Old nightmare-fuel fantasy adventure

I saw this movie in the early ’70s on TV in colour (garish, grainy Technicolor, if I remember correctly). It left an impression on me as I found some of the imagery extremely frightening, but I remember my feelings more than the actual scenes.

It was some kind of fantasy adventure where the heroes were on a quest, having to pass a series of perils to reach their goal and then make their way back. I vaguely recall a swamp-like peril, but my strongest memory is of a crack opening in the ground revealing a passage to a cave filled with thick white web-like material, home to some nasty creature I’ve blotted from my mind.

The heroes may have been led by a famous character like Hercules or Sinbad or Jason (the Argonaut) but I don’t specifically remember Harryhausen-like stop motion monsters.

4 thoughts on “Old nightmare-fuel fantasy adventure

  1. Well, weird. The Magic Sword is a lot darker than what I remember and I was sure there was more of a Mediterranean or Middle Eastern feel, but yes I do believe this is it. It has all the elements, especially the Nightmare Fuel in the cave. Thanks so much for solving this one for me, Will!

  2. Sounds like it might be “Captain Sinbad” (it may be “Captain Sindbad”) from (IIRC) 1963, starring Guy Williams. It had monsters, but they were not stop-motion animation.

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