Rating: Summary: A Decent Harryhausen Flick Review: Before proceeding with the reading of this review, I have a message for those reading it: If you haven't seen "The 7th Voyage of Sinbad," go do that. Don't worry about this movie, just go buy that one right now. That is the best of the Sinbad movies (and, in my opinion, the best of the Harryhausen films, but I won't profess that above my own opinion.) It is worth owning regardless and you should own that before you even consider this installment.With that out of the way, I will now begin the review of THIS Sinbad film. This begins on a sunny day, when Sinbad's crew spots a little gargoyle monster flying over the ship, carrying a piece of gold. One man shoots the gold and Sinbad takes it, despite warnings of its evil, and wears it around his neck. That night, he has dreams of a woman with an eye on her hand, a man in dark clothing, the golden item, and the flying monster. There is also a storm that night, allegedly brought on by the bad luck of the gold. On shore the next day, Sinbad is confronted by Koura, an evil magician who owns the gargoyle creature and wants the gold piece back from Sinbad. The legendary sailor is chased into a keep, where he greets the golden-helmeted Vizier, whose face was burned by Koura's fire. He explains that the gold piece is one of the three that form a map to a place where they must be brought to recieve three powers. Koura listens in via one of the little monsters and hatches a plan to follow Sinbad and the Vizier to the island. Sinbad also picks up a lazy drunk and a slave girl who he sets free, who just happens to have an eye tatoo on her hand. I'll let it be known now: aside from the homonculi (the flying gargoyle things), there really aren't any stop-motion monsters for a good 30-40 minutes, when the statue at the front of Sinbad's ship is controlled by Koura. The plot holds your attention throughout this, but just barely, as due to the complexities apparent, like the Vizier's face and Koura's aging with each spell he casts. The acting is... it's ok. Nothing great, but not noticably bad. There are some very cheesy moments, mostly involving the above mentioned drunk whom Sinbad is paid to take on the ship as a sailor. The writing isn't all that great either, but it lasts enough for the stop-motion effects to take over. What I'm saying is, you won't be bored, but you'll be pretty near close. As for the monsters, they're up to Harryhausen's usual calibur. This movie's grandiose feature is the six-armed Kali statue. The fight between the statue and the sailors is very impressive, especially with how the arms are constantly moving and fluctuating with the movements of the swordsmen. There's still a good 30 minutes to go after that, which are mostly taken up in pursuit of a cycloptean centaur who takes the slave girl away into the caverns of Marabia to eat, as she has been sacrificed by the natives due to the single eye on her palm. The centaur is probably one of the few Harryhausen monsters (perhaps the only one) that I found mildly disturbing. It looks like it should have some form of speech, and it even sounds as though it could, but it makes the noise of monsters, as if it's a human shouting and screaming like an animal. It's a very creepy sound, and while Harryhausen wasn't responsible for it, he puts it to decent effect. The centaur battles a griffin later on. The Vizier notes it that the two beasts had been battling eternally, symbolizing the endless struggle between good and evil. They had fought before, and the only reaosn the result changed from the two walking away neither winner or loser was because of the interference of humans. This is a decent fim, but only worth buying if you are a Harryhausen fan. The DVD doesn't have many features compared to certain other Harryhausen DVDs (*cough*7thVoyage*cough*) but it's better than nothing, which is what many DVDs offer. The second best of the three Harryhausen Sinbad films.
Rating: Summary: Good Sunday Matinee Review: First let me say I own all of Harryhausen's movies. I love his work so if I seem a little critical on a couple it is only because I know how great he can be. This movie may not be Harryhausen's best stop motion animation, but it is still a fine film. The hair on the centaur seems to move a little odd and the motion in the Centaur and Griffon fight scene is not as natural looking as the skeleton fight scenes in "Jason and the Argonauts". Otherwise this movie is very well done and packed with creatures. I especially liked the job he did on the magicians familiars. It entertains and has good locations and a decent cast. Those fans of Tom Baker in Dr. Who will enjoy him as an evil magician. It is good Saturday afternoon fare for the entire family. I recommend it to anyone that enjoys movies like "The 7th Voyage of Sinbad", "Clash of the Titans", "Willow", and "Krull". I bought this on DVD in the Sinbad Collection set and I am very happy with how well the transfer to DVD was done.
Rating: Summary: Pretty Good Sinbad Review: I thought this Sinbad, had even better effects than The 7th Voyage of Sinbad. It had a great scene when The six armed Buda Statue fights Sinbad. The monsters were not giant, but they were realistic. The actor as Sinbad was okay. None of the Sinbad movies will never surpass The 7th voyage of Sinbad
Rating: Summary: Amazing follow-up to Sinbad! Review: I was so amazed at how good the effects were in this film. It's just as exciting as the 7th voyage, and a great plot. John Phillp Law was perfect for Sinbad. He had the adventurous attitude and the smart mind. This film had some really creepy moments in it also. One is prince Koura's eyes when they faded out his face, another was when he made the wooden figure head come to life, and then the dream sequence. What also brought out the film was Miklos Rozsa's rich score, and you can sense a hint of his Ben-Hur music in some scenes. This film is truly the last film in the Sinbad movies, and not the disappointment that was directed by Sam Wanamaker.
