All Movie Guide

The credited line-up of six directors-Ludwig Berger, Michael Powell, Tim Whelan, Zoltan Korda, William Cameron Menzies and Alexander Korda-should be indication enough that the 1940 {|The Thief of Baghdad|} is no ordinary sword and sandal romp. This Technicolor Arabian Nights extravaganza is widely regarded as one of the best (if not the best) fantasy films of the pre-computer technology era. The title character, named Abu (and engagingly played by Sabu), befriends a ragged young man named Ahmed (John Justin), who happens to be the rightful prince of Baghdad. The prince has been usurped by his evil vizier Jaffar (Conrad Veidt), who hopes to expand his power by marrying the breathtakingly lovely princess of Basra (June Duprez). To win the princess' hand, Jaffar keeps the childlike King (Miles Malleson, who cowrote the screenplay with Lajos Biro) preoccupied with mechanical toys, such as a winged horse and a six-armed dancer, which disposes of the King after he tells his daughter she needn't marry Jaffar. The prince and Abu try to stop Jaffar, only to be thwarted by the vizier's magical powers: the prince is struck blind, while Abu is transformed into a dog. It wouldn't do for the bad guy to win this early in the game, thus Abu, returned to human form, finds himself on a deserted beach. Stumbling across an odd-looking bottle, Abu inadvertently releases the bottle's occupant: a gigantic, bombastic genie (Rex Ingram). The genie intends to crush Abu to death, but the wily thief tricks him back into the bottle. In exchange for his freedom, the genie agrees to grant Abu three wishes....and at this point, the film really begins to percolate, what with that "All Seeing Eye" gem, golden arrow and magic carpet added to the formula. If elements of The Thief of Baghdad sound familiar, it is because the film was used as the model for the 1992 Disney animated feature Aladdin. Even allowing for the much-improved technical wherewithal at Disney's disposal, nothing has dimmed the lustre of the multi-Oscar-winning The Thief of Baghdad, the sort of film that invariably elicits the reaction "They just don't make 'em like that any more!" Hal Erickson

All Movie Guide

In ancient Bagdad, the young prince Ahmad (John Justin) is betrayed, deposed, and imprisoned by his vizier Jaffar (Conrad Veidt), an evil and calculating man who is also a master of the Black Arts. But Ahmad is saved from prison, and certain execution, by Abu (Sabu), a young thief who has made his way in life by stealing whatever he needs. Together they escape from Bagdad and make their way to the port city of Basra, where they hope to sign to sail with the renowned sailor Sinbad. But Ahmad chances to catch a glimpse of the daughter (June Duprez) of the Sultan (Miles Malleson, who also co-wrote the screenplay), and falls hopelessly in love with her. Sneaking into the garden where she spends most of her days, she meets him and the two are bound together forever in that moment, he the first man she has ever seen, and she the most beautiful woman he has ever beheld. But no sooner have they declared their love for each other then Jaffar arrives in Basra, seeking the princess' hand in marriage -- and to secure the blessing of her father, a fanatical collector of toys, he offers the aging Sultan a fantastic mechanical flying horse that bears him into the clouds at will. The sultan agrees to the marriage, but the princess flees the city. Abu and Ahmad are captured and before either can tell the sultan of their plight, Jaffar works his magic, leaving Ahmad blind and transforming Abu into a dog -- conditions that will remain until he holds the princess in his arms.

Everything in the movie up to this point has been told in flashback, by Ahmad, as he is lured to the palace of his enemy. Jaffar has captured the princess, but she has fallen into a deep sleep that will not end -- so his doctors assure him -- until she is reunited with Ahmad. He achieves this goal, and the princess awakens, only to be parted from Ahmad again by Jaffar, who sails for Basra with her as his prisoner. But she won't love him, and the kind of love he wants from her can only be given by her, not taken by him. When Ahmad and Abu -- now restored by Jaffar's regaining the princess -- try to follow him, he calls up a storm that sweeps them from the sea. Abu finds himself on a beach alone, and while searching for Ahmad he finds a strange bottle, which he opens, and out comes a real genie (Rex Ingram), hundreds of feet tall. The genie means to kill him, but Abu outwits the genie and secures from him three wishes. Abu must find Ahmad, but to do that he must go to the Palace of the Goddess of Night, half a world away, and steal the All-Seeing Eye. Abu does this, getting past guards, both human and monstrous, and from there it is on to Ahmad. But a misunderstanding between them leaves the two friends separated, Ahmad captured by Jaffar and sentenced -- along with the princess, who will not love Jaffar -- to death. Meanwhile, Abu is stranded countless miles away. And then one desperate act by the boy suddenly sends Abu into a magical, golden kingdom, the Land of Legend, where he is greeted as their new king. The old king (Morton Selten) shows him the symbols of his rule, which include magical arrows forged to destroy injustice. Abu still must save his friend, and to do it commits one last act of theft -- but can he arrive in time? Bruce Eder

Product Details

• UPC: 715515029926
• Source: CRITERION
• Region Code: 1
• Aspect Ratio: Pre-1954 Standard (1.33.1)
• Sound: Dolby Digital Stereo
• Language: English
• Time: 1:46:00
• Sales Rank: 7,607

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