The Ark of the Sun God

1984
4.9| 1h38m| en| More Info
Released: 17 August 1984 Released
Producted By: Flora Film
Country: Turkey
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Synopsis

A safecracker takes a job where he must go to Istanbul and steal a scepter that once belonged to the god Gilgamesh but is now in the temple of a secret cult.

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Reviews

Voxitype Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.
AshUnow This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.
Usamah Harvey The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.
Freeman This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.
BA_Harrison This Italian Indiana Jones inspired adventure, from director Antonio Margheriti, certainly seems to have its fans, but I'm not one of them, finding the low rent action on offer rather tedious.David Warbeck stars as world-class cat burglar Rick Spear who is enlisted to help locate a Turkish temple where, as legend has it, lies the tomb of demigod Gilgamesh, whose jewelled sceptre bestows the bearer with great power. Out to prevent Rick from succeeding is a descendant of the demigod, Prince Abdullah (Aytekin Akkaya), who sends his men to kill the adventurer.With its 'exotic' locations an overcast Istanbul and a drab desert, 'exciting' car chase scenes achieved via remote-control vehicles, two ageing overweight Sallah-style sidekicks, and a 'lost' temple that is so easy to find I'm surprised that there wasn't a tour guide and a gift shop, The Ark of the Sun God is stodgy schlock that rarely kicks into gear, idling away until the predictable ending when the bad guy battles our hero while stone columns collapse around their ears.4.5 out of 10, rounded up to 5 for Susie Sudlow as Rick's eye-candy girlfriend Carol.
EitoMan First off, I'm a big fan of Italian genre cinema in general and of the director Antonio Margheriti in particular. This isn't film as art but commerce. The Italians were experts at exploiting the popularity of various American films and selling the imitations worldwide. This particular film is (obviously) derivative of Indiana Jones with a little James Bond thrown in.Margheriti was a very competent director who elevated the cheap films he directed. He almost always assembles a solid cast (as is the case in Ark of the Sun God) and packs his movies full of outlandish special effects. His use of miniatures is especially impressive although this film doesn't reflect his best use of them. Although I have high praise for his work both in this film and others, many people will laugh at what is presented. It is a cheap film and the FX aren't always anywhere near Hollywood standards. But Margheriti still consistently produced entertaining films, on the cheap, with exotic locations (in this case Turkey), and wild FX. It's the cinema equivalent of a comic book from the 50s...cheap, disposable, juvenile, but fun as hell.As to this film in particular, Ark of the Sun God is an entertaining adventure film that takes place mostly in Turkey. David Warbeck is solid (as usual) as the lead, as is John Steiner who takes on a secondary role. Lucinno Pigozzi, who is a regular in Antonio Margheriti's films, returns here as Beetle--he was a very solid character actor little known outside of Italy. Of course the whole movie is dubbed (many Italian genre films of the era were filmed without sound and dubbed in post-production). The plot involves finding and stealing a valuable artifact from an ancient tomb, all the while being chased by various goons. Standard boilerplate nonsense. The whole thing is utterly ridiculous and disposable. If you're looking for innovative cinema, look elsewhere. But the movie is fun in the same way as those old comic books were. They were pretty much considered disposable schlock as well until folks began to appreciate the talent that went into creating them.
dbborroughs The story of a safe cracker hired to help find a lost scepter thats hidden in a lost tomb is nothing more than an entertaining diversion. No, its no where near the level of say an Indiana Jones film or some of the great Hollywood action films, however it is an entertaining little film, perfect for a rainy weekend afternoon. An Italian/Turkish co-production this film sports sights that are not the sort you've seen a thousand times before, indeed it appears to have been filmed in the much under used cities and county side of Turkey. The story is good and moves along nicely. The actors, many of which are Euro-trash and exploitation regulars handle themselves nicely. You'll forgive the lack of detail, but this is a simply a good mindless movie thats worth seeing, even though it will disappear from your brain not long after.
Michael A. Martinez A fun movie to watch maybe once. Unlike Margheriti's earlier Warbeck films, this one seems oddly much more aimed at children. Well it's a pretty weak ripoff of RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, but it is fun in many ways. One of the most annoying theme songs in film history, though.. Contrary to what many say, this is NOT the same film as "Hunters of the Golden Cobra" which was made a year earlier. The two just had similar casts and crew, but different plots entirely! This one takes place in the desert and is much more slowly paced and dull. Warbecks's a cool guy though, too bad he died so young.