The captain of Castile

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Movie
German title The captain of Castile
Original title Captain from Castile
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1947
length 140/85 (German theatrical version) minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director Henry King
script Lamar Trotti
production Lamar Trotti
music Alfred Newman
camera Arthur E. Arling ,
Charles G. Clarke
cut Barbara McLean
occupation

The Captain of Castile (original title: Captain from Castile ) is an American adventure film by Henry King from 1947. A novel by Samuel Shellabarger was used as a literary model .

action

Spain in 1518: The young nobleman Pedro De Vargas helps a slave flee from his cruel master, Diego De Silva. This is one of the leaders of the Inquisition and at the same time Pedro's rival for the favor of the beautiful Luisa De Carvajal. In revenge, De Silva has Pedro's family incarcerated as a heretic. He then subjects Pedro's young sister to torture, which she does not survive.

After Pedro freed his parents from the dungeon, he managed to escape from Spain with the help of his friend Juan Garcia and the spirited farm girl Catana Perez. Together with Juan and Catana, Pedro joins the forces of Hernando Cortez , who wants to search for gold in the New World . Once in Mexico , Pedro proves himself to be a courageous fighter during the conquest of the Aztec Empire , which Cortez thanks him by appointing Pedro as captain. Meanwhile, Pedro and Catana get closer.

When Diego De Silva also arrives in Mexico as the ambassador of the Spanish king and is murdered the following night, the suspicion immediately falls on Pedro, who is subsequently sentenced to death. Shortly before the execution , De Silva's former slave, an Aztec, confesses that he committed the murder. Before Pedro is freed, Catana tries to kill him with a knife in order to save him the humiliating death on the gallows. Pedro is able to recover from the injury.

background

The film was shot on location in the Mexican cities of Acapulco , Guadalajara and Uruapan , where the active volcano Paricutín delayed the shooting and increased the budget of the film to 4.5 million dollars.

The Captain of Castile was premiered in the United States on December 25, 1947 and was also released in German cinemas on February 20, 1951 in a version shortened by 55 minutes. In 1986 the film was re-dubbed on behalf of ARD and a longer version was broadcast on German television.

Reviews

Variety found at the time that the film captured the “enormous momentum” of the novel and brought it “a feast for the eyes of Technicolor”. Tyrone Power is "rarely staged more favorably" and Cesar Romero has delivered "a rousing male portrait of Cortez". For the lexicon of international film , The Captain of Castile was "[e] in a solidly staged adventure film, sumptuously furnished according to the ideas of Hollywood". The “good acting achievements” should be emphasized, which, however, “are countered by a badly kitsched image of history and society, which is particularly noticeable in the glorification of Cortez, the pseudo-religious decor and the Indian romanticism”.

The film magazine Cinema praised the "[g] randiose [n] soundtrack by Alfred Newman" and described the film as "Hollywood pomp of old school". The conclusion was: "Classic cinema that beguiles the senses." Leonard Maltin emphasized the "wonderful" recordings of the original locations and said that "Alfred Newman's majestic film music [...] is one of Hollywood's very best".

Awards

At the Academy Awards in 1948 , the film was nominated for an Oscar in the category of best film music . In the end, composer Alfred Newman had to admit defeat to Miklós Rózsa and his music for A Double Life.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ cf. Notes on tcm.com
  2. ↑ “[T] he cinema adaptation […] capturing the vast sweep of its story and adding to it an eye-stunning Technicolor dimension. [...] Tyrone Power, who's rarely been shown to better advantage, the roster is buttressed by Cesar Romero, in a stirringly virile protrait of Cortez. " See Captain from Castile . In: Variety , 1947.
  3. ↑ The Captain of Castile. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed May 31, 2019 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used 
  4. ↑ cf. cinema.de
  5. ↑ “[M] agnificent location photography […]; Alfred Newman's majestic score ranks with Hollywood's very best. ” Leonard Maltin : Leonard Maltin's Classic Movie Guide . Plume 2010, p. 383.