The Conqueror: Hollywood Fallout

The backstory of the notorious turkey The Conqueror, starring John Wayne as Genghis Khan, has all the ingredients for a stimulating documentary, but Hollywood Fallout puts that story into a larger and more troubling context. 


Director William L. Nunez’s thorough, illuminating documentary looks at the deadly toll the filming took on the cast and crew as well as on communities near St. George, Utah, where it was shot.

“Please, God, don’t let us have killed John Wayne!”

William Nunez shares a great ambition to tell a broader story that gets to the absolute horror of propaganda within the chaotic hub of Hollywood. Leading to a film made with fury but also with pure compassion.

In the wake of Oppenheimer this is a story worth a reminder of how hubris, avarice and just flat-out bad judgement led to generations of tragedy. Let’s hope the production of Horizon, filmed at the same location, does not suffer the same fate.

This haunting documentary captures an important intersection of cinema history and the unintended perils of America ingenuity.

Both of the documentary’s angles are compelling enough to offset its meandering stretches.

Fascinating, funny, and deeply powerful--worthy of Oscar consideration for Best Documentary.

…a meticulous, absorbing documentary that makes sure that it doesn’t just look at the stars, but also at how the locals came to realise the genuine tragedy in their midst…this diligent film should be of interest well beyond students of Old Hollywood lore.

The Conqueror: Hollywood Fallout is a documentary about a movie that was made with more than just cinephiles in mind.