[[quoteright:301:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hercules_against_the_moon_men.png]]

''Hercules Against the Moon Men'' is a 1964 SwordAndSandal movie. The movie, like ''Film/ColossusAndTheHeadhunters'', isn't actually a ''Film/{{Hercules|1958}}'' movie but a ''Film/{{Maciste}}'' movie, with [[DolledUpInstallment the name changed for US release]].

Somewhere in the ancient Mediterranean world, a ship from the Moon crashes into a mountain, and the occupants insist on getting human sacrifices at what is now the "mountain of death". Enter our hero, "Hercules," played by Alan Steel. Hercules helps free the sacrificial victims, but the Queen of Samar is in league with the Moon Men now, and sends her armies out to stop Hercules. Swordfights and buffalo shots ensue. Then, the Moon Men reveal their master plan to revive their dead queen and merge the Moon with the Earth. Can Herc get to the mountain in time to save the girl and the world?

For the ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'' episode see ''[[Recap/MysteryScienceTheater3000S04E10HerculesAgainstTheMoonMen here]]''.

!!''Hercules Against The Moon Men'' provides examples of the following tropes:
* AncientAstronauts: Aliens in an Ancient Greek setting.
* AncientGrome: The architecture and costumes have an ambiguous Greco-Roman vibe, and a few pieces of set dressing are borrowed from Mesopotamian or Egyptian iconography. Samara's bedroom, for example, is flanked by [[SheduAndLammasu lammasu]] statues.
* AsYouKnow: Billis reminds Samara that the two are half-sisters (through their father).
* BatmanGambit: Once Hercules is in her power, Samara sets Agar free (under pretense of banishing her), knowing that the girl will run straight to her pals in LaResistance to update them... allowing the army to follow her to them.
* BlondeBrunetteRedhead: Billis, Agar and Samara
* BondVillainStupidity: After Samara captures Hercules, her first priority is to kill him. However, instead of just stabbing him, she puts him in a DeathTrap that he can only survive by a great feat of upper-body strength - the very thing [[WorldsStrongestMan he is famous for being supernaturally good at]].
* ButNowIMustGo: And Agar goes with him.
* DealWithTheDevil: Samara's bargain with the Moon Men amounts to this.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: The Captain of Samara's army finds the conspirators' hideout; but, instead of arresting them, he and the army join them, under the grounds that the soldiers are citizens too and have families (i.e., potential sacrifices) of their own.
* EvilRedhead: Queen Samara, one of the main villains of the movie, has striking red hair.
* FakeDefector: According to Hercules movie law[[note]]but it's not really Hercules; it's Maciste[[/note]], Queen Samara tries slipping Herc a LovePotion. In ''this'' film, Hercules is smart enough to only fake drinking it and pretend to be BrainwashedAndCrazy for long enough to seduce the location of the Moon Men's lair out of Samara.
* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: Samara routinely feeds her subjects to the "mountain of death" in ritual sacrifice and gets angry when her advisor begs her to stop. Making this all the stranger is that it's never made clear what exactly the Moon Men need with the random sacrifices, as it's actually [[spoiler:Billis]] that they need.
* HumanSacrifice: A trademark of the Maciste films ever since [[Film/{{Cabiria}} his debut in 1914]].
* KissingCousins: Downplayed with Billis and Prince Derex. Derex is firmly established as the cousin of Samara, but Samara and Billis are only half-sisters, so it's implied that he shares no blood with Billis herself. It's only ''kinda'' weird.
* LovePotion: Queen Samara keeps one around her neck.
* TheMainCharactersDoEverything: Hercules was summoned so that he could lead the people in battle against the Moon Men, but in the end, he does all the fighting himself while the locals wander around lost in a sandstorm.
* MrFanservice: A major selling point of the SwordAndSandal genre, the Hercules films, and [[FollowTheLeader their many followers]], Hercules/Maciste's gleaming pecs are on full display.
* MsFanservice:
** Jany Clair as Queen Samara is very curvy and her outfits really emphasize this.
** Princess Billis, her half-sister, [[BigBreastPride loves showing off her ample bosom]]. The framing of the shot where she implores Samara to allow her to marry Derex shows it off a lot.
* LaResistance: A group of citizens led by Prince Derex opposes Samara.
* OutOfGenreExperience: A SwordAndSandal movie where Hercules/Maciste fights Sci-fi aliens from outer space.
* SealedEvilInACan: The queen of the Moon Men is locked in eternal slumber, and her followers' plan is to [[GrandTheftMe transfer her consciousness into Billis]] (or something) so she can rule again
* ShirtlessCaptives: Hercules wears an exomis-style tunic for most of the film, but after being captured by Samara he is next seen shirtless and in chains and then placed in a bizarre torture machine.
* SheCleansUpNicely: Agar when she changes from her boy disguise into her normal clothes.
* SurprisinglySuddenDeath: Herc and Agar's father are moseying through a secret tunnel, then suddenly WHAMMO! spikes shoot out of the wall to {{impale|dWithExtremePrejudice}} the old guy.
* TakeOverTheWorld: What the Moon Men plan to do with the power from all their sacrifices.
* WorldsStrongestMan: Hercules/Maciste himself, naturally
* YouHaveFailedMe: The Moon Men get fed up with Samara's failed attempts to kill Hercules. Rocks Slam Dance, Samara Dies.
** For unclear reasons, Samara puts to death the only one of her guards to survive a battle against Hercules.
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