NekoHomey Purely Joyful Movie!

Exoticalot People are voting emotionally.

Neive Bellamy Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

Married Baby Just intense enough to provide a much-needed diversion, just lightweight enough to make you forget about it soon after it’s over. It’s not exactly “good,” per se, but it does what it sets out to do in terms of putting us on edge, which makes it … successful?

bsmith5552 "Samson and Delilah" is another of Producer/Director's biblical epics with a cast of thousands and impressive set pieces and this time in glorious Technicolor . It tells the story of strong man Samson (Victor Mature) and his betrayal by the seductive Delilah (Hedy Lammar).Samson is in pursuit of Philistine beauty Semadar (Angela Lansbury). She in turn is the apple of the eye of Ahtur (Henry Wilcoxen) the Philistine governor. Delilah meanwhile has her eye on Samson. Samson wants to impress Semadar by slaying a rogue lion before Ahtur and his men arrive on the scene. With Delilah aiding him, Samson slays the lion with his bare hand. This impresses the Saran of Gaza (George Sanders) who bestows the hand of Semadar to Samson much to the disdain of Ahtur and Delilah.At the wedding feast, Samson tells a riddle which no one can solve . Ahtur arranges for Semadar to learn the solution of the riddle which angers Samson. He loses the wager with the soldiers and turns away from her in anger. She then marries Ahtur. Samson becomes enraged and a fight erupts during which Semadar is killed causing Samson to flee and go into hiding.Delilah throws herself at Samson but he has no interest in her. She vows revenge. She becomes the lover of the Saran and plots with him and his council to capture Samson. Samson is captured and while he is being brought to prison escapes his bonds and single handedly decimates Ahtur's army with.........the jaw bone of an ass. He then escapes.Delilah devises a plan whereby she will lure Samson into a trap during which he will be taken. While robbing what he thinks is a merchant's caravan, Samson discovers that it is the tents of Delilah. At first he is uninterested but later succumbs to her charms. Delilah learns the secret of Samson's strength. She really still loves him and offers to run off to Egypt with him. When Miriam (Olive Dearing) and the young Saul (Russ Tamblyn) beg Samson to return to the hills with them, Delilah becomes enraged and springs the trap she has laid for the now weakened Samson. Ahtur and his soldiers take Samson. Delilah had received assurances from the Saran not to kill Samson but to bring him in unharmed. But the saran has Ahtur put out Samson's eyes leaving him helpless.Samson is imprisoned but after praying to God regains his strength. Even though the deceitful Delilah offers to help him escape, he goes to the Great Temple and......................................................................................................It's interesting to note that Angela Lansbury (whose part was all too brief) and who played Hedy Lamarr's older sister was in fact 12 years younger than Hedy. Lamarr was well past her best before date but nevertheless gives the performance of her career here. Victor Mature makes an excellent Samson and was was a better actor than he was give credit for. He would appear as another biblical type character, "Demetrius" in "The Robe" (1953) and "Demetrius and the Gladiators" (1954).Also in the cast were William Farnum as Delilah's father, and such recognizable faces as Lane Chandler, Francis McDonald, "Wee Willie" Davis, John Miljan, Moroni Olsen, Mike Mazurki, George Reeves, Harry Woods, Ray Teal, John Merton, Tom Tyler and many others.

