Unlike Herzog’s previous protagonists who were driven by "delusions of grandeur," da Silva is portrayed as a "wrath of man"—a simple, amoral creature reacting to forces beyond his control.
The film takes a cynical, "one-dimensional" look at colonialism, suggesting that all participants in the slave trade were complicit and equally "mad".
Da Silva eventually aligns with the king's rebellious brother, training a legendary 1,000-strong army of topless female Amazon warriors to overthrow the mad ruler.
The film won several Bavarian Film Awards in 1988, including Best Production for Herzog and Lucki Stipetic.