Retrospective: The Secret of the Incas (1954)
Jerry Saravia
Reviewed by Jerry Saravia
RATING: Three stars and a half
Movies like "Secret of the Incas" were a dime a dozen back in the
1950's. The idea that grave robbers or archaeologists were looking to
unearth priceless golden treasures in forbidden countries and doubly
forbidden tombs was a major commodity for Hollywood. 1954's "Secret of
the Incas" is probably one of the better entries in this genre and
with Charlton Heston at its center, it will rivet your attention and
knock your socks off.
Heston is Harry Steele, a Cuzco, Peru tour guide who is out for a few
bucks by taking tourists' money (he studies plane manifests so he can
get tourists to ride with him and show them the local museum). Harry
is also obsessed with the Incan Empire, specifically a lost Incan
treasure known as the Sunburst. It is a golden disc that would restore
life to the village of Machu Pichuu. Naturally, Steele is more
interested in fortune and glory and wants to steal the Sunburst,
despite some greedy partners wanting it for themselves. Morgan (Thomas
Mitchell) is one of those scheming partners - a tub of lard who seeks
personal fortune rather than playing pool in seedy bars for the rest
of his life. There is a catch - in order to get to Machu Pichuu, Harry
needs a cargo plane and gets his chance when he escorts an illegal
named Elena (Nicole Maurey) who is seeking safe passage to the United
States.
So what we have are exotic locales, seedy bars, the late Yma Sumac
singing in different pitches to the Incan people, archaeologists
digging through a sacred tomb, double-crossing swindlers, beautiful
damsels, inflatable rafts (Calling Dr. Jones), and a tough, arrogant,
highly chauvinistic hero who exchanges double entendres at will and
makes a moral choice by the end of the film. If any of this sounds
familiar, it should. The Indiana Jones series borrowed liberally from
similar films of this period, not to mention countless serials (and I
am sure Spielberg took a good long look at "That Man From Rio").
Indiana Jones most noticeable antecedent may be "Secret of the Incas,"
considering the Sunburst is not unlike some of the artifacts from
Indiana Jones and Harry Steele's style of dress and demeanor (the way
he constantly tilts his hat or lowers it when sleeping) is more than a
passing resemblance to the archaeologist hero of the 1980's (sans
bullwhip and army pouch).
If I have any major qualms, it is that the character Elena is rather
flatly characterized as someone whose only concern is making it to the
United States (though I like when she fakes sobbing to Harry and how
she always asks who cut down the cherry tree). Also, Robert Young
plays Dr. Moorehead, an archaeologist who proposes marriage to Elena
within a few hours of meeting her. It is one of the quickest proposals
I've ever seen in a movie, but Dr. Moorehead remains one-dimensional
and almost perfunctory to the plot.
"Secret of the Incas" is not full of derring do or the escapist
mentality of Indiana Jones, but it is an exquisitely made and
entertaining adventure movie that will more than please thrill-seekers
and lovers of pulp adventure tales. Heston delivers as a rough and
tumble hero and, yes, a lot of what transpires in the film is hokey
and silly but never dull. And when Yma Sumac triumphantly sings
"Ataypura" to the Incan village, her voice resonates as an echo
throughout the entire region and reminds us of how glorious movies
used to be. I would think that anyone who visits Machu Pichuu can't
help but hum Yma Sumac's music.
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