This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

Here it is--a G-rated movie for the family that is dashing, up-beat, and which provides positive role models for both men and women. The entire set, costuming, storyline, romance, intrigue, plot twist and fencing were spot on. Granger turns in another fine performance as in the Prisoner of Zenda and Scaramouche. And what a fine swordsman he was, with only Cornel Wilde, Errol Flynn and Basil Rathbone being a convincing match. I am a European historian who spent several years there and who loves these kinds of productions. When the movie ended, with a final little plot twist, I just sat there in the easy chair smiling, or was it beaming! A jolly good show.

This fairly standard Italian swashbuckler is considerably enlivened by two factors: the presence of Stewart Granger, one of movie's great swordsmen who actually was a good swordsman -- only Basil Rathbone was better. The swordplay in this movie is very real -- although the casual moviegoer might not understand the seemingly motionless pointwork, it is very well shot.The other high point of the movie is the horse race, the famous Pallio of Siena. Although the real Pallio is a bareback race, this version of it is shot very excitingly with some nice point of view shots and excellent stuntwork.Although I viewed an excellent print, it was dubbed, and therefore a bit hard to judge most of the performances. The costumes are excellent and the result is a surprisingly good Italian potboiler.

Siena in the sixteenth century called the Spanish for help :litle did they know (and they were naive) that their protectors would be here to stay and that they would become dictators.His excellency wants to marry Henrietta ,a high born lovely wealthy lady ;but the little sister ,Serenella,does not agree and she tells her so:he is responsible for the death of their father;enter a mercenary (Granger),whose mission is to protect the governor's future wife.This is an entertaining swashbuckler,pleasant to watch:Stewart Granger ,who is going gray (and even white) at the temples ,is always dashing,dynamic ,and full of humor;he is good at fencing and Sylva Koscina is not chopped liver either;Christine Kauffmann is gorgeous as the little sister ;even if we guess the truth about Henrietta long before the end,the story is so eventful we never get bored.Now tongue in cheek,now tragical (the death of the kid sister),with a nasty cousin Hugo,fond of tortures, ten rebels (check the title)against tyranny and a Robin Hood feel:very entertaining stuff!

This is a pretty much standard swashbuckler. The story is not original at all: the fight against tyrany in colorful Siena (Italy) with the usual hero that starts by hiring his sword to the dictator but in time starts to change his mind and joins the just cause.The soldier of fortune is here played by Stewart Granger a correct actor in my opinion. But what really is interesting in the film is the swordplay choreography most enjoyable indeed; perhaps Granger is no Errol Flynn but he doesn't lack some sort of elegance at it (just as he did 10 years before in the classic "Scaramouche"). Also in the cast Sylvia Koscina was a beautiful woman and an acceptable actress and Christine Kaufamnn is a beautiful woman.If you enjoy cape and sword films you will enjoy this one for sure but don't expect a classic and not even a great movie.