1492: Conquest of Paradise
Release date: 1992-10-09
Votes: 884
Genres: Action, Adventure, Drama, History
1492: Conquest of Paradise depicts Christopher Columbus’ discovery of The New World and his effect on the indigenous people.
Reviews
Wuchak
**_Ignore the Columbus-hating critics, this is an artistic historical adventure_** Ridley Scott’s “1492: Conquest of Paradise” (1992) came out seven weeks after “Christopher Columbus: The Discovery” (1992) both of which tackle the same historic tale in celebration of its 500th anniversary. The latter was directed by John Glen who’s no slouch as he helmed five James Bond flicks in the ’80s. This film is more artistic and epic, being longer by 34 minutes, whereas “Discovery” is compact, not to mention it focuses on the set-up to the expedition while “1492” is more concerned with what happens after Columbus hits ground on the other side of the Atlantic. Moreover, “Discovery” sticks to the first voyage whereas “1492” includes additional expeditions. Both bombed at the box office, but they’re each worth checking out and comparing if you like real-life adventure. “Discovery” is more balanced in regards to the three acts and doesn’t bog down with events in the New World, but “1492” is a must if you want to see what happens beyond Columbus’ first voyage. It provides no less than 75 minutes of material beyond the events of “Discovery.” The weakest part of “Discovery” is the voyage itself, which runs half an hour and is twice as long as the same in this film. While it’s difficult to make a long ship journey involving only males dramatically compelling, “1492” is a way more convincing (and artistic) rendition of the Atlantic voyage. While “Discovery” has the superior cast, Gérard Depardieu is more convincing in the role of Columbus compared to Georges Corraface when you consider historic artist depictions. Corraface, by contrast, comes across as the cliched Hollywood version of the explorer, which doesn’t mean he’s not effective. In any case, I like the way each version points out Columbus’ positive AND negative qualities. Meanwhile Armand Assante (Sanchez), Sigourney Weaver (Queen Isabel), Michael Wincott (Moxica) and Frank Langella (Santangel) are all memorable. But don’t expect Marlon Brando or females on the level of Catherine Zeta-Jones and voluptuous Tailinh Agoyo. Speaking of the latter, the women on the islands are overtly top nude, as was the case in “The Bounty”; just a heads up. Monkey-see-monkey-do critics jumped on the hate bandwagon when “Discovery” and “1492” were released as soon as they smelled blood in the water. However, neither film is even close to being awful, as they claim. Like I said, they’re definitely worth seeing if you prefer historical adventure in the mold of “Mutiny on the Bounty” (1962) and “The Bounty” (1984). One of the reasons “Discovery” and “1492” bombed was because Columbus was no longer viewed in a positive light by 1992 due to the preachin’ of Lib academics who denounce the explorer as evil incarnate. But, let’s face it, the European colonization of the Americas was BOTH a blessing and a curse, yet arguably more of a blessing since it introduced to the New World the written language, the horse, the wheel, wagons, stagecoaches, firearms, trains, industry, advanced architecture and so on. And let’s not kid ourselves with the Lib fantasy that the Americas were a Garden of Eden before Euros arrived. There was constant fighting between many “Indian” tribes, who are actually the progeny of settlers from Asia. There was also slavery, massacres, heinous torture of captives, gross human sacrifice in Mesoamerica to nourish their gods and headhunters in the Amazon. Need I go on? The idea conveyed in “The New World” (2005) that AmerIndians had never experienced envy/rivalry and didn’t even know what a lie was is utterly laughable. I’m speaking as part-Abenaki. The movie runs 2 hours, 34 minutes, and was shot mostly in Spain and Costa Rica. GRADE: B+
Movie Recommendation
August 15th2001-04-18Three men are abandonned by their wives for a few days in the summer holidays. They are alone with five kids to feed and a house to maintain. And they will learn what they did wrong with their wives.More...
Fat Man and Little Boy1989-10-20Assigned to oversee the development of the atomic bomb, Gen. Leslie Groves is a stern military man determined to have the project go according to plan. He selects J. Robert Oppenheimer as the key scientist on the top-secret operation, but the two men clash fiercely on a number of issues. Despite their frequent conflicts, Groves and Oppenheimer ultimately push ahead with two bomb designs — the bigger "Fat Man" and the more streamlined "Little Boy."More...
