Radio review – SDP - “Captain from Castille” (1951) **1/2

Challenge for Hollywood studios – how do you take a bloodthirsty event in history with such genocidal implications as the Cortez expedition to South America and turn it into a romantic epic? By basically ignoring the implications of said expedition, and making the villains instead the Spanish Inquisition. The story does touch on some issues, notably by having an Indian character appear and complain to Douglas Fairbanks Jnr (stepping in for Tyrone Power again for SDP) about the Spanish being in his country and Fairbanks goes “fair enough” – but then the Indian later appears to sacrifice his life for Fairbanks’. This cuts one of the most memorable moments from the film - the hero's peasant girlfriend stabbing him at the end so he won't go to gaol.