Customer Reviews
not worth it - By: alz, 23 Sep 2008 
nothing was good about this film.
acting was bad.the action was childish & the comedy was forced in the
film but that was also not funny.
Indiana Quatermain and the Mines of Doom - By: Trevor Willsmer, 25 Jul 2008 
H. Rider Haggard's King Solomon's Mines is one of those stories where it often feels that only the title & the odd character name have been filmed. If there were a prize for the least faithful version, Cannon's 1985 romp would win hands down. Richard Chamberlain's Great White Hunter Allan Quatermain may be a reluctant guide on a quest for the fabled mines, but this time his only companion is Sharon Stone, eager to save her archaeologist father from Herbert Lom's dastardly & cartoonish Wagner-loving German officer (the plot has been updated to pre-WW1 Africa). No prizes for guessing that this is inspired more by Indiana Jones than H. Rider Haggard (it even co-stars John Rhys-Davies as another Arab, this time on the bad guys' side), with the stunts increasingly outrageous & the tone firmly tongue in cheek.
Shot almost back-to-back with the dire Allan Quatermain & the Lost City of Gold & originallly brandishing the how-are-they-ever-going-to-fit-that-on-the-marquees title Allan Quatermain & King Solomon's Mines & the Lost Caves of Death, it's a film almost as overloaded as it's rejected title: for the first half or so it's surprisingly entertaining, but eventuallly the relentless energy starts to wear you down as you realise that the film's used up most of its best stunts & jokes & is running out of clichés to rehash & lampoon. Certainly there's nothing in the second half to match a comic marketplace chase or a very silly train rescue that sees Quatermain work his way through variations of Indy's truck chase before skiing along the rails as he holds on by his bullwhip... In many ways, DVD is an almost ideal way to see it: a little too much to sit through in one go, a self-created intermission certainly helps.
Chamberlain makes an amiable if overly reliant on dynamite Quatermain, though Stone is an irritatingly screeching heroine & Lom too much of an over the top caricature to provide much threat. J. Lee Thompson keeps it moving, Jerry Goldsmith contributes an enjoyably heroic score & there's enough of a sense of fun to paper over the weak spots.
'Andy' Avid film watcher - By: Mr. A. Smith, 15 Jun 2008 
I purchased this movie on the advice of the previous reviewer, what a mistake! Wooden acting, pathetic fight scenes, extremely poor & cheesy special effects. The only thing good about Sharon Stone was her figure, I haven't seen such poor acting for a long time. This film can in no way be compared to the 'Indiana Jones' films. Thoroughly un-recommended for those of us who like quality viewing.
A fun-loving RAIDERS clone with plenty of heart - By: Darren Harrison, 22 Mar 2005 
Vastly superior to its rather lackluster sequel ALLAN QUATERMAIN AND THER LOST CITY OF GOLD (which was actuallly filmed back-to-back with this production), this entertaining & fun loving tribute (or some might say rip-off) of the Indiana Jones movies benefits (unlike its follow-up) by the sure hand & capable direction of veteran J. Lee Thompson (of the original GUNS OF NAVARONE) & a suberp supporting cast that includes the always entertaining & eminently watchable John Rhys-Davies & Herbert Lom as the two main villains, a Turkish slaver & a World War I era German Colonel respectively.
Based very loosely on the classic H. Rider Haggard adventure novel of the same name, this movie features Richard Chamberlain as adventurer Allan Quaterman who is recruited by the sexy & gorgeous Jessie Huston (played by a pre-famous Sharon Stone) to rescue her father who has falllen into the villains hands in attempt to locate the fabled King Solomon's mines.
What follows is a fast paced, fun & thoroughly entertaining adventure with some eye popping stunts & some truly cheesy special effects.
No matter though, this movie promises high adventure & entertaining escapism. Movie fans will have fun spotting references to other movies of the 1980s from the Indiana Jones adventures to 1983s FOOTLOOSE & that movies game of unintentional chicken.
I was one of the (evidently) few who actuallly made it to see this movie in the theaters on its release in 1985 & one who instantly picked it up on VHS. Of course when the DVD was released in February of this year I was there to instantly pick it up. Still fun after almost 20 years this DVD comes well recommended.
