User reviews

The treasure part of this movie is stupid, because diamonds don't emerge naturally from ground level. There is some gold finding, too - that separate escapade is done by a Nazi and a topless native woman (who is actually Latino instead of Amazonian). But I have to admit that that woman looked good. The Nazi (Pleasance) is okay, and I found myself on his side while searching for treasure in order to build a better world - (what the hell) - Though opponents to that have their way. There is a need to mention that there is a goof who is searching for oil; and he is, by far, one of the worst actors in history. The goof's girlfriend isn't too bad looking though; but miss goody two-shoes eventually shows her devious side. The main characters are the diamond getters: performed by Whitman and his two nagging companions, who travel through the jungle yelling and pointing guns at each other. Fortunately they are given the greater majority of film time, making the story passable: with the scenery and Whitman making the highlights.

Disjointed jungle adventure follows three disparate groups of characters as they search for diamonds in the Amazon and encounter savage natives. Generally boring, but briefly enlivened by some awesomely gory scenes (crabs!), and a half-nude amazon fleshed-out (no pun intended) by Sonia Infante. Location shooting also helps, although some of the cast members look like they would be more comfortable in a nursing home. ** out of 4.

There are those who would compare The Treasure of the Amazon to Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981). They would be wrong. OK, This could have been an excellent movie, but it is not. The cast is great and at times actually demonstrates it, but the plot is so thin and ridiculous that it is extremely difficult to get into it at all.

Stuart Whitman stars as your typical aging adventurer who leads a group of misfits into the Amazon to find lost WW2 treasure. Most of the group is killed in various horrible and ridiculous ways. The only way I would recommend this film is if you are interested in seeing some top notch actors doing their best to make something of nothing.

The cast includes Whitman, star of such wonderful films as Rio Conchos and The Comancheros as the bull headed leader. Bradford Dillman, who starred opposite Robert Redford in The Way We Were, makes an appearance. Donald Pleasence, star of many classic films such as The Great Escape and The Eagle Has Landed, plays an evil Nazi. Rounding out the cast are John Ireland(Gunfight at the OK Corral 1957),Pedro Armendariez Jr.(License To kill 1989)and none other than Harold(Odd Job)Sakata.

This is the best Indiana Jones knockoff I have ever seen. What it lacks in originality it makes up for in stupidity. Catchy and original names for characters like Gringo and Paco. Cheesy and lame effects make for fun. The props are about as pathetic as you can get. It stars a real hard ass (Gringo) who doesn't take crap from anyone or anything. I was also pleased by the work of Donald Pleasance. Donald plays really crappy villains well, if you can check him out in the movie Puma Man, he plays the ultimate in villainy, Kobras. Anyway, some of my favorite scenes are the ones with graphic violence that is so cheesy, Kraft invested in its use on Macaroni. For example, when Gringo cuts off an indian's finger, the severed finger looks like a carrot with ketchup on it. Good laughs if you watch while drinking lots of beer.

I came upon this 80's gem via Rifftrax, who give it a lol treatment. Where to start with how wonderfully dreadful this thing is? Stuart Whitman in a performance that varies from somnambulent to hammy, sometimes in seconds-ridiculous overmiked animal and water sounds that drown out the dialogue, static jungle sets that are comically unrealistic, laughably bad dialogue, gratuitous violence and gore clumsily ennacted, cartoonish clothing (the guy with the gay cutoffs and wife beater in the deep jungle),the "hot"native gal in an obvious gigantic wig to cover her nipples, predictable plot line, and on and on......Really, it's so bad it's freaking awesome!

Thilling and moving film concerning an unstoppable chase to find a valuable treasure , while battling for survival with threes groups besieged by head-cutters Indians , greedy gunrunners , including gore and blood . Exciting adventure and exploitation movie with three groups of adventurers all vying to find a treasure in the jungle where they clash against each other , take off the relentless natives , as well as the perilous wildlife . The best scenes are the immense efforts of the mean groups have to carry out for their purports , forced to do anything and everything they could to stay alive . Their Greed & Lust for Diamonds Was More Deadly Than the Perils of the Jungle. They survived the impossible...by doing the unthinkable. It's "Man against Man" and "Man against Nature" - Which One Will Prove More Deadlly ?

