Main Cast: Fredric March, Florence Eldridge, Francis L. Sullivan, Linden Travers, Kathleen Ryan, Derek Bond
Release Year: 1949
Country: UK
Run Time: 103 minutes
Plot
Reverent to the point of tedium, Christopher Columbus stars Fredric March in the title role, and he's welcome to it. March's wife Florence Eldredge co-stars as Queen Isabella, who finances Columbus' expedition to find a westward route to India. After several reels devoted to table-top miniatures impersonating the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria (punctuated by rumbles of mutiny--no, not "rumble rumble, mutiny mutiny") Columbus reaches the New World. Though obviously filmed on an extravagant budget (Technicolor was still a rare commodity in 1949), the British Christopher Columbus has less going for it than the 1939 Porky Pig cartoon Christopher Columbus Jr.. Filmgoers stayed away in droves, as they would when the movie industry "rediscovered" Columbus for a brace of disastrous multimillion-dollar films in 1992. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
Films centered around the man credited with "discovering" America tend to be on the dreary side, and 1949's Christopher Columbus is no exception. The producer threw a lot of money at the story, and it shows in the exquisite costumes, lavish sets and lush Technicolor. But it took more than Queen Isabella's money to make the real Columbus' voyage a success, and it would have taken more than money to turn this Columbus into something more than a well-intentioned but ponderous spectacle. The screenplay is the chief culprit, a mish-mash of history and drama with poor structure, weak dialogue, unconvincing characterizations and an almost total lack of tension and suspense. That said, director David MacDonald still deserves his lumps for his leaden production, which is stilted and lacking in variety of pacing. Even such a talented actor as Fredric March comes across poorly, posturing wildly and vainly in an attempt to give the film an anchor but ultimately failing. Francis L. Sullivan does add some life as the villain of the piece, and as previously mentioned, the production benefits visually from its generous budget. But there's little else to recommend here. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Nora Swinburne - Juana de Torres; Abraham Sofaer - Luis de Santangel; James Robertson Justice - Martin Pinzon; Dennis Vance - Francesco Pinzon; Richard Aherne - Vincente Pinzon; Felix Aylmer - Father Perez; Francis Lister - King Ferdinand; Edward Rigby - Pedro; Ronald Adam - Talavera; David Cole - Columbus' Son; Lynn Evans - Lope; Guy le Feuvre - Admiral; Stuart Lindsell - Prior; Niall MacGinnis - Juan de la Cosa; Hugh Pryse - Almoner; Ralph Truman - Captain
Credit
Elizabeth Haffenden - Costume Designer, David MacDonald - Director, Vladimir Sagovsky - Editor, Arthur Bliss - Composer (Music Score), Maurice Carter - Production Designer, Stephen Dade - Cinematographer, David Harcourt - Cinematographer, Frank F. Bundy - Producer, Muriel Box - Screenwriter, Sydney Box - Screenwriter, Cyril Roberts - Screenwriter, Rafael Sabatini - Book Author
