- Description
On the land of what is now California, the legendary hero Zorro once fought against the injustice of Spanish colonial rulers. The man with a black mask over his eyes and a champion of the poor was really the noble and wealthy Don Diego de la Vega (Anthony Hopkins). Unfortunately, the royal governor Don Rafael Montero (Stuart Wilson) discovered Zorro’s identity shortly before the fall of the oppressive Spanish rule. In a dramatic encounter, de la Vega’s beloved wife dies tragically, and the cruel Montero takes away his young daughter Elena. The honourable Don Diego de la Vega, also admired and beloved as Zorro, disappears into a dark prison cell for twenty long years.
Twenty years pass. Don Montero returns to California. He intends to establish an independent republic there and—most importantly—to plunder the newly discovered gold mines. Fueled by vengeance, de la Vega escapes from prison and takes under his wing a street‑thief, Alejandro Murieta (Antonio Banderas), who had saved his life as a boy some twenty years before and now drowns his grief over his brother’s loss in alcohol. De la Vega and Murieta, the past and future Zorro, are united not only by compassion for the poor but also by hatred for their common enemy—the deed of Alejandro’s brother, killed by one of Montero’s henchmen. But before they can taste sweet revenge and save the hardworking people of California from Montero’s treachery, they must face many harsh trials. Young Alejandro must learn both combat and manners, and de la Vega must come to terms once more with the loss of his daughter, who arrives in California with Montero and believes him to be her father...
