The Sinbad Collection: Sinbad 3-Pack

Special Effects pioneer Ray Harryhausen brought us kids-at-heart three Sinbad movies during his long career as a stop motion animator. These movies are fantasies, based on the character from the Arabian Nights and his fantastic voyages.

Today, the CGI-influenced viewers may find the special effects hokey and dated, but they still appeal to the kid in me and the slightly jerky, unbelievable characters created by Harryhausen help add a dreamlike charm that CGI perfection seldom does.

The criticism that gets leveled at these Harryhausen movies most often takes two avenues: First, the stories tend to serve the special effects sequences rather than being a good story, and secondly, the actors usually are not from the top of the “A” list. Both of these criticisms are sometimes warranted, but not always. Not only that, the audience these are aimed at are not exactly Gone With the Wind types. These movies are fun and meant to be enjoyed for their own sake. Sure, everybody knows King Kong is fake, too, but they still love it.

The Sinbad Collection consists of all three Harryhausen films, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, The Golden Voyage of Sinbad, and Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger. The set is from Columbia and the three movies are special editions with significant extra content.

Each movie is presented in wide screen theatrical format and each separate disk has several featurettes and longer features on the career of Ray Harryhausen, the pioneer in stop motion photography who influenced countless filmmakers today like John Landis, Stephen Spielberg, and George Lucas.

The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958)

One of Ray Harryhausen’s very best movies, both in terms of story and acting. Kerwin Matthews is my favorite Sinbad with his charisma and ability to act convincingly with his stop motion opponents. Harryhausen mentions that Matthews was the best he ever worked with at acting against nothing, as that was what the actors were confronted with, doing their swashbuckling moves solo, in accordance with a pre-choreographed script, and having Harryhausen insert the villains into the frame months later in the studio. Kathryn Grant is the lovely princess and Torin Thatcher is the convincingly creepy evil magician villain. Bernard Herrmann contributed a lively, memorable score that really enhances the viewing experience.

Sinbad confronts a wide variety of opponents, including a Cyclops, baby and adult Rocs, a genie, an armed skeleton, a dragon, - and don’t forget the snake woman with her horrid blue face near the beginning!

The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1974)

This second Sinbad movie starts out like gangbusters with a strong story that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Unfortunately, about halfway into the picture the story begins to lose sight of its goals and begins to be a convenient bridge between the action sequences. Like all Sinbad movies, the plot concerns a race against evil - this time to find the pieces of a talisman that has been broken and scattered. The possessor of all will have absolute power. Ooo-oooh!

The acting was quite pedestrian, with John Phillip Law as a not-very-convincing swashbuckler in a role that badly needs one. Caroline Munro as the princess seemed chosen more for prurient appeal - she does have the goods - than any contribution to the storyline. The greatest character was, of course, the villain, brought to life by Dr. Who’s Tom Baker. There are several photographic sequences using his staring eyes that are really haunting.

Sinbad’s opponents include a gargoyle, a six-armed statue of the Indian goddess Kali, a centaur, a griffin, and a wooden figurehead that comes to life. Miklos Rozsa did the score which was quite appropriate to the visuals.


Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger (1977)

This is the last Sinbad story in the Ray Harryhausen Sinbad Trilogy. Sinbad, of course is the hero from the Arabian Nights; a sea captain of the storied seven voyages. This is the story of an eighth voyage - or is it a ninth?

Like all of these Sinbad movies, the story is a fantasy, like something you remember from a dream and don’t quite believe. The plot concerns a quest to restore the rightful king to his throne. Sinbad is played by Patrick Wayne (yep, the Duke’s son) and the lovely princess is a cute young Jane Seymour. Margaret Whiting easily steals the movie as the evil sorceress Zenobia. Patrick Trough ton (Dr. Who) plays a Greek philosopher that helps the quest.

Sinbad and his crew interact with a baboon, sword wielding ant men, a Troglodyte, a miniature Zenobia, a giant bee, a bull-headed self-moving bronze Minoton (combination of Minotaur and automaton, I would guess), and a saber tooth tiger.

There are lots of extra features on the three disks and perusal of all will make you a Ray Harryhausen expert. The jewel in the crown of the extra content is the following:

The Ray Harryhausen Chronicle is an hour-long tribute to Harryhausen’s long career, which started when he was a boy and saw King Kong. From that moment on he knew his calling. The film traces Harryhausen’s early fairy tale animations through his many full length movies and features frequent comments by Harryhausen’s lifelong friend sci-fi author Ray Bradbury. This is one of the best special features I’ve seen on a DVD, bar none.

I would unreservedly recommend The Sinbad Collection to those who like fantasy like the current Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter, and anybody else who likes to feel like a kid sometimes.

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Better than Watching TV
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 9 - 12