The fabled Spanish hero Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar (a.k.a. El Cid) overcomes a family vendetta and court intrigue to defend Christian Spain against the Moors.The fabled Spanish hero Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar (a.k.a. El Cid) overcomes a family vendetta and court intrigue to defend Christian Spain against the Moors.The fabled Spanish hero Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar (a.k.a. El Cid) overcomes a family vendetta and court intrigue to defend Christian Spain against the Moors.
- Nominated for 3 Oscars
- 7 wins & 13 nominations total
Geneviève Page
- Princess Urraca
- (as Genevieve Page)
Gérard Tichy
- King Ramírez
- (as Gerard Tichy)
- Director
- Writers
- Fredric M. Frank
- Philip Yordan
- Ben Barzman(originally uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaCharlton Heston was the first and only choice of the producers.
- GoofsAlone and on horseback, Rodrigo confronts a group of mounted guards escorting the prince to a dungeon. In response to Rodrigo's demand for the release of the prisoner, the captain of the guard laughingly says, "There are thirteen of us, and you are alone!" In the ensuing fight, Rodrigo, with some help from the prince, un-horses sixteen guards, and two remaining mounted ones flee, for a total of eighteen.
- Alternate versions1993 reissue restores 16 minutes of "lost" footage.
- ConnectionsEdited into Wizards (1977)
- SoundtracksThe Falcon and the Dove
(uncredited)
Lyrics by Paul Francis Webster
Music by Miklós Rózsa
Performed by Chorus
Featured review
This is a keeper
As a movie El Cid grows on you. At first it is the story of a relatively ordinary man whose trip to his wedding is interrupted by a battle between the Moors and the Christians of 11th century Spain. But this is no ordinary man. Or perhaps he is an ordinary man who is destined to do extraordinary things. Early on he is forced to kill his fiancé's father as a matter of family honor, thus earning the enmity of his fiancé, who nonetheless cannot stop loving him, however hard she tries. And much of the story is devoted to the doomed nature of their love, as historical events continue to overtake the plans they would rather make. And with each new episode El Cid's stature grows, from warrior to hero to legend to mythic figure. Even in exile he has a following. And if the script is not true to history, this film still does a great service to the memory of a great man who put God and country ahead of himself. Something extra must be said about the crowd scenes. There were real people out there, not multiple CGI images made to look like the hordes that are a part of all epics. Over 30,000 costumes were made for this movie and General Franco donated the Spanish army to fill them. The difference is stunning, and sobering. There is a reality to the battle scenes that simply doesn't obtain in later movies such as Gladiator or Lord of the Rings. Now that old films such as this are so readily available in various formats we are presented with the dilemma of deciding which ones should occupy our bookshelves, to return to again, to remember a detail, or to reclaim the feeling that the story may create. In terms of the greatness, the mission and the struggles of the human spirit, this one's a keeper.
helpful•232
- rshepard42796
- Apr 19, 2008
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- Ель Сід
- Filming locations
- Torrelobaton Castle, Valladolid, Castilla y León, Spain(for Vivar, El Cid's home town)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $6,250,000 (estimated)
- Runtime3 hours 2 minutes
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