I have a ton of old movies queued up on Youtube, and I finally decided to start watching a few of them, bit by bit, before nodding off at night. This week, I chewed through a 1925 Italian picture called Maciste in Hell. It’s not just a clever title, as it really does concern Maciste, a long-standing character in Italian movies, a sort of Herules-type, going to Hell and giving the infernal hosts a bit of trouble.

If you have an hour to spare, and especially if you dig weird fantasy and/or Dungeons & Dragons, I suggest you check this baby out. The story is simple and the acting is fine. It’s the sequences in Hell that make this movie worth a watch. Awesome design of sets and costumes, with intrigue, betrayal and a battle between armies of devils – just really good stuff. You even get a shot of Dante’s concept of Satan at the lowest level of Hell committed to film. So groovy.

The movie also offers a neat concept that DM’s might want to steal for their own depictions of Hell – the effects of kissing a daughter of Hell. I won’t say more, as it might be considered a spoiler – just watch the darn movie already.