Event 4
The Thief of Bagdad (U)
Presented by 3rd Festival of British Cinema
– Community Centre, Hay
If one word can sum up this wonderful fantasy, Arabian Nights adventure, then that word is Magical!
Prince Ahmad is the rightful King of Bagdad but he has been blinded and cast out as a beggar. Now a captive of the wicked Grand Vizier Jaffar he is thrown into a dungeon where he meets Abu, the best thief in all Bagdad. Together they escape and set about a series of adventures that involve an enormous genie in a bottle, a mechanical flying horse, a giant statue with an all-seeing magic eye, a very big spider and a flying carpet and a beautiful princess.
Modern digital effects have made anything possible of course but the magical storytelling, sumptuous art direction and wonderful casting combine to gloss over the seventy years old visual effects and make the whole thing a breathtaking cinematic experience.
There will be an ice cream break during this screening!
Directors: Ludwig Berger, Michael Powell.
UK 1940. 106 minutes (plus interval).
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