The Conqueror Movie Review 1956

Wayne in pointed helmet and goatee is convincingly miscast as Genghis Khan in this woeful tale of the warlord's early life and involvement with the kidnapped daughter of a powerful enemy. Rife with stilted, unintentionally funny dialogue, Oriental western was very expensive to make (with backing by Howard Hughes), and is now listed in the "Fifty Worst Films of All Time." No matter; it's surreal enough to enable viewer to approximate an out-of-body experience. Even those on the set suffered; filming took place near a nuclear test site in Utah and many members of the cast and crew eventually developed cancer.

Distribution

Universal Studios Home Video, 100 Universal City Plz., Universal City, CA 91608-9955, Phone: (818)777-1000, Fax: (818)866-1483, URL: http://www.universalstudios.com, Remarks: Does not handle retail queries from consumers; contact your local video distributor.

Available on VHS, DVD
Running time 111 minutes.

Cast and Crew

Genres

War, General, Big-Budget Bombs, Woofs!

Screenplay

Oscar Millard

Cast

John Wayne, Susan Hayward, William Conrad, Agnes Moorehead, Lee Van Cleef, Pedro Armendariz, Thomas Gomez, John Hoyt, Ted de Corsia, Leslie Bradley, Peter Mamakos

Cinematography

Joseph LaShelle, William E. Snyder, Leo Tover, Harry Wild

Director

Dick Powell

Music

Victor Young

Producer

Mark Huffam, Howard Hughes, RKO