The Legend of Zorro facts for kids
Quick facts for kids The Legend of Zorro |
|
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster
|
|
| Directed by | Martin Campbell |
| Produced by | Walter F. Parkes Laurie MacDonald Lloyd Phillips |
| Screenplay by | Roberto Orci Alex Kurtzman |
| Story by | Roberto Orci Alex Kurtzman Ted Elliott Terry Rossio |
| Starring | Antonio Banderas Catherine Zeta-Jones Rufus Sewell Nick Chinlund |
| Music by | James Horner |
| Cinematography | Phil Meheux |
| Editing by | Stuart Baird |
| Studio |
|
| Distributed by | Sony Pictures Releasing |
| Release date(s) | October 28, 2005 |
| Running time | 130 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English Spanish |
| Budget | $65 million |
| Money made | $142.4 million |
The Legend of Zorro is an exciting adventure movie from 2005. It's a Western film that continues the story of the masked hero, Zorro. The movie was directed by Martin Campbell and features Antonio Banderas as Zorro and Catherine Zeta-Jones as his wife, Elena. Rufus Sewell plays the main villain, Count Armand.
This film is a sequel to The Mask of Zorro from 1998. It was filmed in San Luis Potosí, Mexico, and parts of Wellington, New Zealand. The movie was released on October 28, 2005, and made over $142 million worldwide.
Contents
The Story of Zorro's New Adventure
In 1850, nine years after the first movie, California is about to vote on whether to become a state of the United States. Zorro, whose real name is Alejandro Murrieta (now known as Don Alejandro De La Vega), is busy stopping bad guys.
Zorro's Secret Identity Revealed
During a fight to protect the votes, Zorro's mask slips off. Two secret agents, called Pinkertons, see his face. The next day, these agents force Zorro's wife, Elena, to divorce him. They want her to get close to a suspicious new villain.
A New Villain and a Secret Plan
Three months later, Alejandro is sad because Elena and their son, Joaquin, have left him. He also feels like people don't need Zorro anymore. His old friend, Father Felipe, tells him to go to a party at Count Armand's new vineyard.
At the party, Alejandro sees Elena with Count Armand, who she knew from Europe. After leaving, Alejandro sees a big explosion near Armand's house. This makes him very suspicious.
The Knights of Aragon
A bad guy named Jacob McGivens attacks Alejandro's friend, Guillermo Cortez, to steal his land. Zorro saves Guillermo's wife and son, but Guillermo is killed, and the land deed is taken. Zorro follows McGivens to Armand's house and finds out Armand wants to build a railroad on Cortez's land.
Zorro also sees Elena there. He learns about a secret shipment and follows McGivens to a hidden cove. Joaquin, Zorro's son, secretly follows too. Zorro saves Joaquin from the bandits. He finds a bar of soap in the shipment with the words Orbis Unum on the crate. This means One World in Latin.
Father Felipe and Alejandro research the phrase. They discover that Count Armand is the leader of a secret group called the Knights of Aragon. This group has been secretly ruling parts of Europe. They see the United States as a threat and plan to cause chaos before it becomes too powerful.
Stopping the Evil Plot
Alejandro is captured by the Pinkerton agents. They tell him they forced Elena to divorce him so she could get close to Armand. They didn't want Zorro's help because they didn't like his vigilante ways. Joaquin helps his father escape.
Zorro goes to Armand's mansion and meets Elena. He overhears Armand's meeting and learns that the soap bars are actually used to make nitroglycerin, a powerful explosive. Armand plans to give this to a Confederate Colonel named Beauregard to destroy the Union. Zorro and Elena make up and plan to stop the train carrying the explosives.
Meanwhile, McGivens goes to Father Felipe's church looking for Zorro. He shoots the priest and kidnaps Joaquin. Armand's butler, Ferroq, finds and kills the Pinkerton agents. He tells Armand about Elena's deception. Armand takes Elena and Joaquin hostage on the train, making it impossible for Zorro to destroy it.