In the film there are noisy adventures , action pace , impressive struggles , beautiful landscapes and lots of blood and gore . An adventure movie relying heavily on sensationalistic aspects , eerie images full of gore , nudism and exploitation , such as physical violence , tortures , merciless natives executing decapitation and many other things . Regarding corrupt and ambitious people who will have to confront lots of risks until find a treasure and all of them will take on villains , savage Jibaro tribes and fighting each other . From start to finish the action-packed is non-stop and gory paranoia reaches a fevered pitch that culminates in a final savage action . The flick features many strong scenes , among them beheading , astonishing slaughter , cannibalism , a gloomy spectacle to watch . It's fast moving and that's why it is neither tiring, not boring , but bemusing . Special effects are passable , but other parts of the movie are never fully realized . The movie pushes too hard and too far , and no apt for squeamish . It strives for being some inspirational but falls well short of being really inspired and marred by some extreme exploitation scenes . In spite of it , the movie is entertaining , though shot in fits and starts and in Mexico obtained success enough . It was shot on location in Chiapas, Mexico and studios : Churubusco Azteca, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico , and Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas, Mexico . Being a Mexican/American co-production , here appear notorious American actors as Stuart Whitman , Donald Pleasence , Bradford Dillman, John Ireland and Mexicans as Emilio Fernández , Sonia Infante , Pedro Armendáriz Jr. , Jorge Luke , Hugo Stiglitz , all of them giving ordinary performances , but they were so fun and amusing that kept entertainment in the film.

This horrific retelling of the treasure hunt throughout Amazon jungle was regularly written/produced/directed by Rene Cardona Jr who developed a long career as national as international . He was a Mexican director and writer, expert on all kinds of genres with a penchant for Terror , adventure and exploitation ; being especially known for The Treasure of the Amazon (1985) , The Bermudas Triangle (1978) , ¡Tintorera! (1977) , Cycone , Fantastic Balloon Voyage , Under Siege , The Night of a Thousand Cats , Survivors of Andes , Beaks , Carlos the terrorist and Guayana, El Crimen del Siglo (1979) . Rating : 5/10 , average but passable and acceptable.

This Mexican gorefest is probably the funniest and most entertaining adventure movie ever made. In the 1950s, different people are looking for the treasure of the Amazon. For example a dubious woman, an elder man who knows the jungle (Whitman) and an old Nazi from Germany (great as ever: Pleasence). Not only are they trying to outwit each other, but they also have to fight blood thirsty crabs, crocodiles and other animals, and not to forget a vicious tribe of Indios who like to behead their victims as soon as they capture them.

Rene Cardona jr. surely didn't have that a big budget for this film, but he certainly does the best with it. Concerning gory effects, that is. In the most outrageous scene, a hapless adventurer gets his eyeballs ripped out by the vicious crabs, a scene which has to be inspired by Lucio Fulci's notorious spider-scene in "L'Aldilà - The Beyond".

This film is very trashy, but it's better entertainment than any other adventure film I know (the "Indiana Jones"-trilogy included), and it boosts a great role for horror veteran Donald Pleasence (as a really unpleasant guy) and enough nasty bloodshed to please every gorehound who wants to see something else for once.

That's what I call good, mindless fun!

This is a bad movie. Its purpose was to film bare breasts, which are plentiful. But those bare breasts, beheadings, even a man married to his daughters cannot save this film. RiffTrax gives it what it deserves!

