1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992)
The Icarus-like fate of the Hollywood historical epic.
Released in 1992 to mark the 500th anniversary of the New World’s discovery, Ridley Scott’s ambitious voyage mostly fails to circumnavigate the grandeur of the event and the unique historical occasion which exalts it.
A frustrated Christopher Columbus (Gérard Depardieu) finds himself beset by Church dogma and royal self-interest as he desperately endeavours to nautically prove the spherical nature of the Earth. Though without a ship, crew, or funding, he bows both to the will of the Church’s demand for missionary conversion and the Crown’s desire for imperial expansion and plundered tribute. He eventually sets sail, though not before winning the approval of the Queen of Castille, Isabella I (Sigourney Weaver).
It is precisely this choice to dwell on the famed ambition of Columbus which serves to constrict the film’s vision and its interpretation of ensuing events. 1492: Conquest of Paradise confidently introduces Columbus as a man neither interested in spreading the Gospel nor lining his pockets, but then has him diligently pursue these exact ideals (plus more) upon arrival in the New World. It seems that the larger-than-life character of Columbus is too big for the Hollywood historical epic – a format unequipped to render a man driven equally by dreams of unparalleled discovery, insatiable greed, and an outwardly pious desire for proselytisation of savages en masse. The real tragedy of this failed complexity is that the film’s titular event – the joining of the New World with the Old – loses the momentous profundity it deserves, forfeiting the opportunity for a truly unique cinematic occasion.
Such a moment in human history, thankfully, cannot be so easily extinguished. 1492 reaches its zenith when the crew of the Santa Maria catch first sight of the island of Guanahani (soon ‘renamed’ San Salvador). Its unfamiliar tropical fauna triumphantly emerge from behind a white mist of impenetrable opacity, inaugurating what we now call the Modern Era; an age of increasing global connectedness, which continues to assault us with ferocious velocity to this very day.
Granted, the medium of film (or any medium for that matter) is unable to dramatically portray such events whilst nimbly retaining historical veracity. All films attempting to portray some historical event or person are subject to some degree of historical inaccuracy (often by omission, distortion, or sacrifices required by dramatisation). 1492 forces us to ponder whether any depiction, ever, can encapsulate an event as historically pivotal as the ‘discovery’ of two continental landmasses whose existence was unknown outside of the indigenous inhabitants of the lands, now known as the Americas. With very few exceptions, historical epics tend to burn in Icarus-like fashion due to their inherently lofty ambitions and 1492 unexceptionally ends up a charred mess on the pyre of Hollywood storytelling. We have come to accept that epics of this nature, intended as they are to entertain, may never satisfy our thresholds for historical accuracy.
The Historical Epic, Now.
Since release, 1492 has been attacked for acting as overt propaganda attempting to ‘sanitise’ the imperial ambitions of Christopher Columbus and his genocidal scourge. As shrewd Hollywood executives monitor the pulses of increasingly diverse domestic and international audiences, the historical dimension of films is now widely monitored for socio-political concerns, and historical accuracy is gradually taking a more niche backseat. Minority representation is now essential, and the racial identities of historical figures are ‘updated’ to appeal to modern audiences with a desire for ethnic identification and familiarity.
In his 87th year Ridley Scott still regularly churns out historical epics, retaining his characteristic lack of interest in their accuracy. Scott, however, has amended his approach to historical subjects for modern audiences. His most recent eye-wateringly expensive epic was Gladiator 2, long-awaited sequel to the universally admired 2000 film Gladiator, wherein the figure of Emperor Macrinus was ‘blackwashed’ and played by Denzel Washington, a detail the Oscar-winning actor addressed on the press circuit.
The historical epic may be Hollywood’s oldest genre, and these oft-doomed features will continue to be allocated budgets equating a small island nation’s GDP. Notably, Christopher Nolan is helming the forthcoming adaptation of Homer’s Odyssey due for a 2026 release. The Odyssey’s reputation for being unadaptable makes this a truly ambitious undertaking and, possibly, destined to fall victim to the historical epic’s inescapable fate.
1492: Conquest of Paradise appeals:
To fans of ‘New World’ films such as The Mission (1986), The New World (2005) and Apocalypto (2006).
Be sure to:
Hear Vangelis’ soundtrack (whose popularity has exceeded the film itself).
See the fantastic use of location shooting across Spain and the West Indies.