Five Times Two2004-09-01As young French couple Gilles and Marion officially separate, we see, in reverse order, the milestone moments in their relationship: Gilles revealing his unfaithfulness at a tense dinner party; Marion giving birth to their premature son while Gilles is elsewhere; Gilles and Marion's joyous wedding; and, finally, the fateful moment when they meet as acquaintances at an Italian beach resort, and their love affair begins.More...
The Indian Runner1991-09-20Two brothers cannot overcome their opposite perceptions of life. One brother sees and feels bad in everyone and everything, subsequently he is violent, antisocial and unable to appreciate or enjoy the good things which his brother desperately tries to point out to him.More...
Against the Wall1994-03-26In 1971, a warden at Attica Penitentiary is caught up in a hostage crisis when inmates take over the prison to demand better living conditions.More...
Holiday Spin2012-11-19A former dance champion sidelined years by an injury enlists the help of his estranged son to prepare for the Holiday Spin, a ballroom dance contest held every Christmas Eve. Meanwhile, his son takes an interest in a dance prodigy.More...
2010: Moby Dick2010-11-23That infamous whale is bigger, badder and a whole lot stronger in this sci-fi reimagining of Herman Melville’s classic tale of the battle between man, sea and sea creature starring “Xena” alum Rene O’Connor as the (traditionally male) narrator. But the boat — now a high-tech submarine — is also bigger, and Capt. Ahab is as determined as ever to settle the score and take down the mighty sea mammal that maimed him.More...
The Architecture of Doom1989-10-13Featuring never-before-seen film footage of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi regime, The Architecture of Doom captures the inner workings of the Third Reich and illuminates the Nazi aesthetic in art, architecture and popular culture. From Nazi party rallies to the final days inside Hitler's bunker, this sensational film shows how Adolf Hitler rose from being a failed artist to creating a world of ponderous kitsch and horrifying terror. Hitler worshipped ancient Rome and Greece, and dreamed of a new Golden Age of classical art and monumental architecture, populated by beautiful, patriotic Aryans. Degenerated artists and inferior races had no place in his lurid fantasy. As this riveting film shows, the Nazis went from banning the art of modernists like Picasso to forced euthanasia of the retarded and sick, and finally to the persecution of homosexuals and the extermination of the Jews.More...
Summertime Blues: Lemon Popsicle VIII1988-08-18It's summertime and Johnny hits upon the idea of restoring a disused old bar with his old friends Benny and Bobby. Raising the capital however is a problem, but luckily the landlord's geeky daughter Polly has long harbored a crush on Bobby. Bobby wants no part of this and neither does Polly who smells a rat. As the boys work on restoring the bar, preparing for it's grand re-opening, Polly's guard softens as seemingly does Bobby's but at the expense of possible heartbreak in the unlikeliest of places....More...
C'est la vie2001-11-07Dimitri joins La Maison, a place where people are welcomed for whom medicine can not do anything anymore. There he meets Suzanne, a volunteer who is dedicated to supporting people at the end of their lives.More...
Say Goodbye!No data for this movieThere is no descriptionMore...
Thugs with No Legend2013-03-20Two petty and foolish thugs extort a poor farmer and his wife in the countryside near Rimini. But the farmers, tired of always being the victims, decide to take revenge and devise a diabolical plan that will land the bandits in prison for murder.More...
The Duellists1977-08-31In 1800, as Napoleon Bonaparte rises to power in France, a rivalry erupts between Armand and Gabriel, two lieutenants in the French Army, over a perceived insult. For over a decade, they engage in a series of duels amidst larger conflicts, including the failed French invasion of Russia in 1812, and shifts in the political and social systems of Europe.More...
The Whistler2010-01-06Cannes, the French Riviera. Armand Teillard is happy with life; a busy store downtown, a delightful girlfriend, a magnificent record collection and lunch every day at Sofia and Martial's family restaurant with a perfect sea view. So when Sofia tells Armand that Zapetti, a property developer with mafia connections, is putting the squeeze on her to sell up, he is horrified. Armand is an easy-going guy, but when he gets mad... actually, Armand never gets mad. He leaves that to his twin brother, Maurice, The Whistler. When Maurice rides into town in his Aston Martin and designer suit, Zapetti, his mob and the corrupt local politicians are in trouble. But what if, behind the dyed hair and tinted contact lenses, Maurice and Armand are one and the same guy? Is Cannes big enough for the both of them?More...
