Plot: American professor Tarl Cabot is transported via a magical ring to planet Gor, where he must help an oppressed country overthrow its evil king and his barbarian henchmen.

KBZ’s Take: Before we get into our Top 10, we wanted to remind readers that we are grading on a scale as many of these films border on the unwatchable. Even hardcore fans of the subgenre might have problems getting through some of these films, so we’ll highlight specific reasons to watch each film and who we recommend it for.

With that said, Gor is on the very border of one of these watchable films. In the latter half of the 1980’s, the subgenre started to add sci-fi elements including post-apocalyptic settings and alternate realities or worlds. Gor features an alternate world where Oliver Reed plays the evil Sarm while subgenre veteran (and typecast bad guy) Jack Palance has a brief appearance as Xenos.

The film tries to emulate a campy tone that was successful in films such as The Beastmaster (1982) but the camp humor falls a bit flat in this film. Most of the film’s negative reviews are also from fans of the John Norman series of novels the movie is based on that were critical of the film’s tone and adaptation.

We have never read the books but found the film watchable – mainly enjoying Oliver Reed’s very campy performance. However, we would only recommend the film for fans of Oliver Reed and Jack Palance or completists of the subgenre.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: A young man, armed with a magical bow and arrows, embarks on a mystical journey through a mystical land to rid it of all evil and joins forces with an outlaw to take down an evil witch bent on claiming the magic bow for evil.

KBZ’s Take: Conquest is directed by Lucio Fulci who was behind many of the Italian Splatter & Gore Horror Films of the 1980’s including City of the Living Dead (1980), The Beyond (1981) and The New York Ripper (1982). With this film, Fulci brings his unique style of gore to the subgenre.

While the film can lay claim to being one of the only horror-infused subgenre films of the decade, it’s the surprising atmosphere of the film that takes center stage despite some of the gorier elements. And though the film’s original trailer highlighted the magical bow (similar to the unique three-bladed sword of The Sword and the Sorcerer (1982)), it only makes only a few appearances – though they are memorable.

The film does have a love it or hate it rep with most detractors citing the unnecessary gore in the film. However, it’s one of the more unique films of the decade so we would recommend it for Fulci fans and fans of the subgenre that don’t mind sword & sorcery with a bit of blood and guts.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: A tale that takes place at the dawn of history. The movie tells the story of a tribe that discovers how to fashion weapons out of iron and use them for their own survival. However, the creation of iron also causes the tribe to battle for possession of the new weapons.

KBZ’s Take: While this film plays very loose with historical facts and events, it’s still fun to watch for nostalgic purposes. It’s a Conan the Barbarian (1982) clone from Italy that has more Stone Age Film elements than any sword & sorcery typical of the subgenre. As the film was directed by Umberto Lenzi, who was responsible for Italian horror films such as Nightmare City (1980) and Cannibal Ferox (1981), you can expect some slight gore-specific horror elements.

However, despite the lack of fantasy elements, some horrible acting, and laughable special effects, it’s surprisingly watchable with some decent battle sequences between tribes. That doesn’t mean we’re saying this is a great film (remember we are grading on a scale), but it firmly sits as one of the best of the worst of the subgenre and recommended for completists.

Additional Lists: Top Films Set During the Stone Age #8

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: A Christian knight (Rick Edwards) loves the sister (Tanya Roberts) of a Saracen warrior who in turn loves a female Christian knight (Barbara De Rossi).

KBZ’s Take: Hearts and Armour was a film we initially debated including on this list as it’s on the very periphery of the subgenre. This Italian film was clearly inspired by Excalibur (1981) as it features fantasy elements and is based on Medieval Era mythology – in this case the the poem Orlando Furioso by Ludovico Ariosto. While the poem features sorcerers, monsters and other elements of the subgenre, the film mainly features brief appearances by ‘wizards’ and invincible armor worn by Bradamante (Barbara De Rossi).

Despite, in essence, being an Italian exploitation film, it is surprisingly watchable with some very well-choreographed fights scenes between knights in armor. If you like films like Excalibur within the subgenre, we would also recommend checking this film out.