Not an easy puppy to come across, but this "Treasure of the Amazon" surely is warmly recommended viewing for every fan of trash, pulp or the glorious exploitation cinema. I was lucky enough to catch it on a national TV channel, during a cult-themed night. This is a Mexican take on the extremely popular jungle adventures of the early 80's, complete with sleaze, gratuitous violence and a once-famous Hollywood cast. We witness how three separate groups of Westerners sift out the dangerous Amazon jungle looking for gold. All three groups encounter wild animals and a savage tribe of head-hunters but eventually it's the typical human greed that is the biggest threat. "Treasure…" is action-packed (not one dull moment) and extremely rich on gore sequences. Highlight of this is a semi-disgusting scene in which a gold-digger is torn apart by ravenous crabs! This particular scene is bit by bit copied from Lucio Fulci's "The Beyond", by the way. Director Cardona Jr. simply replaced the tarantulas with crabs. Much footage comes straight from other (more budgeted) films or nature channel documentaries but that only increases the terrific cult value of this production. The cast performances go from lovely OTT acting (former miss world Ann Sidney) to completely-not-interested acting (John Ireland as the priest). Donald Pleasance is utterly cool as the uncanny Nazi wandering through the jungle to refund the resurrection of his Third Reich. Stuart Whitman shines for the first time again since "The Mark" as the tough jungle rat Gringo.

A pretty decent adventure film from 1985 offers us several small groups of characters, each going into the wilds of the Amazon seeking different kinds of treasure. The movie is downright imaginative in the unpredictable kinds of trouble they encounter seeking out gold, diamonds or oil.

The good thing about the movie is how it depends on characterization although the visuals are great too. It's much better than most of the clueless action movies of 2007. For one thing the camera holds steady instead of shaking all over creation trying to fake suspense. Most of the 2007 era cheap tricks --- such as the vim vim vim vim sound tracks weren't invented yet.

Expect a disparate bunch of characters, mostly bad, a couple of girls with legs, and more fearful jungle creatures than you ever guessed existed.

After the movie, buzz down to Manaus, Brazil and spend a few days seeing things first hand.

One of those stupid guilt pleasures like reading one of those old nasty and sleazy pulp magazines of good old times. This Mexican piece is not as gory and violent as the Italian "masterpieces" Cannibal Ferox, Cannibal Holocaust or The Mountain of the Cannibal God, but still good and blood painted entertainment: what you get are wild beasts, native headhunter tribes, shrunken heads, a corrupt gang of treasure hunters, and death lurking behind every corner. Solid stuff - if you like such kind of movies, of course.

When I stumbled upon the 1985 movie "Treasure of the Amazon", I opted to watch it on account of it being a movie that I hadn't already seen, nor actually ever heard about. So I didn't know what I was in for here. And that meant that director René Cardona Jr. Had every opportunity to entertain me with this movie.

However, writers René Cardona Jr. And Jacques Wilson put together a script and storyline that I found very little entertainment or enjoyment in. And while I did manage to sit through the entire movie, I was not even mildly entertained. The movie was somewhat of a struggle to sit through, especially since I sat with a sense of 'was there a point to this narrative?' throughout the entire movie.

While I was only familiar with actors Donald Pleasence and Pedro Armendáriz Jr. In the movie, I will say that the acting performances were actually fair, despite the fact that the actors and actresses had so very little to work with.

This is most certainly not a movie that will ever grace my screen a second time. Nor is it a movie that I will openly recommend anyone to waste 97 minutes on watching. Some of us suffered through this, so you don't have to; you're very welcome.

My rating of "Treasure of the Amazon" lands on a generous two out of ten stars.

Various interests converge on a rumoured treasure trove deep within the bowels of the Amazon, where "diamonds - the size of your eyes!" (according to Gringo - Whitman) are protected by natives and the local conquistador. Gringo is a long-time expatriate to the antipodeans, who narrowly escaped the jungles on his last encounter, losing several prospecting companions in the process. Here he strategically teams with a brace of bozo bandits (Armendariz and Luke) to locate and extricate the bounty. But anthropological crew (Dillman, Sidney & Jarrett) and Ruger packing, former Nazi (Pleasance) are already ahead of the game. As diamond fever spreads, the locals emerge to claim their taxes.

