King Solomon's Mines (1985)

This is such a blatant rip-off of Indiana Jones that it is a downright parody. And a highly enjoyable parody it is. So many sequences, set pieces and even the music are so similar to a point where it makes one wonder how they got away with making this without getting sued. They even got John Rhys-Davies for a role! This is yet another piece of highly enjoyable Canon schlock, a studio that I cannot help but adore. Golan and Globus always tried to cash in on hot trends and along the way made some of my favorite cheesy, hugely entertaining pictures from the 80s. This doesn't rank up there with Over the Top, Bolero, Cobra, Bloodsport, Death Wish 3 and others but it is close and proves once again that Canon made some of the most entertaining movies from the 80s and I am on a mission to watch all of them!

When Richard Chamberlin signed on to portray adventurer Allan Quatermain in this (1985) version of H. R. Haggard's novel "King Solomon's Mines," he probably gave no thought to how his co-star, the young Sharon Stone, would look on screen.Bad move, Richard. But it's a great boon for us viewers. The then 27-year-old Stone wears short shorts almost all throughout the movie, and after about two reels it's a strong bet that the audience was fixated on Sharon's gorgeous legs, never mind Chamberlin and his quest for African gold.The picture did well enough that the following year, 1986, a sequel was mounted, "Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold," again starring Richard Chamberlin and Sharon Stone. This time, however, Sharon wore long pants all the way through, and judging by the warm reception of Sharon's legs in the original film, there was absolutely NO reason to hide those perfect pins in the sequel. Maybe Chamberlin, the nominal star of the picture, objected to being upstaged... again?Dan Navarro [email protected]

King Solomon's Mines is the third film adaptation of H.Rider Haggard's novel of the same title.It stars Richard Chamberlain as Allan Quatermain together with Sharon Stone,Herbert Lom and John Rhys-Davies.It takes a light and comedic approach of the novel and it parodies Indiana Jones,one of the most popular movies that was released during the decade this film was shown in theaters.In the screenplay,Allan Quatermain was hired by a woman to locate his archaeologist father who apparently has discovered the location of a vast treasure.Despite the fact that it was panned by critics and gaining two Razzie nominations for Worst Supporting Actor for Lom and Worst Musical Score,the movie was entertaining enough as long as one does not intend to take it seriously.Also,the viewer should also not compare with the 1937 and 1950 version for it was made for laughs and an Indiana Jones parody instead of being a critically acclaimed film. Aside from lots of laughter that it presents,it is not short on action and explosive scenes.Overall,try to enjoy and be entertained this movie which should have been titled,"King Solomon's Mines Lite."

I don't know why this movie was given such a low rating. I loved this movie as a kid and watching it on netflix was just as entertaining. People have to remember that this wasn't supposed to be better than Indiana Jones or compete with it. Its supposed to put a humorous spin on it. From the theme song, German bad guys, Quarterman's get up, its all jokes.Take Indiana Jones, add a truck load of jokes, sprinkle in some bad effects and this is what you add up with. A good movie to waste time with!Enjoy it for what it is and don't expect more.