the men. And speaking of the action, it is not particularly well staged. But the music score is appropriately epic, the landscapes are sweeping, and there are lots and lots of extras. The story has some interesting themes (the transition from barbarism and prejudice to civilization and wisdom), but for the most part it's too episodic - there is not even a clear goal until midway through the picture. The busty Alonso does look spectacular in her green peplum bikini, though! ** out of 4.
5 Reviews
Queen of the Tartars
Uriah4312 December 2015
With her village utterly destroyed by rampaging Huns, a young girl named "Tanya" (Chelo Alonso) is taken by the leader of the tribe, "Igor" (Folco Lulli) and essentially raised as his daughter. But rather than being just any ordinary woman Tanya wants to be a warrior and because of this she is trained in archery and allowed to ride with the rest of the warriors. Unfortunately, not all of the men approve and her most vocal critics are Igor's son, "Timur" (Mario Petri) and the chief of a rival clan, "Malok" (Jacques Sernas). Ironically, when Igor is killed and Timur thought dead, it is Malok who helps Tanya become the chief of her tribe. But Malok has ulterior motives. Now rather than reveal any more of this film I will just say that it turned out to be an okay "Sword & Sandal" movie for the most part with Chelo Alonso certainly being the main attraction. Frankly, I thought some scenes could have used a bit more excitement and the ending was somewhat pretentious but that's just my opinion. In short, while it may not be a good movie I didn't think it was necessarily that bad either and I have rated it accordingly. Slightly below average.
Bargain basement quality
Leofwine_draca26 March 2018
Warning: Spoilers
THE HUNS is something of an obscure addition to the Italian peplum cycle and having watched it I can see why. It has bargain basement production values and mainly exists to feature starlet Chelo Alonso parading around in a form-fitting bikini for the most part. The story is about a battle between Tartars and Huns, with Alonso's character kidnapped before rising in status to become queen. This is cheesy stuff indeed which feels more like a 1980s-era production rather than a film from its era. There's a lot of action in the form of pitched battles and sieges but none of it convinces and it all feels more than a little silly.
A Peplum Entry with a Feminist Angle
zardoz-135 March 2019
Warning: Spoilers
"The Mysterious Swordsman" director Sergio Grieco's "The Huns," starring Chelo Alonso, Jacques Sernas, and Mario Petri, is an interesting entry in Italian peplum about an orphan girl captured during a raid on a Tartar village by the eponymous villains. They wipe out Tanya's village, but they spare her life after she tries to kill Timur (Mario Petri of "Fury of Achilles") with a knife that tribal chieftain Igor (Folco Lulli of "The Tartars") gave her. Much to the surprise of both Igor and Timur is the revelation that this child swathed in a cloak turns out to be a girl! Igor takes an interest in Tanya and raises her as one of his own. In time, he teaches her to ride, shoot arrows, and wield a bullwhip. Timur remains contemptuous of Tanya. Meantime, Grieco and scenarists Marcello Ciorciolini of "The Vengeance of Ursus, and Rate Furlan of "El Rojo" have forged an empire-building epic that takes a feminist slant. Eventually, after Igor is cut down in battle and dies with Tanya (Chelo Alonso of "Goliath and the Barbarians") becomes the Queen and leads her people into battle. One of the interesting things about this peplum is the way the Huns treat their wounded and/or injured soldiers. When a soldier can no longer serve in the military, he is read the riot act and then gets the honor of being cut down by one of his own men. I have no idea if this was actually what these Asians did to their compatriots, but it sure makes this 81-minute epic different. "Zabriskie Point" lenser Alfio Contini does a good job photographing the sprawling landscape of this epic hellraiser. It is also interesting to note that quite a bit of blood and gore is slathered on the battlefield corpses. Ultimately, Tanya takes command over her people, and she stops the senseless killing so men can live together in peace.
Obscure sword and sandal classic
oraklon17 April 2009
Great peplum with lots of charm! It's kinda like the first 10 minutes of a sword and sorcery flick, where a bunch of barbarians dressed up as Manowar pillage some village, but for 90 minutes. It even features a man in a bear costume! The tartar queen is really a kick-ass girl, who takes no crap and is a better leader than the men (ps! she's really cute too). I wouldn't go an call it feminist masterpiece, but well... it's about as feminist as the peplum genre gets (remember this is the genre where women with black hair are automatically cunning and evil). If you're a peplum fan and get the chance to see this little film, by all means do - it's one of the best of its kind!
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