Conquest (1983)

A young man, armed with a magical bow and arrows, embarks on a mystical journey through a mystical land to rid it of all evil and joins forces with an outlaw to take down an evil witch bent on claiming the magic bow for evil.

Director:

Lucio Fulci

Writers:

Gino Capone (screenplay), Giovanni Di Clemente (story),

Stars:

Jorge Rivero, Andrea Occhipinti, Conrado San Martín

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Jorge Rivero	...	Mace (as George Rivero)
Andrea Occhipinti	...	Ilias
Conrado San Martín	...	Zora
Violeta Cela	...	Sacrificial Victim
José Gras	...	Fado (as Josè Gras Palau)
Gioia Scola	...	Girl Ilias Saves from Snake (as Maria Escola)
Sabrina Siani	...	Ocron (as Sabrina Sellers)

Storyline

Italian sword and sorcery epic from splatter director Lucio Fulci loosely inspired from the Hercules mythos about two warriors on a quest and a vengeful demon who throws all kinds of nasty creatures along the way to fill scenes of gory violence.

---

Plot Keywords:

sword and sorcery | demon | sword | warrior | magic | 

---

Taglines:

A terrifying odyssey into the unreal.

---

Genres:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Horror

---

Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Italy Spain Mexico

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

6 April 1984 (USA)

Also Known As:

Mace the Outcast

Filming Locations:

Sardinia, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Clemi Cinematografica, Clesi Cinematografica, Conquest Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Telecolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Ilias: What's your name?
Mace: My enemies call me Mace.
Ilias: And your friends?
Mace: I don't have any friends.

User Reviews

A Trip

The atmosphere in this movie is like nothing I have ever seen. Absolutely bizarre, beautiful, and brilliant. The plot and acting are not important. Instead, they merely provide a stepping stone for Lucio Fulci's beyond-superb cinematography.

OK, the "atmosphere's plot" revolves around the pursuit of the sorceress villainess Ocron (Sabrina Siani) by an archer, Ilias (Andrea Occhipinti), and Mace (Jorge Rivero), a sidekick picked up along the way. Sabrina is more of a form figure than a person, and has a fluid gold mask. However, Ilias and Mace are regular homo sapiens. The setting is, you know, sci fi, caveman outfitted, medieval, monsters and wolfmen and zombies, and a few more people.

Funny thing, the silhouettes of both Mace and Ilias -- most notably, their hairlines -- give them a resemblance to Jim Morrison. When the facial details are observed, the comparison lessens, but one almost thinks a crossing of those details would bring a nearer result. Plus, like other animal forms in the movie, snakes are prominent. And you know, that scene in Oliver Stone's flick with "The End," is there more coincidence...

OK, enough of that. Ocron's efforts to eliminate her stalkers seeking to end her evil rule center around beast and wolfmen attacks, and there are various other graphic scenes. For those who dislike violence and gore, graphic imagery, this film has them, yes, but they are mitigated by the atmosphere. "Cannibal Holocaust" and "Jungle Holocaust" are real (very), "Conquest" is surreal (equally as very).

To communicate what the atmosphere is like, I might initially say something like "darkly impressionistic." But first of all, it's not dark as in nightworld -- not really dark, but somewhat murky; Fulci enlists fog, as a matter of fact. Besides, "impressionistic" applies only in the broad association of the word of nonreproduction of realism, not the narrower definition involving use of light and uneven depth. For what makes the cinematography so fantastic is the depth of the backdrop--colors and form, and the blending of the colors. Motley, variegated? But don't these terms perhaps imply brightness and individual definition? Yet the brightness in "Conquest" is subtly refined, filtered within the nebulous atmosphere. The effect is nothing short of a dazzling work of art, a real treat for the viewer. For your eyes only.

Fulci is very successful in his efforts with broad, elaborate images -- the sky, the sun and moon, the sea and earth and vegetation. But he is also good on detail in the living beings and their surroundings. And although the movie's tale is only silly, the scenes are presented skillfully, well crafted and well edited.

So inferior are the pompous, amorphous special effects that viewers are barraged with by modern Hollywood movies (Mummy II, etc.) when measured against Fulci's work in "Conquest" that they come out as nothing but a joke by comparison. I wish to point out that I am no particular fan of European movies, preferring Hollywood overall, but I must say that in certain genres some Italian flicks represent the best of the Old World, with their exploration of basic human desires and instincts, their depth and bite, sometimes great humor, and, as here, atmosphere. See references above, plus "The Good the Bad and the Ugly," "The Sensuous Nurse," "The Legend of Frenchie King," "Farewell Uncle Tom," "La Dolce Vita..." For atmosphere and visuals, "Conquest" is triumphant.