Kings of The Sun was more than about one actor Yule Brynner, although he did a terrific job, this movie was about a people a culture that history had proved existed. There are evidence of a culture on the Yucutan Pennisusula. We also know there is evidence of an ancient empire high in the Andies where temples and learned people existed. We also know throughout all of the United States great Indian nations thrived. There is even existences of great mounds of dirt that had been raised up as if for defense. Alas many of those have been knocked down and plowed under for planting grain. One thing implied by this movie was seeing saguaro cactus. That cactus only grows in one place, southern Arizona. Hollywood sure takes liberties to set mood but miss the boat. Black Chiefs tribe were more than likely Commanche as this group of Mayans landed in southern Texas. Continuing on with great Indian Nations Chief Pontiac established a great Federation which included most of the Eastern seaboard. It was highly organized and the various nations and tribes had commerce freely between one another. Kings of The Sun portrayed Mayan human sacrifice as a noble thing. The person being sacrificed was being a messenger to take the message of the nation to the Gods that crops would grow, water flow and whatever else the nation needed to remain strong. However, in Mel Gibson's Apocolypto the Mayans placed no such dignity upon such sacrifices. They raided weaker villages for slaves. The women they sold into slavery and the men they sacrificed.There are two Indian Nations that fought the Ubitrd States to a standstill: the Apache Nation in the west and the Seminoles in Florida. However, with the surrender of Gerinomo the Apache Nation finally were placed on reservations.As can be seen by this movie there's more than good acting, directing, editing and costuming. American history was being portrayed.

The Mayan civilization of Central America had achieved a level of sophistication beyond that of much of Europe of the time , creating the Mound Builder culture . It had been speculated on some fairly solid proof that when their cities in Yucatan ( Chichen Itza, Copan , Palenque , Dospilas ) suffered invasion by foreign tribes , Mayan refugees and surviving tribesmen escaped by means of their ships toward north across the Gulf of Mexico and influenced the savage Indians of the Southern United States on the barren lands . Starting with a vivid recreation of a Mayan ceremony shot at a restored pyramid in Chitzen Itza , it goes on a young Mayan named Balam (George Chakiris as unlikely leader) who is proclaimed king and standing on the pyramid is saluted by his people . Balam is obliged to marry a young princess Mayan (a gorgeous Shirley Anne Field ). The king and his followers ( Brad Dexter, Barry Morse , Armando Silvestre ) as their city, Chichen Itza , suddenly being conquered (by Leo Gordon) , then they flee north by sea and try to rebuild their culture on the northern Gulf coast . The Indian chief of a resident tribe named Black Eagle ( extraordinary physique presence of Yul Brynner who personifies the romantic myth of the noble savage ) is captured by the newcomers to his land and there is dissension in the community as to whether the should be sacrificed in the ordinary way demanded by high priest (Richard Basehart) , then Balam eventually forbids sacrifice in the new land and the two peoples try a agreement with some friction . They ultimately unite to fight the original invaders of Chichen , who have pursued the Mayans. This adventure and colorful film is packed with impressive battle scenes, skin deep spectacle, a triangular love story and is pretty entertaining . Well filmed on location in Chichén Itzá , Yucatán, Mazatlán, Sinaloa, and Estudios Churubusco Azteca, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico . The film uses the vast numbers of contemporary Mayan extras to good effect ; excellent camera-work by Joseph MacDonald and lighting on the more intimate scenes . Impressive ending battle , is as visually breathtaking , fought around and on the newly built pyramid by the Mayans . Furthermore an awesome musical score by the maestro Elmer Berstein .This large scale motion picture is professionally directed by J. Lee Thompson who directed good Western ( McKenna gold) and all kind of genres as Sci-Fi (Conquest and Battle of planet of apes) , terror (reincarnation of Peter Proud, Eye of the devil), adventures (Kings of the sun, Taras Bulba) and Warlike ( Guns of Navarone, Von Braun). J. Lee Thompson working from the 50s in England, finished his career making Chuck Norris (Firewalker) and Charles Bronson vehicles (Evil that men do, Messenger of death, Death Wish 4 : Crackdown, Caboblanco, St Ives). Watchable results for this outlandish epic/adventure film .

I haven't seen the trailer for this movie, but I'm sure the words "Cast of Thousands" must have splashed across the screen in giant red letters."Kings of the Sun" is a costume melodrama with all the declaiming, strutting around, and general overacting characteristic of all the other costume melodramas produced in the late fifties and early sixties. The setting in pre-Columbian America doesn't really do all that much to distinguish it from the biblical epics filmed in the same period, and Yul Brynner's portrayal of an Indian chief is pretty much the same as his portrayal of an Egyptian pharaoh.Neither George Chakiris as the Maya king nor love interest Shirley Ann Field bear any resemblance at all to Mayans, of course, but nobody in 1963 would have expected they would. As a matter of fact, Chakiris's hairdo was sufficiently reminiscent of Frankie Avalon's to distract me the whole way through. Still, there's a nice score by the great Elmer Bernstein.Those who enjoy the genre will probably find some satisfaction in "Kings of the Sun," but certainly would be much happier with "The Ten Commandments" or "Spartacus."

Rarely rate any movie under 5 stars but this one earned its own. The enthusiasm of some reviewers is understandable, particularly in regards to the conviction from Yul Brynner and the miscast beauty of Shirley Anne Field.British director J. Lee Thompson, rarely more than a journeyman, failed to show any enthusiasm and scriptwriter (Elliott Arnold) was totally at sea in conveying a sense of authenticity in regards to culture: saw this movie only once 40+ years ago but my now wife and I still recall and occasionally quote to each other with great amusement one peculiar bit of dialogue. Balam (the George Chakiris character) reproaches Ixchel (Field) over her attraction to Bald Eagle (Brynner) - this is our recollection: IXCHEL: "Why'd you send for me?" BALAM (in a fit of jealousy): "Before, when he sent for you, you went to him willingly, and NOW I KNOW: it was not for the FIRST time!" His line, not only poorly delivered but compounded by the contrast between Field's British inflection and Chakiris' American accent - the exchange merits inclusion in some anthology.