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The Thief of Bagdad

The Thief of Bagdad

  • Status: Released
  • 19-02-1940
  • Runtime: 107 min
  • Score: 7.1
  • Vote count: 270

When Prince Ahmad is blinded and cast out of Bagdad by the nefarious Jaffar, he joins forces with the scrappy thief Abu to win back his royal place, as well as the heart of a beautiful princess.

Conrad Veidt

Jaffar

Sabu

Abu

June Duprez

Princess

John Justin

Ahmad

Rex Ingram

Djinn

Miles Malleson

Sultan

Morton Selten

The Old King

Mary Morris

Halima

Bruce Winston

The Merchant

Hay Petrie

Astrologer

Adelaide Hall

Singer

Roy Emerton

Jailer

Allan Jeayes

The Story Teller

Joseph Cozier

Man Selling Fish (uncredited)

Toni Gable

Lady (uncredited)

Robert Greig

Man of Basra (uncredited)

Henry Hallett

Citizen (uncredited)

Miki Hood

Citizen (uncredited)

Glynis Johns

Princess's Maid (uncredited)

Alexander Laine

Urchin in Bagdad Market (uncredited)

Cleo Laine

Urchin in Bagdad Market (uncredited)

Sylvia Laine

Urchin in Bagdad Market (uncredited)

Leslie Phillips

Urchin in Bagdad Market (uncredited)

John Salew

Fish Peddler (uncredited)

Mark Stone

Masrur (uncredited)

Frank Tickle

Citizen (uncredited)

Ben Williams

Citizen (uncredited)

CinemaSerf

John Justin plays the hapless Sultan of Baghdad tricked from his throne by the evil (and superbly cast) Conrad Veidt. It's only by sheer luck that he encounters Sabu the gymnastic and clever thief in the palace dungeons and the two of them set off on a delightful series of adventures as he tries to regain his throne and to reclaim his love from the evil clutches of his former Vizier. This is a cracking fantasy adventure from Alexander Korda and wonderfully scored by Miklos Rosza that brings us Rex Ingram as the outrageously theatric genie in an enormous red nappy; Miles Malleson (who also contributed to the screenplay) as the eccentric Sultan of Basra with his fantastic palace of 1000 toys and Morton Selten in his last role as the "old King". The colours are bright and vivid; the story gentle and engaging with some comedic touches now and again too. The special effects are used sparingly, but where they are - they work well.