The Final Battle
Zorro is captured and unmasked in front of his son. Armand orders McGivens to kill Alejandro. But Father Felipe, saved by a cross he was wearing, arrives and helps Alejandro defeat McGivens.
Zorro catches up to Armand, and they have an intense sword fight. Elena helps Joaquin escape to the back of the train and disconnects the cars. Elena then fights Ferroq in the car filled with explosives. She throws him and a bottle of nitro out of the train, killing them both.
Further down the tracks, the governor is about to sign the bill making California a state. Joaquin rides Zorro's horse, Tornado, and jumps off the train. He changes a track switch, making the train harmlessly go around the ceremony. Zorro and Armand's duel continues on the front of the train. Seeing the track is a dead end, Zorro ties Armand to the front of the engine and escapes with Elena. The train crashes and explodes, killing Armand and destroying the explosives.
California Becomes a State
With Zorro as a witness, the governor signs the bill, and California becomes the 31st state of the United States. Father Felipe remarries Alejandro and Elena. Alejandro tells Joaquin that being Zorro is a family secret, not just his own. With Elena's support, Zorro rides off on Tornado, ready for his next mission.
Meet the Characters
- Antonio Banderas as Don Alejandro de la Vega / Zorro
- Catherine Zeta-Jones as Eléna de la Vega
- Rufus Sewell as Count Armand
- Nick Chinlund as Jacob McGivens
- Adrián Alonso as Joaquin de la Vega
- Julio Oscar Mechoso as Padre Felipe
- Shuler Hensley as Pike
- Michael Emerson as Harrigan
- Leo Burmester as Colonel Beauregard
- Tony Amendola as Padre Quintero
- Pedro Armendáriz, Jr. as Governor Riley
- Giovanna Zacarias as Blanca Cortez
- Raúl Méndez as Ferroq
- Alberto Reyes as Padre Ignacio
An Alternate Ending
The DVD version of the movie includes a different ending. In this ending, Joaquin grows up and puts on the Zorro costume himself. He rides off into the sunset, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather. The older Alejandro and Elena watch him proudly. This ending was changed for the movie released in theaters. The filmmakers wanted to leave open the chance for more movies with Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta-Jones, but those sequels never happened.
Movie Music
| The Legend of Zorro: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Film score by | ||||
| Released | October 25, 2005 | |||
| Recorded | 2004–2005 | |||
| Length | 75:34 | |||
| Label | Sony | |||
| James Horner chronology | ||||
|
||||
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| SoundtrackNet | |
The music for The Legend of Zorro was composed by James Horner. The official soundtrack album was released on October 25, 2005.
- Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Collecting the Ballots" | 3:27 |
| 2. | "Stolen Votes" | 6:31 |
| 3. | "To the Governor's... And Then Elena" | 4:05 |
| 4. | "This Is Who I Am" | 3:05 |
| 5. | "Classroom Justice" | 1:50 |
| 6. | "The Cortez Ranch" | 6:35 |
| 7. | "A Proposal with Pearls / Perilous Times" | 3:58 |
| 8. | "Joaquin's Capture and Zorro's Rescue" | 5:00 |
| 9. | "Jailbreak / Reunited" | 5:36 |
| 10. | "A Dinner of Pigeon / Setting the Explosives" | 5:04 |
| 11. | "Mad Dash / Zorro Unmasked" | 3:20 |
| 12. | "Just One Drop of Nitro" | 2:40 |
| 13. | "The Train" | 11:11 |
| 14. | "Statehood Proclaimed" | 5:00 |
| 15. | "My Family Is My Life..." | 8:14 |
Watching the Movie at Home
The Legend of Zorro was released on DVD and VHS on January 31, 2006. Later, it became available on Blu-ray on December 11, 2007.
Future Movie Ideas
In 2019, there were talks about a possible crossover movie called Django/Zorro. This idea came from a comic book series that combined the worlds of Zorro and another movie, Django Unchained. Both the director, Quentin Tarantino, and actor Jamie Foxx were interested in having Antonio Banderas return as Zorro in this new film.
See also
In Spanish: La leyenda del Zorro para niños
