Le secret des sept cités

On the face of it, this ought to have been a decent adventure film. Anthony Quinn ("Gaspar") commands a troop of Spanish soldiers travelling through 18th century California seeking treasure. Alongside him is his deputy "Mendoza" (Richard Egan) and their spiritual needs are cared for by "Fr. Serra" (Michael Rennie). Once they land, however, they realise that the terrain is hostile and the natives likewise. It takes time, bullets and some persuasion from the priest to convince "Matuwir" (Jeffrey Hunter) that they mean no harm as they explore. Of course, though, they do. They are there to convert and to plunder - and in so doing, apply the rather cyclical methods used by the church to indoctrinate the perfectly contented pagan population. As an adventure film it falls short on just about every level. Quinn doesn't really feature much as the film progresses into the sort that makes you squirm a bit with a sense of "just leave these people alone and go home". If you are expecting a lively swashbuckling affair, then look elsewhere - this is a confused and confusing history lesson that shows the visitors - however well meaning in the case of "Serra" - as ignorant and piously thoughtless of a culture that simply did not require their ribbons, bells nor intervention. The production is adequate, but the pacing of the story is rather erratic leaving a feeling of dissatisfaction - even disgust - with the whole enterprise.

The principals of the film are actually Michael Rennie as the priest who wants to evangelize the country and Richard Egan as a greedy officer ;Anthony Quinn ,although at the top of the bill , is almost supporting.

The umpteenth search for the city of gold ( and it would not be the last , some contemporary movies still deal with it;the best in the field is perhaps " Aguirre der Zorn Gottes "by Werner Herzog) is not the meat of the movie ; Quinn 's quest is not even shown on the screen.

The religious side ,the church as a sanctuary (since the Middle Ages) ,the spirit of sacrifice make the movie a little more than a routine adventures movie. The (premonitory?) strange dream of Egan lost in the desert may puzzle the viewer who will understand its meaning only towards the end of the movie.

It's an inaccurate story of the Franciscan missionary Father Junipero Serra (Michael Rennie) toward to California, self-titled as New Spain at its time in charge of famous Captain Gaspar de Portolá (Anthony Quinn), at behest of Viceroy of Spain, both must pioneering such place starting by San Diego Bay, aiming for stablish Christian settlements at baja California and aftermaths reaches in northernmost San Francisco, the picture focuses this first leg only, exposing the unavoidable conflict with the native along the journey.

Meanwhile Captain Gaspar ought locates the legendary Seven Cities of Gold as overriding task, thus Father Junipero keep in San Diego with the Lieutenant Mendoza (Richard Egan), in the meantime the Father tries interacts with reluctant natives just getting smallest strides with the upcoming Chief Matuwir (Jeffrey Hunter), although the love affair between Lieut. Mendoza and Matuwir's sister Ula (Rita Moreno) on tragic outcome, just throw it all away, shuddering the still flimsy interplay among so differing ethnicities.

For dramatic purposes the picture points out a probable holiness of Father Junipero at least in four occasions, also his endurance when all hopes already running out, he still believing in something will coming from the sky, nicknamed by the natives a Grey Robe, Michael Rennie delivers all he could to portraits nearly perfect the famous Father Junipero Serra, that has been beatified in last Century, aside some flaws it has plenty enjoyable, sadly it never came out officially in Brazil.

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First watch: 1985 / How many: 3 / Source: TV-DVD / Rating: 7.5.

Done on grand scale, this is the tale of Father Junipero Serra and the founding of the California Missions, in particular, the first at San Diego. Rennie, Quinn, and Egan turn in good performances and the story moves along quite well, even though history is played with fast and loose in this treatment. Of particular interest is the style and treatment of the Indians encountered by the mercenaries and the priest-there is much more realism than most films of this era. The action scenes are done well and the obvious, but inevitable conclusion makes the point. A good watch.

There's a mixture of interesting drama and camp in this story of Spanish conquest over California Native Americans. Egan and Quinn play Spanish officers who are on the lookout for the title cities, but who are saddled with priest Rennie who is along for the ride to build a mission. The men don't see eye to eye on how to handle the "Indian problem" and this lends itself to some nice discussion of and demonstration of the tactics used to control them. Eventually, the human elements of both the "whites" and the Indians begin to blend, but not without difficulty and eventually with great sacrifice. Contemporary audiences will be surprised that Egan is top-billed over Quinn and has the more substantial role. Even though Quinn is the authority figure in charge, the story is more about Egan. Quinn is believable as a Spaniard (as he was as so many other nationalities in his career!), but Egan is about as Spanish as William Bendix!! His flat American accent and obviously non-Latin coloring create a sensory paradox when he is onscreen. Rennie is also far from Spanish, but manages to pull it off better with a less distinct accent. All three male leads do a decent enough job acting-wise, but never really catch fire. The only other performers of note are Hunter and Moreno as natives. Hunter gives his usual impassioned performance (unfortunately covered in war paint most of the time) in one of many roles that were beneath his ability. Moreno gets very little to do, but tries to inject some emotion into the proceedings. While the Cinemascope lens captures some awesomely beautiful scenery, it also keeps the actors at a distance. Time and again, dramatic and emotional moments are played in practically long shots! There are very few close-ups in the movie. The two most beautiful cast members (Hunter and Moreno) get nothing closer than a two-shot. This puts a sort of wall up that detracts from the emotional investment in the story. Then there's the camp factor. It begins immediately with a hilarious voice-over that exclaims how accurate the story is and that the only change that was made is that the "words will be set in English." PLEASE! Moreno and Hunter, while compelling performers, are given ridiculous wigs and clothing to wear. Attempts at humor, handled adeptly by Hunter, seem to add a corny aspect to the otherwise serious film. There's a bizarre interlude with Egan and Rennie finding shelter in a sandstorm. The sword-and-sandal crowd may find themselves trying to spot Egan's winky as it veers to the left in his clingy green trousers (with oh-so-festive red cummerbund.) In all, it's a pretty, sometimes engaging movie, but rather silly at times and lacking any real emotional resonance.