Stars: Gerard Depardieu, Sigourney Weaver, Armand Assante, Michael Wincott, Frank Langella, Fernando Rey, Frank Langella

Director: Ridley Scott

Summary: The life and times of the adventurer and explorer Christopher Columbus from his triumph at discovering the Americas, to his death in obscurity.

Gerard Depardieu stars as Christopher Columbus in director Ridley Scott's epic film that chronicles the explorer's voyages and tribulations. Obsessed with his vision of pursuing a western route to Asia, in 1492, Columbus petitions Isabella (Sigourney Weaver), the Spanish queen, to fund his voyage, and with the help of her treasurer, Sanchez (Armand Assante), he finally succeeds in gaining her backing. Setting off in three ships, Columbus plies uncharted waters for weeks on end until his crew, exhausted and near starvation, threatens to mutiny. But the explorer rallies the men with an impassioned speech about the importance of the mission, and shortly thereafter they land in the New World. The crew establishes amicable relations with the native people, and Columbus leaves some of his men behind on his return to Spain, where he is greeted as a hero by the queen, eager to know what he has found. Upon his return to the New World, Columbus finds that a number of his crew have been killed, but insists on treating the Indians humanely, establishing a colonial government. Yet the colonists' relations with the Indians continue to worsen, and Columbus is recalled by Isabella. In a film that features Scott's typically breathtaking photography, the scene of Columbus's arrival at the fog-enshrouded New World is especially notable.

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One of Ridley Scott's most wrong-headed films, this one (like all of his movies) looks fabulous and sounds utterly ridiculous, almost from the beginning. His first mistake was casting the wonderful Gerard Dépardieu as Columbus and forcing him to speak English, which Dépardieu does with decided difficulty. After spending far too much time on the ocean with Columbus' three ships (you wish they would sail over the edge of the world), they arrive in the West Indies, only to turn around and sail back. The rest of the film deals with the not particularly comprehensible politics of Columbus' venture, which leads to the violent slaughter of trusting natives by a band of cardboard villains. Dépardieu, who radiates sympathy, looks as if he's at sea with this material. --Marshall Fine, Amazon.com

Aspect Ratio:	2.20 Wide Screen
Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 2
Special Features:	Original Theatrical Trailer
Year:	1992
Release Date:	April 23, 2001
Runtime:	149 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	P 8701 D V D
Keywords:	General, Paradise, Conquest, Wide, Screen, Drama
Genre:	Drama