Where to Stream / Buy: YouTube

Plot: Sir Gawain is the only person in King Arthur’s court foolhardy enough to take up the gauntlet thrown down by the Green Knight. Gawain believes he has defeated the Green Knight until his severed head grafts itself back onto his body and gives Gawain an ultimatum – answer a riddle in a year or die.

KBZ’s Take: Though both this film and the more recent The Green Knight (2021) are based on the 14-centurly poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, hardly anyone would argue the 1984 film adaptation is better than its 2021 counterpart. However, the 1984 film does have one significant edge – Sean Connery. His performance as The Green Knight is much better than the 2021 version and his initial introduction as the Green Knight to King Arthur’s court is worth seeing (even if you decide to skip the rest of the film).

Subgenre stalwart, Miles O’Keefe, is the lead in the film as Sir Gawain and it’s one of his better performances (compared to his role as Ator in Ator, the Fighting Eagle (1982), The Blade Master (1982) and Iron Warrior (1987)). It’s still not a good film by any measure but is worth seeing by fans of the subgenre for Connery’s brief appearance and for some decent battle sequences between knights in armor.

Additional Lists: Top Films Based on Mythology You Haven’t Seen #10

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: The sole survivor (Laurene Landon) of a female tribe of warrior breeders journeys to find a suitable mate.

KBZ’s Take: We lived through the wave of Sword & Sorcery Films during our younger years in the 1980’s. Despite seeing most of the films on this list at the time, we somehow missed out on Hundra. And we’re a bit disappointed that we did as it’s actually one of the better lower tier films of the subgenre.

The film is unique to the subgenre during the early 1980’s as most films of the time featured a male lead. Sorceress (1982) started the trend with female leads in the early 1980’s, but Hundra was the first film with subtle themes of feminism that would be explored in greater detail a few years later by Red Sonja (1985) and She (1985).

Despite the themes of the film, it’s standard sword & sorcery fare of the subgenre that’s elevated by some exciting action scenes and a great film score by the legendary Ennio Morricone. Though the film often gets lumped together with the worst of the subgenre, we feel it is an admirable effort and a surprisingly enjoyable film.

Where to Stream / Buy: YouTube

Plot: The Zambouli tribe raise a young white orphan whom their shaman believes to have been sent as part of a mystical prophecy, teaching her the ways of telepathic communication with animals. The girl grows up to be Sheena, Queen of the Jungle (Tanya Roberts), and she is soon called upon to save the Zambouli from annihilation by Prince Otwani (Trevor Thomas), who wants the precious metal under the natives’ land. She is aided by a reporter named Vic Casey (Ted Wass) who falls for her charms.

KBZ’s Take: Sheena is another film on our list that we debated internally as it doesn’t feature traditional themes or tropes of the subgenre. It’s also a film set in the present and doesn’t feature swords or sorcery. However, it does fit in with the ‘female barbarian’ themes of the subgenre that took hold in the latter half of the decade, so we felt it warranted inclusion on our list.

Based on the 1940’s comic of the same name, the film features the late Tanya Roberts as the scantily-clothed Sheena and was a bit controversial when it was released. Rober Ebert commented at the time, “It’s probably the only PG-rated movie that will play continuously on the Playboy Channel.” And we can’t quite argue with that quote as the film does feature more nudity in a PG-rated film than we can recall.

Though the film was savaged by the critics and bombed at the box office, it developed a cult following upon its home release. It’s a surprisingly fun Action Adventure Film with some thrilling sequences set against the gorgeous scenery of Kenya. Ted Wass (Vic Casey) and Roberts (Sheena) also have some great chemistry and this is one of Roberts’ better roles after also starring in other notable films of the subgenre including The Beastmaster (1982) and Hearts and Armour (1983).

It’s a fun film that has gotten better over time and one we would recommend for all fans of the subgenre.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: Two warring brothers fight to gain control of a magical sword. Hawk, a noble warrior, assembles a small force of fighters to help him rid the land of a powerful and devious enemy, who also happens to be his older brother – and their father’s murderer.

KBZ’s Take: We can only imagine younger film fans seeing this film’s rating of 5.3/10 on IMDb and questioning how a film with such low production values could ever rate that high. And our answer is simply: nostalgia.

