Barnes & Noble

Based on a real-life case covered by Life magazine, End of the Spear recounts the events surrounding the brutal slayings of several Christian U.S. missionaries at the hands of a violent Ecuadorian tribe in the 1950s. The Americans, led by Nate Saint (Chad Allen), have established contact with the Auca, whose violent culture has led them to the brink of extinction. Resisting their efforts, Mincayani (Louie Leonardo) persuades his fellow tribesmen that the foreigners have abducted and eaten a member of the tribe, Dayumae (Christina Souza), and he incites them to kill the interlopers. But Dayumae, who has in fact run away from the Auca, returns, bringing along three Americans who survived the slaughter. The story's intriguing hook is that the missionaries are eventually joined by their slain colleagues' surviving family members, who come from America to live among the Auca, striving to impart the principles of peace and forgiveness. Director Jim Hanon, who also co-wrote the script, occasionally loses his way: The story's point of view too often shifts from the Auca to the Americans. There's also a somewhat intrusive voice-over narration -- by Allen, in the guise of Saint's son Steve, whose ultimate embrace of his father's killers brings closure at the film's climax. Still, the basic plot compels viewer attention throughout, and Hanon's limning of the Aucas' lifestyle is nothing less than fascinating. Ed Hulse

All Movie Guide

An indigenous people are turned from a life of violence to a more gentle and forgiving nature in this adventure drama based on a true story. Nate Saint (Chad Allen) is a pilot and Christian missionary who, with his family, lives and works in the jungles of South America near the Amazon. Nate is fascinated by tales he's heard of the Waodani, a violent and aggressive tribe living nearby, and with a group of fellow Christians takes it upon himself to teach them the importance of compassion and forgiveness. However, the leader of the Waodanis, Mincayani (Louie Leonardo), does not trust the white visitors, and believes they may have had something to do with the disappearance of a young girl from his tribe years ago. A meeting between Nate and Mincayani goes terribly wrong thanks to Nate's inability to understand the Waodani language, and Nate and four of his fellow missionaries are savagely murdered by the tribesmen. However, in the final moments of his life, Nate is able to impart a message in Mincayani that bears fruit years later when Steve Saint, Nate's son (also played by Allen) returns to continue the work his father started. End of the Spear was adapted from the true story of Nate Saint and Steve Saint, which was previously brought to the screen in the documentary Beyond the Gates of Splendor. Mark Deming

Product Details

• UPC: 024543245704
• Source: 20TH CENTURY FOX
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: Pan & Scan, Wide Screen
• Sound: Dolby AC-3 Surround Sound
• Editions: Subtitled, Dubbed
• Time: 1:51:00
• Sales Rank: 9,605

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