Sort of a Latin style "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" in some ways, with the added distinction of a graphic 'crab attack' scene (spectacularly gruesome in typical Cardona style), firmly securing its R-rating. Upbeat, memorable score; camp, catchy dialogue; and the sets and scenery, colourful and attractive, it's a sensory experience that captures the attention. A diverse cast of veterans seem to be acutely aware of the camp value, and their performances are just at the right pitch for some light humour. Shrunken heads, animal attacks, tongue hanging, snake eating and a splash of nudity for taste, "Treasure of the Amazon" is a veritable smörgåsbord of the most fertile in cinema exploits.

Director Cardona made numerous attempts to cross into mainstream with his co-ventures, and this "Tales of the Golden Monkey" style treasure hunt, would be closest to success. Well paced momentum ensures there's no drag, and with a violent double-cross around every narrative corner, it's sure to entertain those with an appreciation for potent cinematic jungle juice.

This Mexican adventure is a real treat for fans of cult movies.It has plenty of gore and violence including decapitations,throat cuttings etc.The scene where one guy has his eyes gouged out by some bloodthirsty crabs is the goriest bit and it reminds me the spiders sequence from Lucio Fulci's masterful "The Beyond"(1981).The cast is decent-a horror veteran Donald Pleasance("Halloween","Paganini Horror")shines as a Nazi adventurer.So if you are a fan of gory adventure movies like "Mountain of the Cannibal God" or "Cut and Run" give this one a look."The Treasure of the Amazon" is not easy to find though!

Gratuitous nudity, violence, gore, "action," over the hill stars looking of a payday and unintentional comedy. With that said it's at least 20 minutes longer than it needed to be which will test your feelings of it's so good it's bad to just bad. Luckily it saves the best for last with a third act filled with crosses and double crosses.

That this wonderfully photographed fully packed adventure movie has a 4.4 rating is another proof that you should never avoid to watch a movie because other people say it is bad, because most of the time, a lot of them do not realize beauty when they see it. If your eyes can enjoy wonderful cinematography first off, you won't be bored one second, The great outdoors, the beautiful jungle rivers and all its dangers, cannibals, search for treasures, all the wild animals, . It really feels like Indiana Jones.

Interesting range of reviews are found here on IMDb, for this 1985 jaunt into Mexploitation. It's safe to say that it reeks of cheese---but lots of us love cheese, especially when the riffing is good. From this viewpoint, I saw a few decent actors---paired with some hopeless ones---saddled with a screenplay and dialogue that is geared for high school freshmen. (No offense, kids.) Some graphic moments make it unsuitable for family viewing. Still, the Rifftrax crew mostly hit the right targets and made the thing bearable to the end for me, which I haven't been able to say for a lot of their later features-- personally, I've been disappointed to find that Trax' choices of "action" pictures, from the late '80's and after, are so bland and mindless that even the riff crew can't sustain my interest beyond 15 or 20 minutes.Most of the monster/sci-fi movies from the '40s thru the '60's were meant to be taken seriously....which is why the riffs are so much more entertaining, and I've seen them numerous times. I sure wish they'd add some new titles to their Amazon Prime roster....

Without RiffTrax, I would have rated this movie three stars. Stewart Whitman is actually pretty good doing a Kris Kristofferson impersonation, as are the other B-movie stars, but pointless shots of forest animals, the boat steaming along, and dumb dialog pad the movie by about thirty minutes. The gratuitous female nudity was definitely helpful, though! RiffTrax, however, maintained my interest and provided a lot of laughs. In particular, while Ann Sidney is lovely, the RiffTrax crew pointed out they couldn't tell if she was supposed to have a US Southern accent or a British accent. It fluctuated. Not sure how the producers got Sonia Infante to appear nude from the waist up throughout, but she's really beautiful, not a bad actress, and I hope she went on to do better things.