Younger viewers will never understand a generation that grew up in the 1970’s and their only sword & sorcery outlet at the time consisted of fantasy cosplay in the woods with sticks, the Dungeons & Dragons role playing game, the text-based Zork on a PC (if you were lucky enough to have one at the time) or through the various sword & sorcery animated films of the era including Wizards (1977), The Hobbit (1977) and The Lord of the Rings (1978).

Hawk the Slayer was one of the first live action films featuring a Dungeon and Dragons type team (a warrior, an elf, a giant and a dwarf) and it was glorious. Sure, the film looks like it was shot over a weekend, the actors take the film way too seriously and the special effects are horrible (even for the time period). But it was live action and something every young fan of the subgenre at the time was yearning for. It could be argued that the relative success of Hawk the Slayer paved the way for the subgenre’s popularity throughout the rest of the decade.

We’re not going to mislead anyone into thinking this is a great film. It’s purely a film to be enjoyed for nostalgic purposes. But for younger fans of the subgenre, it’s a look into a time before CGI and a film that had more importance for the subgenre than it’s generally given credit for.

Additional Lists: Top Sword & Sorcery Films You Haven’t Seen #2

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: Deathstalker helps Reena the Seer out of a few jams, and she solicits his help for a bigger task. She reveals that she is actually Princess Evie, but the evil sorcerer had her abducted and cloned in order to seize control of the kingdom. Together they travel to the evil sorcerer’s stronghold to restore the princess to her rightful position, encountering challenges along the way both from the sorcerer’s goons and the fierce Amazon women.

KBZ’s Take: The Deathstalker series of films features four different films with varying degrees of camp. While the first film, Deathstalker (1983), is beloved by a segment of subgenre fans for its action, violence and sexual ‘escapades’, the second film took quite a different approach. Deathstalker II was a Parody of the subgenre and raised the campy nature and tone of the film to level 10. This is where the second segment of subgenre fans (ourselves included) will argue that the second film is superior to the first (and best of the franchise).

Both films can be enjoyed for what they are and represent within the subgenre, but we can’t think of a better film from the 1980’s that skewers many of the subgenre’s tropes established by Conan the Barbarian (1982), The Beastmaster (1982) and others. Deathstalker II is a very funny film filled with classic one-liners and tongue-in-cheek sequences overlaid on the typical action, violence and sex the Deathstalker films are known for.

It’s a film that’s very self-aware of its low budget and ridiculous plot which makes it one of the few bad films of the subgenre every fan should not miss.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon

Plot: Medieval Kadar (Richard Lynch) orders muscle-bound slave twins Kutchek (Peter Paul) and Goro (David Paul) to fight each other to the death.

KBZ’s Take: Like Deathstalker II (1987) The Barbarians is full of camp and doesn’t take itself seriously. The film was released at the tail end of the subgenre’s popularity in the decade so quite a few sword & sorcery themes had been done to death by that time. That’s where David Paul (Gore) and Peter Paul (Kutchek) come in as the barbarian buffoons who stumble their way through an adventure to save Queen Canary (Virgina Bryant).

No one will mistake the Paul Brothers for being Academy Award-winning actors, but that’s not needed for their roles in this film. The humor of the film relies on the constant bickering between the brothers and their knack for finding themselves in various precarious situations. Their roles are caricatures of the muscle-bound warriors of other subgenre films as is the role of Richard Lynch as the evil Kadar. It’s almost as if Lynch is also parodying his previous performance as the evil Cromwell from The Sword and the Sorcerer (1982).

The film also puts an emphasis on its female leads with Bryant providing the maternal support for the brothers while Eva LaRue (Ismene) provides the brains on their adventure. The plot isn’t anything you’ve already seen numerous times in the subgenre, but somehow the film still works thanks to the performances of its cast.

This is a film that’s generally considered one of the worst of the subgenre but shouldn’t be. It’s a fun, fantasy-based adventure film that is closer in tone and execution to better received films like The Sword and the Sorcerer and The Beastmaster (1982). There are quite a few horrible Sword & Sorcery Films from the 1980’s but The Barbarians is not one of them and is a film every subgenre fan should see.

Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon