The Thief of Bagdad (1940)
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The Thief of Bagdad Movie Review
The Thief of Bagdad is a 1940 Technicolor fantasy adventure film directed by Michael Powell and starring Sabu, Conrad Veidt and Rex Ingram. It’s a delightful flick.
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“Now out of my way, you masters of a thousand fleas.
Allah be with you, but I doubt it“
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After being tricked and cast out of Bagdad by the evil Jaffar, King Ahmad joins forces with a thief named Abu to reclaim his throne, the city, and the Princess he loves. This movie should be compared to the original 1924 version and Disney’s ‘Aladdin’ as both are important to talk about in this context. The former is still my favorite version, but this remake is a talkie and color version, and more VFX-driven and different in plot, so of course I was all for it. They are just different enough that they both work splendidly as separate pieces of entertainment.
As for the latter movie, it obviously influenced Disney as they heavily borrowed from it, especially as it regards the villain, the genie and the numerous fantastical elements. This film, thus, proved to be extremely influential on all the future versions of the takes on One Hundred and One Nights, so it needs to be highly respected.
I loved the plot. This is a movie that clearly cares about its storytelling, which is impressive for such a VFX-driven feature, but the effects complement the story and not the other way around thankfully. The intrigue is there, the fantastical elements are jaw-dropping and the film also works as a spirited adventure feature that is undoubtedly going to make you excited to see every single new location, and all are beautifully realized.
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The historical details are solid for the time period. The movie is actually rather diverse in terms of its casting, especially for the time, so it needs to be admired in that regard. The protagonist is played by an Indian actor while the genie is played by a black actor, preceding Disney’s Will Smith for almost a century. The film obviously chose to be a full fantasy, but the palaces and all the immediate period piece details looked splendid as well.
Conrad Veidt is a famous German actor, most iconic for many silent roles. I have somewhat recently seen him in the gay masterpiece ‘Different from the Others’. He was very expressive, so he was perfect for the silent era, but in the talkies, he is a bit too theatrical. Still though, the role of the villain here was perfectly suited for an over-the-top performance, and he is suitably quite eerie. I loved everything about this character and his manipulations, but how he perished felt very anticlimactic to me.
Sabu is so wonderful as Abu. He is very likable and even endearing in the role that was well written and memorable. John Justin is the weakest link as his acting is way too stagy and annoying while his characterization was only okay. June Duprez as the Princess is also forgettable and their romance never felt particularly interesting, which was unfortunate. But Rex Ingram as Djinn was just incredible. Yes, he was also over-the-top, but it fits this role to be as loud as possible and his charisma is undeniable.
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The Thief of Bagdad has astonishing production design with gorgeous sets, incredibly beautiful costumes and wonderful attention to detail. The direction is also pretty good while the score is just super cool and epic. The whole film is epic and a big part of its appeal is the use of blue screen effects, truly groundbreaking for the time. Almost the whole movie is a big VFX-fest and it all looks amazing for its time. But simply discovering so many creatures, lands and different obstacles felt like a true quest that was delightful to follow.
