El Cid Overview:

El Cid (1961) was a Biographical - War Film directed by Anthony Mann and produced by Michal Waszynski, Samuel Bronston and Jaime Prades.

SYNOPSIS

This costume adventure follows the legendary exploits of the 11th-century Spanish knight-errant (Heston) as he battles the Moorish invaders while wooing back his wife (Loren) with his faith and bravery. This marks director Mann's brief excursion into widescreen historical epics after he distinguished himself with his Westerns. (He would begin work on Spartacus only to be replaced by Stanley Kubrick, then later follow these with The Fall of the Roman Empire). Restored under the supervision of Martin Scorsese, who also knows something about the intersection of spiritual inspiration and muscular action.

(Source: available at Amazon AMC Classic Movie Companion).

.

Academy Awards 1961 --- Ceremony Number 34 (source: AMPAS)

AwardRecipientResult
Best Art DirectionArt Direction: Veniero Colasanti, John MooreNominated
Best Music - ScoringMiklos RozsaNominated
Best Music - SongMusic by Miklos Rozsa; Lyrics by Paul Francis WebsterNominated
.

El Cid BlogHub Articles:

No article for El Cid at this time. Submit yours here.

Quotes from El Cid

Prince Sancho: [after Count Ordóñez betrays Prince Sancho in and ambush to kill El Cid] Kill him!
El Cid: You will soon be a King, you must start to think like one, any man can kill, only a King can give life!


Jimena: Why did you come?
El Cid: I tried not to come. I tried, I told my love it had no right to live. But my love won't die...
Jimena: Kill it.
El Cid: You kill it! Tell me you don't love me.
Jimena: [long pause] I cannot. Not yet. But I will make myself worthy of you Rodrigo, I will learn to hate you.


El Cid: [looking at their Christian and Muslim troops camped together] How can anyone say this is wrong?
Moutamin: But they will. On both sides.


read more quotes from El Cid...

Facts about El Cid

By the time this was released, Allied Artists (formerly Monogram) had ceased production and was only distributing independent productions. The rights for the Western Hemisphere were acquired from Samuel Bronston. This gave Allied Artists its only full-blown epic, which was given a roadshow presentation followed by a general release.
Another theory for the horse name of Babieca is that this horse came from the Babia region. This was the reason that the horse became a great war horse.
One well-known legend about the Cid describes how he acquired his famous war-horse, the white stallion Babieca (Bavieca). According to this story, Rodrigo's godfather, Pedro El Grande, was a monk at a Carthusian monastery. Pedro's coming-of-age gift to El Cid was his pick of a horse from an Andalusian herd. El Cid picked a horse that his godfather thought was a weak, poor choice, causing the monk to exclaim "Babieca!" (stupid!) Hence, it became the name of El Cid's horse.
read more facts about El Cid...
Share this page:
Visit the Classic Movie Hub Blog CMH
Best Music - Scoring Oscar 1961











See more Academy Awards>>
Also directed by Anthony Mann




More about Anthony Mann >>
Related Lists
Create a list


See All Related Lists >>
Also released in 1961




See All 1961 films >>