The Royal Hunt of the Sun (1969)

In 1532, Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro leads an expedition into the heart of the Inca Empire and captures the Incan Emperor Atahualpa and claims Peru for Spain.

Director:

Irving Lerner

Writers:

Peter Shaffer (play), Philip Yordan

Stars:

Robert Shaw, Christopher Plummer, Nigel Davenport

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robert Shaw	...	Francisco Pizarro
Christopher Plummer	...	Atahuallpa
Nigel Davenport	...	Hernando de Soto
Leonard Whiting	...	Young Martin
Michael Craig	...	Estete
Andrew Keir	...	Valverde
William Marlowe	...	Candia
James Donald	...	King Carlos
Alexander Davion	...	De Nizza
Sam Krauss	...	Felipillo
Percy Herbert	...	Diego
David Bauer	...	Villac Umu
Danny Yordan	...	Vasca
Alfredo Porras	...	Manco
Joaquín Parra	...	Mendoza (as Joaquin Parra)

Storyline

The Spanish explorer Pizarro captures the Inca god-chief Atahualpa and promises to free him upon the delivery of a hoard of gold. But Pizarro finds himself torn between his desire for conquest and his sense of honor after friendship and respect develops between captive and captor.

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Plot Keywords:

bare chested male | homosexual subtext | 1530s | year 1532 | year 1533 | 

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Taglines:

The birth of a hero. The death of an empire. The adventure of a lifetime.

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English Quechua

Release Date:

October 1969 (UK)

Also Known As:

Az aranybirodalom bukása

Filming Locations:

Sevilla, Andalucía, Spain

Company Credits

Production Co:

Benmar Productions, Cinema Center Films, Security Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

121 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Producer Philip Yordan also read extensively in support of the movie, and in Spain he received access to 16th century eyewitness accounts. A speech given during Atahualpa's trial was derived from the actual trial records.

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Quotes

Hernando de Soto: I think this man performs what he swears. Pray God we don't pay bitterly for it.

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Connections

Referenced in The Deep (1977)

User Reviews

Good Story Ruined by Poor Production Values

Producer Phillip Yordan had some pretty tough days in the early 1970s. Yordan was charged with tax evasion, I believe as part of his relationship with Samuel Bronston and Pierre DuPont. Bronston had allegedly comingled Dupont's money on several of his productions (most notably EL CID and FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE). Bronston was finished by the late 1960s and Yordan would fall later, which may explain the erratic production values of BAD MAN'S RIVER and ROYAL HUNT OF THE SUN.

SUN remains, a tattered quasi-masterpiece, despite Christopher Plummer's rather eccentric performance. One wonders what might have been. No matter, what is on display is good enough for the cheap price of the the DVD. Nevertheless, the quality of the DVD leaves much to be desired. The DVD uses a distracting "baby or royal blue" rather than black for its letterboxing. The interlacing is so bad in some sequences, the film is hardly viewable. The sound is uniformly underrecorded. Surely the masters weren't in THIS bad a shape.

Worth a look for students of history AND of good drama.