Crazy2000-06-08Benjamin, a 16-year-old with lousy grades, switches to a boarding school in order to eventually reach grammar school. Adjusting to his new environment is difficult as he has to struggle with being a teen... specially when he falls in love to the school's dream girl, Malen.More...
In the Name of the Pope King1977-12-03In 1867, with Garibaldi's forces close to bringing Rome into the Italian kingdom, Monsignor Colombo da Priverno, a world-weary judge on the papal court, wants to resign, disgusted by the violence to which the papacy resorts to hold secular power.More...
Woyzeck1979-05-25Having fathered an illegitimate child with his lover, Marie, feckless soldier Franz Woyzeck takes odd jobs around his small town to provide some extra money for them. One job is volunteering for experiments conducted by a local doctor, who puts Woyzeck on a diet of peas. This serves to drive him close to madness, and the discovery that Marie is involved in an affair with the local drum major exacerbates the situation. Pushed too far, Woyzeck resorts to violence.More...
Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines or How I Flew from London to Paris in 25 Hours 11 Minutes1965-06-16In order to boost circulation of his newspaper, Lord Rawnsley announces an air race and offers £10,000 to the first person who can fly across the English Channel. But one of the participants, Percy, plots to sabotage his competitor's planes. Will Percy triumph?More...
Anatomy 22003-11-23The doctor and soccer player in the leisure time Jo Hauser decides to move to Berlin and be an intern in a famous clinic, expecting to increase his knowledge and expertize, and help his handicap brother Willi Hauser. He joins a secret fraternity of doctors, under the leadership of Prof. Muller-LaRousse, who is researching the use of bionic muscles in human beings without any ethics or respect to the laws. The team is also volunteer to the experiences, and is under investigation of Paula Henning. When Jo gets close to a Filipino nurse, and becomes addicted in the drugs used in experience, he realizes the truth hidden in the methods used by the secret society in the development of science.More...
Mrs. Henderson Presents2005-09-08Eccentric 70-year-old widow purchases the Windmill Theatre in London as a post-widowhood hobby. After starting an innovative continuous variety review, which is copied by other theaters, they begin to lose money. Mrs. Henderson suggests they add female nudity similar to the Moulin Rouge in Paris.More...
Similar Movies
The Passion of Joan o...
1928-04-21A classic of the silent age, this film tells the story of the doomed but ultimately canonized 15th-century teenage warrior. On trial for claiming she'd spoken to God, Jeanne d'Arc is subjected to inhumane treatment and scare tactics at the hands of church court officials. Initially bullied into changing her story, Jeanne eventually opts for what she sees as the truth. Her punishment, a famously brutal execution, earns her perpetual martyrdom.Trail of the Falcon
1968-06-21In the latter half of the 19th century, gold is discovered in the Black Hills, sacred land of the Lakota people. Gold diggers, profiteers and adventurers flock to the region. Among them is the hard-hearted land speculator Bludgeon, who tries to expel the Lakota using brutal methods. Lakota warriors retaliate, and soon the gold diggers' town becomes a battlefield.Apache Gold
1963-12-11The construction of the Great Western Railroad creates heavy conflict between the railway company and neighboring Indian tribes. Worse, criminal gang leader Santer sets his eyes on a gold mine located on holy Indian land and influences the construction supervisor to re-rout the planned railroad straight through Apache land. Old Shatterhand, who works as a measurement technician, discovers the evil plan and searches contact with the Apaches in an effort to avert war.Last of the Renegades...
1964-09-17Forester, a ruthless oil baron, wants to create a war between the native American tribes and the white men. Old Shatterhand, Winnetou and their sidekick Castlepool try to prevent this.Bury My Heart at Woun...
2007-05-27Beginning just after the bloody Sioux victory over General Custer at Little Big Horn, the story is told through two unique perspectives: Charles Eastman, a young, white-educated Sioux doctor held up as living proof of the alleged success of assimilation, and Sitting Bull the proud Lakota chief whose tribe won the American Indians’ last major victory at Little Big Horn.Atanarjuat: The Fast ...
