The mask of Zorro

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Movie
German title The mask of Zorro
Original title The Mask of Zorro
Country of production USA , Germany
original language English
Publishing year 1998
length 132 minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director Martin Campbell
script John Eskow , Ted Elliott , Terry Rossio
production Doug Claybourne , David Foster
music James Horner
camera Phil Meheux
cut Thom Noble
occupation
chronology

Successor  →
The Legend of Zorro

The Mask of Zorro (Original Title: The Mask of Zorro ) is a coat-and-sword film from 1998 by director Martin Campbell . The main roles were played by Antonio Banderas and Anthony Hopkins . In 2005 a sequel was released under the title The Legend of Zorro .

action

As a result of the Mexican War of Independence , Spain's 300-year rule over Mexico came to an end in 1821 . A popular uprising in the country led by the Mexican General Santa Anna spreads and reaches the Northern Province, the historic territory of California . The peasants are demanding the death of the last Spanish governor, Don Rafael Montero, a tyrannical despot who, despite being instructed to return to Spain, does not want to give up his power without further ado. A mysterious masked fighter stands by the battered people, his name: Zorro .

Behind Zorro is Don Diego de la Vega, who and his wife Esperanza have a few weeks old daughter named Elena. During the night, the Alta California area, previously controlled by Spain, is to be handed over to Mexico. Governor Montero previously divided the land among the Dons. That night, Montero finds out who is hiding behind Zorro: he and his men penetrate the de la Vega property, in the process Esperanza, with whom Montero was also in love, is killed and the house burned down. Montero arrests de la Vega and takes his baby. He was held in prison for 20 years until he managed to escape.

He wants to take revenge on Montero for his murdered wife and kidnapped daughter Elena. The now aging man finds a successor in the young bandit Alejandro Murrieta, who is supposed to slip into the role of Zorro. He trains him in handling the sword and whip and teaches him behavior. However, Montero's henchmen are not easy to beat, especially the master fencer Captain Love. (Alejandro's brother Joaquin took his own life to avoid being arrested by him.)

Murrieta finds out that Montero owns a secret gold mine where he employs slaves. With the gold he wants to buy up Alta California and become ruler of an independent Republic of California. Don Diego de la Vega now tells his daughter Elena her true origin.

The final battle takes place in the gold mine: The mine is destroyed, the slaves are freed, as well as Montero and Capt. Love killed. Don Diego de la Vega is fatally injured in the battle and gives Elena and Alejandro his blessing as they die. The two have a son and call him Joaquin.

background

  • The character of Zorro is based on the novel The Curse of Capistrano by the author Johnston McCulley, first published in 1919 in All-Story Weekly magazine . The novel was first filmed in 1920 under the title The Mark of Zorro (German film title: Daszeichen des Zorro ). Due to the success of the feature film, McCulley's novel was subsequently republished under the title The Mark of Zorro .
  • Zorro is the Spanish word for fox .
  • According to the director's audio commentary, test shots for the role of Elena were ultimately made with three actresses: In addition to Catherine Zeta-Jones, these were Judith Godrèche and Izabella Scorupco .
  • Originally, a different ending was planned in the film, in which Alejandro and Elena meet with the prisoners of the mine on their way to General Santa Anna , who was awaiting the delivery of the gold. Santa Anna is mentioned several times in the film, but should only appear in the last scene (played by Joaquim de Almeida ) in the film. Steven Spielberg , who was involved in the making of the film, found the scene too pensive and so the ending with Alejandro, Elena and their baby was used in the film instead.
  • The characters Joaquin Murieta (Alejandro's brother) and 3-finger Jack used in the film are based on actual bandits. They were both Mexicans and made northern California unsafe in the mid-19th century. Both were eventually taken over by officer Capt. Harry Love overwhelmed and killed who in the movie Capt. Harrison Love is called.
  • Filming began on January 27, 1997 and ended on June 5, 1997. The film was shot in Mexico .
  • Production costs were estimated at around $ 95 million. The film grossed around US $ 250 million in cinemas worldwide, around US $ 94 million of that in the United States.
  • It was released in the US on July 17, 1998, and in Germany on October 22, 1998.

Reviews

“[...] neither as a fiery daredevil nor as a fatherly fighter for justice alone would Zorro still function today. Without further ado, the film bypasses the dramaturgical problem by doubling the Zorro figure: Zorro Senior (Anthony Hopkins, who was obviously not expected to ride horses at his age and swing around the hall on chandeliers) gets a Zorro Junior (Anthonio Banderas) put aside. Two heroes who together unite all character variables, philosopher and hero. [...] Conclusion: A trendy, contemporary Zorro, with irony and action, which does not require a lot of special effects, and shows that a film can be funny and simply fun without its intelligence suffering. "

- Rüdiger Suchsland on artechock.de

“For a long time, the film draws its greatest magical effect from the dramaturgical implementation of the father / son relationship between De la Vega and Murietta. The inner conflicts of the two protagonists seem believable. The gained flair is exposed to the (wanted?) Ridiculousness by an all too sweet icing towards the end of the film. Catherine Zeta-Jones as Elena Montero has strong moments in several excellently choreographed action scenes. Unfortunately, her role is flattened by the dramaturgical pregnancy club, and so she only circulates in the narrative as a link between the men. "

- Markus Fritsch on schnitt.de

"Entertaining coat and epee film, which appealingly revives the classic patterns of the genre, with excellent support from a first-class cast - above all Antonio Banderas as the ideal cast for the title role."

- Lexicon of international film

Awards

At the 1999 Academy Awards , the film was nominated for Best Sound and Best Sound Editing . He was nominated three times for a Saturn Award in 1999, including Catherine Zeta-Jones and costume designer Graciela Mazón , who was also nominated for a BAFTA Award in 1999 and a Costume Designers Guild Award . Antonio Banderas won the European Film Award in 1998. It was nominated for a Golden Globe in 1999, and the film received another nomination for this award in the category of Best Picture . Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta-Jones were nominated for the 1999 MTV Movie Award . The film won the Young Artist Award 1999 for Best Family Film .

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Filming data in the IMDb
  2. ↑ Box office Mojo gross profit
  3. ↑ Start dates in the IMDb
  4. ^ Film review by Rüdiger Suchsland
  5. ^ Film review by Markus Fritsch
  6. ↑ The Mask of Zorro. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed October 28, 2018 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used