SnoopyStyle It's 1000BC. Samson (Victor Mature) is a Danite Hebrew in the village of Zorah under the domineering rule of the Philistines. Samson is in love with Semadar (Angela Lansbury) from a wealthy Philistine family. Her younger sister Delilah (Hedy Lamarr) is infatuated with the brute. He kills a lion with his bare hands while with Delilah but Lord Saran (George Sanders) doesn't believe them. He is awarded a hunter's prize after beating Garmiskar in wrestling, but he takes Semadar's hand in marriage instead. Semadar was originally promised to Ahtur (Henry Wilcoxon) and he's not happy. Ahtur brings his 30 warriors to the wedding. Samson has a riddle and makes a bet for 30 cloaks with Ahtur. The jealous Delilah pushes Ahtur, and he frightens Semadar into betraying Samson. Samson robs passing Philistines to pay the debt, but Delilah's scheming isn't finished. She convinces her father to marry Semadar off to Ahtur while trying to get Samson for herself. It all crumbles as Samson battles Ahtur and his 30 men. Samson escapes but Semadar is killed. He burns everything down and Delilah vows vengeance against Samson.The Technicolor looks brilliant. There is a nice stunt wrestling a real lion early on. Of course, Victor Mature is wrestling a stuffed lion. He is a big guy and he plays Samson as a self assured brute. The acting is not subtle. Hedy Lamarr is playing the vixen for all her worth. Her acting is extremely broad. This is a grand epic from Cecil B. DeMille. It's all very old fashion in everything from tone to style to acting. I doubt that I should count that against it. It is simply an epic of a compelling biblical story.

JoeKarlosi The acclaimed Cecil B. DeMille had to be one of the corniest directors who ever lived. Here is his very colorful biblical semi-epic, SAMSON AND DELILAH, a flawed film but with occasionally powerful moments, starring Victor Mature and Hedy Lamarr as the two title leads. Basing its story on the Bible's Book Of Judges, Samson is a rugged and self-absorbed 'Danite' whose people are dominated by the Philistines. Yet he wishes to marry the Philistine Semadar (Angela Lansbury), the older sister of the stealthy Delilah, who loves Samson and wants him for herself. Samson harbors a faith in what Philistines call "his invisible god", who Samson believes has given him the gift of super-human strength through his long hair. The Philistines consider the unbeatable Samson to be a lingering thorn in their sides, so once Delilah is spurned, she sets her price to seduce Samson and learn the secret of his brute power, and render him helpless. But her undying love for him is something that will return to haunt her.We should consider that this film was made in 1949 and it certainly seems antiquated now, and even in comparison to other biblical movies done as early as ten years after. For one thing, it begs to be shot in Widescreen, but this was not the norm in its day. It's perhaps a bit too long, can be monotonous at times, and is better in its second half than its first. But the best moments are truly exciting, such as Samson's killing of a lion with his bare hands (still looks pretty good today, quickly edited to limit its shortcomings), Samson single-handedly fighting an entire army of Philistines armed only with the jawbone of an ass, and the satisfying grand finale where Samson mightily brings down the Temple of Dagon. Victor Mature and Hedy Lamarr surely look just right for their roles, and I don't think Mature's performance is bad in the film (though his character seems rather selfish and unagreeable and thus not as heroic as he should be). George Sanders gets a lot of praise for his understated playing of The Saran of Gaza, but it's a bit too laid back under these conditions for me. **1/2 out of ****

vitaleralphlouis First seen in 1949 when I was still a kid, and again on DVD last night, deMille's "Samson and Delilah" has actually improved with age. Although this was a standout success in 1949, the fact is that quality movies were commonplace in 1949; seldom and few in 2010. (Resident Evil 3D" does nothing for me, thanks.With perfect photography, an exceptional script, inspired direction, you can add onto that the casting of Victor Mature, Hedy Lamarr, George Saunders -- each perfect for the part, each giving the performance that marked their career.The special effects were magnificent (unlike today's boring computer generated foolishness) and give a spectacular conclusion to the story.Try to imagine the unholy mess that today's anti-religious and talent-free empty-heads would make. Never mind.As others pointed out, this is the kind of picture to see on the giant screen. I'd like to add that it's the kind to enjoy in the magnificent movie palaces of yesteryear -- as we did at Loew's Capitol in Washington, DC in 1949 (plus a stage show). Most of these, like the Phillistine temple in the movie, have been converted to rubble and dust. However, you can enjoy "Samson and Delilah" on exceptionally high quality DVD made in South Korea. Look for it. The price and postage are low and shipment is quick. If Paramount Pictures is asleep-at-the-wheel about issuing a DVD, just look elsewhere.