Plunder of the Sun (1953) - Adventure and archaelogy in Mexico
The film "Plunder of the Sun" was released in 1953.
It was based on the 1949 book by David Dodge and produced by John Wayne's company Batjac and, after years of litigation, was relased on DVD in 2010.
Advertisements for the film stated that it was as exciting as "The Maltese Falcon".
The story is about an American who gets involved in an archaelogical treasure hunt in Mexico.
Sean McClory and Glenn Ford
Disclaimer:
I'm not the first to post about this film here, this is from 2007:
http://raven.theraider.net/showthread.php?t=10716
Cast:
Glenn Ford as insurance man Al Colby,
Patricia Medina as Anna Luz (femme fatale),
Diana Lynn as Julie Barnes (good-bad girl)
Francis L. Sullivan as Thomas Berrien
and Sean McClory as Jefferson (bad guy).
Produced by Wayne-Fellows, which later became Batjac.
Directed by John Farrow (Mia Farrow's father)
The story:
Al Colby is stuck in a Havana hotel waiting for some money to show up. Beautiful Anna Luz picks him up and offers to pay him to accompany her for the evening.
She takes him to see Thomas Berrien, a fat man similar to the Sydney Greenstreet character in "The Maltese Falcon", who offers Colby money to take a small package to Mexico.
Berrien explains that he is a collector of antiquities and is too well known to the Mexican authorities to bring anything into the country.
Colby agrees, boards the ship to Mexico, so do Anna and Berrien.
On board, Colby meets rich sleazy girl Julie who tries to pick him up.
She is travelling with Raul, a Mexican man from a distinguished family.
Also on the ship is Jefferson, a real nasty guy who introduces himself as a "disbarred archaelogist".
Berrien, who was in ill health, dies on the boat, possibly killed by Jefferson.
The ship arrives in Mexico, and the people head for Oaxaca, a city surrounded by archaelogical sites, including two large ones, Mitla and Monte Alban.
Colby checks into a hotel, opens the package, and finds some old parchments with writing in characters.
A museum man tells him it is Zapotec and Spanish writing, and sends him to Ulbaldo Navarro, a collector and expert.
The museum man also recommends that Colby read a book
Ancient Civilizations of Mexico.
Colby has the documents photographed and leaves a set in the hotel safe.
Jefferson makes several attempts to steal them, these attempts resulting in fights with Colby.
Julie tries to pick up Colby again, and after another rejection, she lets him know that Navarro got his papers from the hotel and is working on translating them,
Colby then goes to Jefferson and makes a deal to share, Jefferson then translates the documents, which are, of course, a Zapotec treasure map.
They find the treasure, mostly artifacts, Jefferson double crosses Colby, shoots him, and leaves with the goods.
Colby wakes up at Navarros's house, Anna and Julie are there.
After a few days, Colby joins Anna in locating Jefferson and the goods.
Jefferson knows that the roads are being watched and has to hide the treasure in Oaxaca until he can move it out of the area and Mexico.
He has found the ideal hiding place, the basement of the Oaxaca museum.
An interesting take on the line from a more recent film, "it belongs in a museum".
Eventually things are sorted out, Mexico gets the treasure, Colby gets the girl and a financial reward.
More:
The film was shot entirely in Mexico, mostly in Oaxaca and the ruins of Monte Alban and Mitla.
The film made me want to visit the archaeological sites, no doubt many people who saw the film felt likewise.
The DVD has some interesting extras, including a presentation by Boston University archaelogist Dr. David Carballo on Mesoamerican archaeology and prehispanic civilizations of central Mexico.
He mentions that archaelogy is more like the CSI television show than Indiana Jones.
The original book
Plunder of the Sun was written by David Dodge in 1949.
Dodge was an accountant who began writing mysteries in the 1940's, then began writing adventure novels in the 1950's.
Dodge wrote the much more famous
To Catch a Thief which became the film with Cary Grant and Grace Kelly on the French Riviera.
The book was set in Peru, the film was moved to Mexico probably because Mexico had a large film industry with studios and technicians.
The film was a financial success, one of the "ten biggest box office hits of 1953" according to film magazines.
Success breeds imitation, the following year saw the release of a similar film set and filmed in Peru in color.
I won't mention the title, but, like the Zapotecs, Incas have secrets, too.