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Driven with desire to find the mythical Kingdom Of Gold, conquistador Francisco Pizarro (Robert Shaw) sets sail for the Americas seeking riches beyond any man's dreams. Far from being a land of savages, Pizarro encounters the magical Inca Empire and their fabled leader Atahualpa (Christopher Plummer). The initial mistrust and suspicion between the two men is replaced by a mutual faith and respect - emotions not held by other members of Pizarro's exploration party, who are purely intent on claiming the Inca gold for themselves. Empires collide in this epic story as two civilisations, two men and two belief systems seek to find their place in a modern world.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
17 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
A truly dreadful transfer, almost unwatchable. This was a big film in it's day, and it's been destroyed by this crappy master (or poor excuse for a master). Don't bother, waste of money and time.
34 of 37 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
This film adaptation of Peter Shaffer's play does complete justice to the intelligence and power of the original. While staying very close to historical truth, it is at the same time a timeless and haunting meditation on cultural differences, religion, loyalty, greed, power and friendship. The acting is absolutely superb: Robert Shaw's Pizarro weaves strength, doubt, lust for adventure and riches, and cunning combined with honesty and involuntary admiration for the Inca god-king he has taken prisoner.
The top honors go though undoubtedly to Christopher Plummer and his arrestingly magnificent portrayal of Atahualpa (incidentally, Plummer had played Pizarro in the Broadway version of the play, to much acclaim). He is in turn, and many times all at once, supremely royal, candid, touching, god-like, child-like, alien, eccentric, visionary and always masterful. It is a performance of such power and beauty as rarely has graced the screen, and the actor himself confessed that this was one of the roles he was most proud of.
There is not much "action" as such in the movie, which centers instead on the improbable developing friendship and admiration between Pizarro and Atahualpa, their conversations, and Pizarro's increasingly adversarial relationship with his fellow conquistadores, who want Atahualpa dead and the Inca empire subjugated and converted (with the Inquisition overtones of "convert, or else"). Atahualpa stays serenely true to himself until the end - his conversion to Christianity before he is killed is not a renegation, but a royal nod delivered with a knowing smile to Pizarro and young Martin, who adress him as "My Lord" and beg him to accept the conversion in order not to be burned at the stake. It is Pizarro who is the conflicted one - between the Spanish crown that exploits him without helping him and the ruthless men of the church who accompany him on the one hand, and the peaceful and happy Incas and their majestic but curiously endearing god-king on the other, Pizarro's beliefs and allegiances are all put under question. His heart starts to believe in the man he has to agree to let be killed for the glory of Spain...
All in all, a splendid movie with a superb cast and raising some very thought-provoking questions. Highly recommended.
23 of 27 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Having seen the start of this film sometime in the middle 1980s and subsequently studied the history of the conquest of the Americas by the Spanish, I have been very keen to obtain a copy of this film for at least 5 or 6 years. I have also read the original Peter Schaffer play upon which it is based and become a real fan of the actor Robert Shaw through his performances in films such as a Man for all Seasons (his Henry VIII is magisterial). He seems to me to have been an actor who could produce epic and mesmerising performances (not to mention his role in Jaws).
The film itself is a reduced and distilled version of the play, with much dialogue edited or cut out, but with the spirit and intentions of the play still very much present. Robert Shaw's performance as the world weary Pizarro is typically epic, with the conflict between the characters drive to achieve great wealth and power despite his humble origins, and his feelings of identification (and friendship) with the Inca King (his victim) Atahualpa powerfully portrayed.
Christopher Plummer's performance as Atahualpa is brave, if not entirely successful. His portrayal shows the strangeness of the Inca world and mentality to the Spanish (and modern Europeans) very well. However the attempt at the Inca king can sometimes look slightly contrived rather than naturalistic when compared with Shaw's performance. However the strength of the character of Atahualpa in the screenplay allows you soon to forget any difficulties in his performance.
Overall this film is a must if you like films like a 'Man for all Seasons', 'The Lion in Winter' or even 'Aguirre: Wrath of God'. It powerfully portrays the total incomprehension between two cultures which would lead to ones total destruction at the hands of another.
The film itself is a reduced and distilled version of the play, with much dialogue edited or cut out, but with the spirit and intentions of the play still very much present. Robert Shaw's performance as the world weary Pizarro is typically epic, with the conflict between the characters drive to achieve great wealth and power despite his humble origins, and his feelings of identification (and friendship) with the Inca King (his victim) Atahualpa powerfully portrayed.
Christopher Plummer's performance as Atahualpa is brave, if not entirely successful. His portrayal shows the strangeness of the Inca world and mentality to the Spanish (and modern Europeans) very well. However the attempt at the Inca king can sometimes look slightly contrived rather than naturalistic when compared with Shaw's performance. However the strength of the character of Atahualpa in the screenplay allows you soon to forget any difficulties in his performance.
Overall this film is a must if you like films like a 'Man for all Seasons', 'The Lion in Winter' or even 'Aguirre: Wrath of God'. It powerfully portrays the total incomprehension between two cultures which would lead to ones total destruction at the hands of another.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Needs remaking
This is a fascinating story, with some good acting (and some over-acting) but the transfer to DVD is very poor - poor resolution, poor contrast, no subtitles, and the audio at... Read more
Published 2 months ago by blurryknight
Three stars for poor production and transfer!!
Five stars for the film itself as it is outstanding, with some great actors and excellent photography and costumes. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Monk
Not a good production
Sadly, although this is a good story, it does not transfer easily from stage to screen. Olivier's Richard III was far superior in every way.
Published 7 months ago by Locator
The Royal Hunt of the Sun" from 1969
This is convincing as a film but the actual play was considerably better. Even allowing for the atmosphere that a live performance generates as well as the superb locations this... Read more
Published 8 months ago by Richard van Bueren
Buy it
I agree with an earlier reviewer that the vision and sound quality of this is more appropriate to a 1960s B movie. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Mr. R. Williams
the royal hunt of the sun
a very good story ,outstanding actors ,picture is clear, it would be even better in widescreen
Published 18 months ago by jeffrey hollenburg
chris plummer excellent as Atuhalpa
This film should have been honoured when it first came out, the performances from Christopher plummer and Robert Shaw are excellent, with Plummer taking a part like no other I have... Read more
Published 23 months ago by Mrs. S. Szintai
Tour de Force acting from Christopher Plummer
The only negative criticism of this DVD is that it is true that the transfer is of a poor quality and the editing is faulty in places but the sheer skill of the performances and... Read more
Published on 8 Feb 2010 by Son Of The Rock
too old fashioned & dreadfuf DVD quality, but good acting
The conquest of the Inca Empire is a powerful and dreadful story. Indeed the stuff for a monumentam movie. Read more
Published on 31 Aug 2008 by Amelrode
Good fiolm holding right to the end
This is a film where the ending is known, but still holds you on your seat. The basic storyline is factual, but the story is a study iun tension. Read more
Published on 24 Nov 2007 by M. Allen
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