El Cid

Allied Artists Pictures | Release Date: December 14, 1961

7.7	USER SCORE Generally favorable reviews based on 7 Ratings

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FilipeNetoOct 9, 2020

I was a little afraid about this film, I confess. I already know how US movies twist the historical truth to make beautiful stories that never existed. However, what this film brings us is a story, romanticized but very close to the legendI was a little afraid about this film, I confess. I already know how US movies twist the historical truth to make beautiful stories that never existed. However, what this film brings us is a story, romanticized but very close to the legend and life of El Cid.

According to the story, Rodrigo Dias de Bivar was a military warlord from the early period of the Reconquista. For those who do not know or have not seen the film yet, the Reconquista is a long process of about 350 years in which Christians will reconquest the territory previously lost for the Muslims in the Iberian Peninsula. Throughout the process, the christian Kingdom of Asturias will be divided into several separate kingdoms: Leon, Castile, Navarra, Aragon and Portugal (and also the ephemeral Galician kingdom and the County of Catalonia). When the film begins, the Christian lands are all under the crown of Ferdinand I “Magnus” of Leon. However, when he dies, the kingdom is divided between his five children (the film shows only three): Sancho II inherited Castile, Alfonso VI inherited Leon; Garcia inherited Galicia; Elvira inherited the city of Toro and Urraca inherited the city of Zamora. After a very short time, they all go to war, claiming the totality of the inheritance. All of this is part of the history of Spain and Portugal. This is where Rodrigo Dias comes into the story: he is an honorable and tolerant fighter whom the Muslims called “Sidi” or “Cid” as a sign of respect. Servant and friend of Sancho II, he falls from grace with the victory of Alfonso VI, forcing him to an uncomfortable oath, which the film shows us.

From here, the accounts diverge and also the script: the historical truth tells us that Cid was exiled and became a kind of mercenary, fighting for fortune, on the Christian side or on the Muslim side (the film prefers to hide this). Over time, he recruited enough men to form a personal army and make his own kingdom in the region of Western Aragon, to which he united the Muslim Kingdom of Valencia by conquest, there defeating the Almoravid's, a powerful Muslim faction that invaded the peninsula and wanted to reunify Muslim power, divided into independent principalities called taifas. Currently, his remains rest in the Burgos Cathedral and is considered one of the great heroes of Spain.

Personally, I don't have much to point to the script or the way the film shows it's characters. I think they should have shown the children of King Ferdinand that are missing, and that the friendship between Sancho II and El Cid is little explored. But what irritated me the most were the terribly bad, excessively theatrical and sometimes silly dialogues, in addition to the terrible diction of the actors, who are not able to pronounce terms of Spanish origin (Jimena sounds like “Ximeine” and Bivar looks like “Vevar”). Its really painful to listen to the actors! Another problem is the excessive three hours length, the result of a poor editing and post-production work: the plot runs beautifully in the first hour and a half but then gets tangled in confusing ups and downs, comings and goings, with scenes that seem to be out of the place.

The cast is led by two actors of merit: Charlton Heston and Sophia Loren. They are good when separated: Heston is one of the great epic actors of his time, has an undeniable charisma and was totally comfortable with his role, and Loren also seems to be quite at ease with that too. The worst is when they both get together and try to work as a romantic couple... the chemistry is so negative that I even felt cold, and their romantic scenes are unbearable. In the supporting cast we can still see very good appearances by Raf Vallone, John Fraser, Gary Raymond and Douglas Wilmer. I did not like the participation of Geneviève Page: the way she acted never seemed credible to me, and the fact that she is so absolutely blonde matches very little with a Hispanic princess.

Technically, it is a grandiose film and everything screams the word “epic” quite loudly. Cinematography and technicolor look good, although at times they seem to use too much light. The sets and costumes look amazing, but are unrealistic from the historical point of view: many of the weapons and armor used here will only appear in later periods of the Middle Ages, and the castles shown are also clearly of the XIV and XV centuries. The action and battle scenes are great and were beautifully staged, with all those extras and a lot of commitment and dedication of those involved. The soundtrack, by the master Miklós Rózsa, is grandiose and remains in your ear.… Expand

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