España in the year 1080 is split between Christian and Moor control. Life for the (English-speaking) citizens means choosing one side or the other. Don Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (Chuck Heston) is one such man, but his actions are guided more by his own sense of right and wrong. As either God's chosen one or just a guy with the best and worst timing in all of Spain he rises above the rabble to become a symbol of strength, tolerance and unity.
The screenplay is excellent. Like in the slightly similar
Ben-Hur (1959) passions run high in many forms, state and heart being the most memorable, with the dialogue in support of each being occasionally superb. Sophia's overacting early on is pretty terrible, but it's exaggerated for a reason.
When all is said and done, when El Cid resides in the hearts of the people he inspires, inside his own lives Spain and it's for love of it that he fights.
5 right arms out of 5
No comments:
Post a Comment