2002-02-01Based on a local legend and set in an unknown era, it deals with universal themes of love, possessiveness, family, jealousy and power. Beautifully shot, and acted by Inuit people, it portrays a time when people fought duels by taking turns to punch each other until one was unconscious, made love on the way to the caribou hunt, ate walrus meat and lit their igloos with seal-oil lamps.The Emperor's Treasur...
1999-07-31In this time-travel animated adventure, journey to the mountainous region of Macchu Picchu in Peru, where an Incan princess helps an adventurer discover his true self in the chaotic 15th century. But will he rise to the occasion? It depends on whether he can find the wherewithal to face his own demons.Rapa Nui
1994-06-03Inter-tribal rivalry leads to a competition to erect a huge Maoi statue in record time before Make can take part in the race to retrieve the egg of a Sooty Tern. The reward for winning this race is to rule the island for one year.Nurse Betty
2000-08-30What happens when a person decides that life is merely a state of mind? If you're Betty, a small-town waitress and soap opera fan from Fair Oaks, Kansas, you refuse to believe that you can't be with the love of your life just because he doesn't really exist. After all, life is no excuse for not living. Traumatized by a savage event, Betty enters into a fugue state that allows -- even encourages -- her to keep functioning... in a kind of alternate reality.The Road to El Dorado...
2000-03-31Stowing away after a failed con, a pair of swindlers end up on El Dorado, the fabled "city of gold", where they quickly get in over their heads when they are mistaken as gods by the inhabitants.Pocahontas
1995-06-16Pocahontas, daughter of a Native American tribe chief, falls in love with an English soldier as colonists invade 17th century Virginia.Windtalkers
2002-06-14Joe Enders is a gung-ho Marine assigned to protect a "windtalker" - one of several Navajo Indians who were used to relay messages during World War II because their spoken language was indecipherable to Japanese code breakers.Wind River: Rising
No data for this movieTerror has escalated on the Wind River reservation as a series of ritualistic murders remain unsolved. The FBI therefore enlists the aid of Hanson, a newly minted tracker for the U.S. Fish & Game, who becomes embroiled in a desperate and dangerous fight between the authorities, a vigilante and the Reservation he calls home.The Emperor's New Gro...
2000-12-15Emperor Kuzco is turned into a llama by his ex-administrator Yzma, and must now regain his throne and his human form with the help of Pacha, a gentle llama herder.Indian Rights for Ind...
2018-09-25Three intrepid women battle for Indigenous women's treaty rights.Desert Kickboxer
1992-11-14A kickboxing cop abandons the violent life after he accidentally kills his opponent during a match. After quitting, he heads for the Arizona desert to live alone and occasionally work tracking drug runners for the area sheriff. One particularly wily Mexican drug lord, Santos, has been a real thorn in tracker Joe Highhawk's side, so when he encounters the beautiful Claudia and her simpleton brother Anthony running for their lives because she, an accountant, embezzled $20 million from Santos, he decides to help them. This actioner follows what happens next. Along the way, they encounter all sorts of danger, and double cross until the exciting final standoff between the kickboxer and the villain.Almost Heroes
1998-05-29Two hapless explorers lead an ill-fated 1804 expedition through the Pacific Northwest in a hopeless, doomed effort to reach the Pacific Ocean before Lewis and Clark.Mother River
2020-02-05In a remote Peruvian city, lives Honorata Vilca, an illiterate woman of Quechua descent who sells candies more than 20 years ago, with the rain will cry to the sky itself.Robinson Crusoe
1997-06-11Robinson Crusoe flees Britain on a ship after killing his friend over the love of Mary. A fierce ocean storm wrecks his ship and leaves him stranded by himself on an uncharted island. Left to fend for himself, Crusoe seeks out a tentative survival on the island, until he meets Friday, a tribesman whom he saves from being sacrificed. Initially, Crusoe is thrilled to finally have a friend, but he has to defend himself against the tribe who uses the island to sacrifice tribesman to their gods. During time their relationship changes from master-slave to a mutual respected friendship despite their difference in culture and religion.The New World
2005-12-25A drama about explorer John Smith and the clash between Native Americans and English settlers in the 17th century.