Das Geheimnis der Inkas

The sunlight coming into the cave reflecting off the golden 'mirror' that Heston holds that then reveals the location of the treasure of the Incas remains in my mind as one of the most persistent movie memories from when I was nine years old in 1954 watching the film at the Bing Theater in Springfield, MA. Years later, Steven Spielberg seems to have been influenced by that image and includes a similar scene in "Raiders of the Lost Ark". I can't help but think that Mr. Speilberg must also have seen the "Secret" fresh on the big screen when he was a child. And I cannot find the movie at any, as yet, visited video store to rent it and thereby return to the marvelous scenes of the Andes and the stirring sounds of singer Ima Sumac's four-octave range present at least once in the film. All other movie book references to Heston's work seem to omit this forgotten 'gem' of an enjoyable film that filled one memorable Saturday afternoon at the neighborhood cinema.

I have been to Cusco and Machu Picchu many times, and was surprised to see this movie was actually filmed in Cusco, Peru.In 1954 it must have been an incredible trip to make, as it was very remote. I thought at first they would use a small Mexican town to simulate Peru, but I was amazed that Heston was actually filmed in Cusco. However, I do not believe I saw a scene with him actually in Machu Picchu. Many background shots with him in front.But parts of the movie were filmed in Machu Picchu, so at least the crew and some actors must have made the trip.It is even hard to get to MP now , so in 1954 it must have been quite a journey. I was thrilled to see Cusco when I saw the movie this year for the first time. I actually think that Heston was the role model for Indiana Jones. The outfit he wore and the instant archeology that modern movies portray.

Good action story of archaeologist-explorer (Heston) in search of lost fabled treasure of gold in ancient city of the Incas. Filmed partly on location in Peru, with a good script, fair direction, and strong performances by a good cast. This is the movie that gave George Lucas and Steven Spielberg the idea for their INDIANA JONES movies and character; compare Heston to Harrison Ford's character; he's got it down to the fedora, khakis, and whip! The scene in the cave with the light beam focused on the Inca treasure is impressive, and very similar to Indy's Map Room scene in RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK (1981). Great locations, adventures, in beautiful Technicolor, but lacked the sure hand of a great director. One can easily visualize Heston as Indiana Jones in this film; he worked in this one immediately following George Pal's "THE NAKED JUNGLE" in 1954, just two years before Cecil B. DeMille made him a superstar as Moses in "The Ten Commandments" (1956). Vibrant, eerie mood music is featured by the stunningly amazing Peruvian singer Yma Sumac, a descendant of the Incas, who had a major singing career in the Fifties and remains a cult figure today. Highly recommended. Why isn't this out on video?

Several years ago I met a Production Assistant who worked on RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK and was told an interesting story: that SECRET OF THE INCAS was indeed the inspiration for RAIDERS... but it went much further than that. The PA stated that George Lucas had seen SECRET years before and adapted the story into his own vision for Indiana Jones. Lucas screened SECRET -in secret- for Spielberg who immediately attached himself to the project. Here's where it gets interesting: Spielberg quickly negotiated the rights to SECRET and the contract demanded it be shelved and never released in the United States so there couldn't be any direct comparisons to RAIDERS. That's why even today you can't buy an official NTSC copy of SECRET; my region-free disc came from the U.K.! And the similarities between Heston's costume and Harrison Ford's some 30 years later were no accident, either: the PA told me that the RAIDERS creative staff were required to watch SECRET and use it as source material as much as possible to save production time/expense. And, it's clear they took a lot of notes! Others have mentioned the obvious similarities, but there's another really quick one that most people overlook: it's a little musical phrase on the SECRET soundtrack that is identical to one that John Williams used later on when he scored RAIDERS. Listen closely and it'll jump right out at you. Another coincidence? I'm not so sure! Further, Charlton Heston was famous for talking about his filmmaking experiences, yet he never directly -or publicly- mentioned SECRET... not even in his detailed autobiography, "In The Arena". He would only say that he once made a film high in the Andes where it was very difficult to breathe! Privately he allegedly had plenty to say: that he was contractually prohibited from mentioning his work on SECRET and that he seriously resented the fact that Spielberg had so thoroughly usurped his character and with little alteration turned it into the cult-status-cash-cow that Harrison Ford's Indiana Jones attained.

As another review noted, it's kitsch and camp. There's also appeal in seeing Heston in an early role and having as a villain the absent minded uncle from It's a Wonderful Life. TV's Marcus Welby also shows up, equally stiff playing a lonely archaeologist. There's also a white Australian in really bad tanning makeup playing an Indian named Pachacutik.

The biggest appeal for me and many others is its glimpse of Peruvian Indians. IOW, whenever Heston and the other white actors step aside and let us see a bit of the real Peru. Large parts of the film show Quechua Indians, esp three great musical numbers from the legendary Yma Sumac.

Other parts are pretty revealing of the colonial mentality of the times, incredibly ignorant parts that make anyone who knows anything about Peru laugh out loud: Pachacutik as an Indian name? That's like an Italian calling himself Tiberius.

Machu Pichu as a "lost" city in 1954? When it already had thousands of visitors a day.

A hokey prophecy that "Incan" Indians have been waiting on? That's just as fake as the 2012 hoax.

Calling them "Incan" Indians is like calling Italians "Caesars." That's the title of emperors.

And also, Heston's Spanish is incredibly bad. His pronunciation is so impossible to understand it becomes a dialect unknown in Heaven or Earth.

So whenever someone white speaks in the film, don't rely on it as truth about Peru or its Natives. The other scenes, yes, definitely worth seeing.

ETA: I'm glad of the strong reactions to my review, both the downvotes and the higher than I expected number of up votes. Good to know some others feel the same.