I recently bought this 4-movie set and wanted to mention it, as it's likely escaped most folks' radar. It's from a company I hadn't heard of, Hannover House, and it includes 3 sword 'n' sandal movies that afaik have not been released on pressed discs before: The Mercenaries, Conquest of the Normans, and Revenge of the Barbarians (not to be confused with The Barbarians, which is available from Winstar). It also includes Thor and the Amazon Women, which has seen PD release (for example, on the Warriors 50-pack). The films are full screen on two discs. I haven't watched them but I spot-checked them all. All 4 films have better color than the usual washed out, brown prints available from Alpha or on the Warriors 50-pack. They are about on par with the full screen co-features on Retromedia's sword 'n' sandal double features (such as Hercules and the Black Pirate, the co-feature on the Hercules the Avenger disc). So, nothing spectacular, but watchable with okay color and pic quality. The set costs about $7 new from the Amazon Marketplace/third party sellers (search on "kingdom of gladiators"); below is the Amazon description with plot summaries and stars.
Revenge of the Barbarians (1960) stars Anthony Steel as Olympus, who comes to Scandinavia to seek revenge on the savage Visigoths who killed his parents and kidnapped his sister. Will he be able to rescue his sibling and save the Roman Empire in the process? Robert Alda and Daniela Rocca co-star. Then, when a marauding gang of medieval mercenaries pillages across Europe, one brave gladiator who has fallen for a beautiful princess stands up against the hordes to protect her. However, his task gets more complicated when an imprisoned leader is freed and comes to impose his will. Rocca, Salvo Randone, and Debra Paget star in "The Mercenaries" (1961) from Italy. Next, "Conquest of the Normans" (1962) stars Ettore Manni as a Viking warrior who falls victim to the medieval Normans overrunning the English countryside. After he's framed for kidnapping the king, he must find the true abductors to clear his name. Cameron Mitchell and Paul Muller co-star. Four-disc set also includes "Thor andthe Amazon Women." 5 3/4 hrs. total on two discs. Standard; Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital stereo.
