TheNabOwnzz For some reason 'El Cid' is not as well known among the 'Epic' genre of film like Ben-Hur or Lawrence of Arabia, but this does not deter it from its quality. It is one of the greatest of its kind, an epic story about a man who becomes a hero and later legend.It is a simply sensational motion picture that manages to create every shot in such an artistic way that every single frame becomes fascinating. Indoor scenes have beautiful scenery and are lit incredibly well. Outdoor scenes ( It was mostly actually filmed in Spain where it took place ) are visually just incredible due to the angles Anthony Mann gives us. There are frequent scenes with loads of extra's on horses during these outdoor scenes and these are always a joy to look at due to their natural movements and the beautiful Spanish landscapes with great angles in the background. Battle scenes are so massive in scale, but filmed with such skill that it immerses you into the film. The overview during battles is simply incredible as we can always see what our main characters are doing, and combined with a couple of excellent one on one fights early on in the film, it is a masterpiece of choreography too.Miklos Rozsa's score is a simply brilliant orchestral piece which always seems like a perfect fit for a film of this kind. ( Also composed the incredible score for Ben-Hur ) Charlton Heston & Sophia Loren who play man and wife reportedly did not get along well during filming, yet their performance does not seem to suffer from this, and is enhanced a significant amount by Miklos Rozsa's amazing emotional score. Heston seems born to play these kind of roles in movie epics, and his performance and screen presence are once again an incredible sight to behold. Loren could have shown more emotion in a couple of scenes, yet due to their seemingly quite natural relationship in the film and her facial acting being pretty good this is just a slight defect. I do wish they visibly aged or changed Loren's look due to some circumstances that happen in the film though, it was a bit too out of character for her to look like porcelain all the way through. It is a film filled with beautiful scenes, and not a mediocre one among them. Whether it be beautiful outdoor scenery with epic landscape shots and massive moving extra's on the screen or beautiful indoor scenes with beautiful cinematography it is a film that manages to perform on a high level on a consistent basis throughout the film. Without spoiling anything, the final scene is just cinematic perfection where all points and everything that has happened before seemingly come together. It uses tragic events or reunions between established characters and Rozsa's score to create emotion, and a motion picture full of emotion it has become.With beautiful natural cinematography, excellent acting, a both triumphant and emotionally powerful score by Miklos Rozsa, beautifully staged battle scenes with great editing to create a good overview of the situation our characters are in, and a great central message about how one turns into a legend by leading his people to victory, El Cid is an incredible experience and should be considered as one of the greatest 'Epic' films ever made.

hou-3 I'm a medieval historian by profession and I think the feelings of most medievalists about El Cid are bound to be mixed. Of course it's a terrific epic and they make effective use of medieval locations - Peniscola, standing in for Valencia, looks sensational. There's also some excellent, genuinely late 11th-c stone sculpture and bronze doors. But the clothing and armour are late medieval and the depiction of attitudes, whether religious or political, is sadly all over the place. War lord, made a few years later and also starring Heston, gets much closer to the real eleventh century than El Cid manages to do. Quite apart from authenticity, my feelings are ambivalent. The music is gorgeous and the battle scenes - all done with real people - are exciting. But the love story draaags and the plot line is too discursive. Also, El Cid himself just doesn't seem real. The shape of his career is never explained properly. Curiously enough, a much more realistic film could be made in these more cynical times about the adventurer/mercenary soldier that the Cid actually was. It would be a good film too! But it would be very different from this classic, and the thousands of extras wouldn't be there. At the end of the day I can forgive the longeurs of the film for two standout moments that never fail to thrill: the opening of the barn door and the moving acclaim the Cid gets from the hundreds of followers who have been waiting silently for him to appear, and of course the unforgettable last minutes.

thinker1691 Of all the great epics which Charlton Heston has starred in, this is one for which he will best be remembered by the citizens of Spain. In this story, which has become part legend, he plays Rodrigo De Bivar, otherwise known as " El Cid. " Although the film does not follow his life from cradle to gave, it does exemplify his social exploits. The vast open panorama of Spain gives opulence to the film and spectacle to the many military conflicts in which he took part in. Known by his contemporaries as a great soldier and compassionate warrior, he was often detracted by others as a stubborn, single minded aristocratic fool. Nevertheless, his final legacy proved his worth and this movie is a fitting tribute to Spain's greatest hero. Today, due to his foresight, the combined cultures of Moorish influence and Hispanic traditions gives this film it's foundation as a Classic. The great cast which include Sophia Loren, Raf Vallone, Geneviève Page and Hurd Hatfield insures this motion picture its star power and lasting appeal. Well recommended for all audiences. ****

Qanqor I just finished watching this oeuvre, and I am reminded of the immortal words of Leonard Pinth-Garnell: "There, that wasn't so good, was it?" Not exactly magnificent.I will confess this, though: at one point, I actually was enjoying the picture. You see, I had gotten it on DVD from Netflix, and last week I watched the first disc's worth, which ends at an intermission (I'm not sure if there was originally an intermission there; it seems a little odd for the intermission to be two-thirds of the way through the film). I stopped there and only watched the rest of it tonight. At that two-thirds point where I stopped, I actually rather liked the movie. But now, having seen the rest, my opinion is decidedly lower.What I liked was the rather interesting love/hate story between the lovers. I found myself trying to apply the situation to my own life: how would I feel if my beloved (who I hope will someday be my wife) killed my father? What would I do? Could I still love her? I couldn't come up with a clear answer to this very difficult question, and so I was quite intrigued to see how the movie would handle it. This whole sub-plot was, by far, the best part of the movie.But the problem is, it *is* a sub-plot. And after that two-thirds point, it gets pushed aside and ceases to matter. And the main plot is too poorly realized to be of much value.And this is where I assert that the film is simultaneously too long and too short. Too long, because the pacing is not exactly brisk and the whole thing runs over three hours, and it feels like it. Again, I had to watch it in two sessions to get through the whole thing. Yet too short too! Because the whole story covers such an epic sweep of time and events that the film can't get it all in, and so it hops around sporadically, episodically. Suddenly you have to figure out that, oh wait, it's ten years later now! Wait, what happened to all that stuff that was going on ten years ago? The movie has no answer, it has to move on, because we still have a lot of story to get through! So the film feels simultaneously interminable and rushed. I sat through the whole thing and there's still gaps in the plot that I can't quite figure out.But the final kiss of death is when the movie is over, and you realize that it's all a huge steaming pile of baloney. Go read the wikipedia article on the real El Cid and you'll discover, as I did, that except for some of the broadest outlines of the story, it's all Hollywood nonsense. The real El Cid wasn't this noble self-sacrificing saint, he was a self-serving conqueror. He didn't desperately take Valencia in a noble quest to save Spain, he did it to gain a principality for himself. He then proceeded to rule over it peacefully for *five years*, until he died peacefully-- the whole heroic ending of the film is a tissue of whoppers. Heck, they couldn't even be bothered to get his children right; he had three children, none of whom were named Elvira or Sol.Well, still, I gave it four stars. The scenery was nice, especially some of the authentic medieval castles. The battle scenes were suitably epic. And again, I did like the sub-plot.But on the whole, feh. And the ending is just laughable nonsense.