Christopher Columbus (1949)

Christopher Columbus overcomes intrigue at the Spanish court and convinces Queen Isabella that his plan to reach the East by sailing west is practical.

Director:

David MacDonald

Writers:

Rafael Sabatini (novel), Muriel Box,

Stars:

Fredric March, Florence Eldridge, Francis L. Sullivan

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Fredric March	...	Christopher Columbus
Florence Eldridge	...	Queen Isabella
Francis L. Sullivan	...	Francisco de Bobadilla
Kathleen Ryan	...	Beatriz Enriquez de Arana
Derek Bond	...	Diego de Arana
Nora Swinburne	...	Joanna de Torres
Abraham Sofaer	...	Luis de Santangel
Linden Travers	...	Beatriz de Peraza
James Robertson Justice	...	Martin Alonso Pinzon
Dennis Vance	...	Francisco Pinzon
Richard Aherne	...	Vicente Yañez Pinzon
Felix Aylmer	...	Father Perez
Francis Lister	...	King Ferdinand
Edward Rigby	...	Pedro
Niall MacGinnis	...	Juan de la Cosa

Storyline

Using a letter of introduction from Queen Isabella's former confessor, Christopher Columbus gains access to the Spanish court where he tries to convince authorities of the practicality of his proposed voyage to reach to Far East by sailing west. Court intrigue and the efforts of Francisco de Bobadilla, whose financial interests would be hurt by Columbus' success, are roadblocks to the voyage, but the navigator perseveres and ultimately prevails.

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Plot Keywords:

christopher columbus | queen | queen isabella | navigator | court intrigue | 

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Taglines:

The greatest adventure man ever lived!

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Biography | Drama | History

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 December 1949 (Sweden)

Also Known As:

Columbus

Filming Locations:

Islington Studios, Islington, London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Gainsborough Pictures, Sydney Box Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min 94 min (Finland: video)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Finnish visa register number T-30829 delivered on 29-11-1994 (video).

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Goofs

Opening narration perpetuates the myth that people of Columbus' time thought the Earth was flat when in fact they knew it was spherical. Later, when Columbus discusses his plan with Father Perez and another friar, the friars clearly know that the world is round.

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Quotes

Christopher Columbus: [as he and Diego observe a native smoking tobacco] Doesn't that prove how backward they are? You never see a civilized man do that.

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Connections

Version of Exploration (1994)

User Reviews

Everything old is new

I'm so sick of the PC and multicultural framework of all art today that it's good to see a rendition of the Columbus history told unashamedly from the viewpoint of Western hegemonists (my perspective)regardless of its obvious weaknesses as a film. March is a typical American actor who projects his own personna no matter what the part (Anthony Adverse or Phillip of Macedonia). It limited him but I happen to like the personna as did many other moviegoers. If I'm not mistaken his age is about right for Columbus at this time. It could have been more exciting but what is exciting is the whole enterprise that results in the discovery of the New World because of the persistence and vision of one man. Many earthshaking developments take years or months of plodding to come to fruition whether the Columbus landfall, the landing on the moon or the curing of polio.

It's worth watching just to hear the great score.