That happens in practically every historical epic, from "Samson and Delilah" to ""The Ten Commandments", and pst this and "Cleopatra". Acrobats, sabres, scantily clad slaves and a wild assortment of costumes and props always show up in these moments, watched by some king or pharaoh or tribal leader, like the Tartar king here, played fortunately in wide screen by Orson Welles. His brother (Folco Lulli) has just been killed by Viking leader Victor Mature after Lulli demanded that Mature join him in battle against another tribe that Mature had no issue with.
Seeking revenge, Welles kidnaps Mature's wife (Liana Orfei) and tortures her, setting up further war. It's early history of the uncivilized territory that would become Russia, and boy, do the leaders of the Tartars in the tenth century live in splendor. This isn't a history lesson. It's a cartoon, very funny for its audacity, and unintentionally campy. The performances of Mature and Welles isn't even acting. It's the memorizing and reading of the script, not tripping over the furniture, and enjoying the erotica of scantily clad extras. The dialog is atrocious and the direction simply wide spread chaos. But as bad as it is, it's never boring. That's not necessarily good for the film overall.
Seeking revenge, Welles kidnaps Mature's wife (Liana Orfei) and tortures her, setting up further war. It's early history of the uncivilized territory that would become Russia, and boy, do the leaders of the Tartars in the tenth century live in splendor. This isn't a history lesson. It's a cartoon, very funny for its audacity, and unintentionally campy. The performances of Mature and Welles isn't even acting. It's the memorizing and reading of the script, not tripping over the furniture, and enjoying the erotica of scantily clad extras. The dialog is atrocious and the direction simply wide spread chaos. But as bad as it is, it's never boring. That's not necessarily good for the film overall.