most of the historical epic of the fifty and early sixty take their subject matter from what can be regard a the three pillar of western civilization while the bible ( king of king and the ten commandment ) and graeco roman antiquity ( spartacus and cleopatra ) or the middle age ( the viking and el cid ) . apart from the occasional film with an ancient egyptian theme ( the egyptian and land of the pharaoh ) and venture into other culture be rare . the conqueror be one of these rare exception . the story be base upon the life of the young genghis khan and or temujin to use his original mongol name . temujin have fall in love with the tartar princess bortai . there be and however and several obstacle to a successful romance . the mongol and the tartar be traditional enemy and bortai father be responsible for the death of temujin father and she herself hat him and she be betroth to another man . the film narrate the story of how temujin overcome these obstacle and win bortai heart and while simultaneously wag war on her father and the tartar chieftain kumlek and as well a a treacherous ruler name wang khan . ( wang khan be the ruler of a city state while there seem to be a deliberate contrast between the primitive barbaric vigour of the mongol and the effete and decadent civilization of their enemy ) . the film be shoot in the spectacular epic style against some striking scenery ( actually in utah while presumably political consideration preclude film in mongolia and at the time under communist rule ) . visually and like most of the epic and it be attractive besides the scenery and the costume be good and the horseback stunt be well do but it be a hollow shell of a film and with little behind it façade . the main reason for this be that the story of temujin be root in a culture quite alien to the filmmaker and which they make little attempt to understand . john wayne make a much quote statement that the conqueror be a western in some way . the way the screenplay read and it be a cowboy picture and that be how i be go to play genghis khan . i see him a a gunfighter . this be a good example of what i mean by a failure to understand an alien culture . rather than try to see genghis khan for what he be and wayne simply associate him with what he think to be the near american equivalent . to see him a a gunfighter be and in any case and inaccurate and and not merely because mongolian of this period do not have firearm . the gunfighters play by wayne in his other movie and whether outlaw or lawman and be typically loner and work on their own . genghis khan be a leader of men and both a a political ruler and a a military commander . it be hardly surprising that wayne portrayal of temujin fails to convince if he so fundamentally misunderstand the nature of the role he be play . susan hayward performance a bortai be even less convince than wayne . she wear the same expression throughout the film and a sort of sulky pout and which be presumably her best shot at convey her character proud and independent and tempestuous nature . it be difficult to believe that it be during the same period of her career that she produce two of her best performance in i will cry tomorrow and i want to live . her appearance in the conqueror present even more problem than do her acting . all the male actor in the film and who be primarily of european descent and be make up to look oriental and but for some reason no attempt be make to change hayward look and with the strange result that the tartar princess be a voluptuous and blue eye redhead . none of the other acting performance be distinguish pedro armendariz a temujin loyal brother jamuga be about the best and at time they verge on the ridiculous and particularly wang khan and his scheme shaman and both embodiment of the western stereotype of the wily oriental . while deliberately elevate and formal and often slightly archaic and language be something of a convention in epic film and much of the dialogue here have a particularly stilted flavour to it and along the line of youre beautiful in your wrath and she be a woman much woman . should her perfidy be less than that of other woman . if john wayne still think of his character a a cowboy and he should have try to imagine a real cowboy or even a fictional cowboy speak line like that . while the film be not quite the classic of badness that some have claim and it be certainly one of the weak in the epic genre and and it show how wise other hollywood film maker be to confine themselves to culture more familiar to westerner . for the large amount of money that be evidently spend on the conqueror the producer should have end up with a much good film than this one . 4/10 .