Rating: Summary: Amazing follow-up to Sinbad! Review: I was so amazed at how good the effects were in this film. It's just as exciting as the 7th voyage, and a great plot. John Phillp Law was perfect for Sinbad. He had the adventurous attitude and the smart mind. This film had some really creepy moments in it also. One is prince Koura's eyes when they faded out his face, another was when he made the wooden figure head come to life, and then the dream sequence. What also brought out the film was Miklos Rozsa's rich score, and you can sense a hint of his Ben-Hur music in some scenes. This film is truly the last film in the Sinbad movies, and not the disappointment that was directed by Sam Wanamaker.
Rating: Summary: A voyage worth the gold Review: In the follow up to the 7th Voyage, Ray Harryhausen again follows the mythic hero to fantastic locations that pit him against unimaginable creatures. The star of course is the dynamation process perfected by Harryhausen painstakingly by himself (until his film the Clash of the Titans, he refused to work with an assistant.) I won't forget the human cast. Tom Baker (of DR. WHO) is truly outstanding as the evil sorcerer pitted against Sinbad (John Philip Law from barbarella fame.) And I can't forget Caroline Munro as the beautiful damsel in distress. A good mix of humor and excitement make this a really fun film. If thats not enough the features on the DVD put this edition over the top. I really enjoyed the featurette on the Mysterious Island. Embark on the voyage.
Rating: Summary: Sinbad races for untol r-r-r-r-iches - light fun Review: John Philip Law and Caroline Munro team up as Sinbad and a beautiful slave girl to find the pieces of a mystical tablet in this Harryhausen flick. Against them is a dark sorceror named Koura (Tom Baker, right before he came the 4th Dr. Who.) who wants the tablet for'well, the tablet means incredible power for whoever finds it. Koura also wants the tablet to help seize a rich sultanate whose ruler has barely survived Koura's magic (and spends much of the film hiding his scars behind a golden mask). The tablet was split in three, and both Sinbad and Koura hunt the clues to find the remaining segments. Being evil, Koura is not above playing dirty, and he unleashes all sorts of stop-motion deviltry against our heroes. Not much in the plot makes sense ' Munro's character has a weird eye-tattoo which will become a liability later on in the script. A one-eyed centaur (or a half-horse cyclops) tries to carry Munro away only to be opposed by a griffin-looking creature thing. The griffin and cyclops appear to have been sharing the same stygian caves yet are only now engaged in a battle to the death. That alone, the spectacle rises above the thin plot (and the cheap 70's look that's light-years from the higher production values of 'Jason and the Argonauts). Harryhausen's stop-motion work is a mixed bag ' he never got the idea that stop-motion was okay for animating un-natural objects but unconvincing for living things. This film proves it by animating a shiva (or a kali, in either sense, a 6-armed idol) which dances and then proves no push-over with a sword (or swords in her case). The shiva was a masterpiece, as was an animated figurehead, but the same is not as true for the cyclops and its fight with the griffin. The real treat is the campy fun of hearing Law and Baker rattle off in an over-the-top pseudo middle eastern accent. When you keep them refer to the 'crown of untold r-r-r-r-riches', you just want to roll your eyes.
Rating: Summary: Great fun !!! Review: Looking for some good ol' escapist fantasy ? This one has it all: coherent plot, fine pacing, great productions values (Ray Harryhausen's Dynamation effects, Miklos Rozsa's musical score), more than passing acting - and, of course, Caroline Munro at her youthful best. Sure it's fluff; so what ? It's meant to entertain you for some two hours, no more, no less. And it does just that.
Rating: Summary: Not as Good as the 7th Voyage. Review: Second Sinbad movie in the Ray Harryhausen film series (although it is not a sequal to the much superior 7th Voyage), kind of drags on it's heels and never quite takes off largely due to a poor script, the wooden acting of Law in the title role, and the absense of Bernard Herrmann not scoreing the music. The absense of him as well as a different film crew working on the movie never acheives the magic and sense of wonder that made 7th Voyage a special picture.
Rating: Summary: The movie is hamperd by wooden acting and a bad script... Review: Sinbad embarks on another adventure of magic and monsters. In the pre-George Lucas/Steven Spielberg days, the greatest fantasy adventure films were the ones that featured the eye-popping special effects of Ray Harryhausen. This 1974 movie recalls the halcyon days of the late '50s and early '60s when Saturday matinees at the local movie theater ruled the entertainment world of pre-teens. Although this flick suffers in comparison with the superior "7th Voyage of Sinbad," there is enough to like about it to recommend viewing and ownership. The monsters are good, especially the centaur/cyclops that threatens the delectable Caroline Munro. The sword fight with the multi-limbed statue of the goddess Kali recall's RH's previous work in "Jason and the Argonauts" with the hydra-headed dragon and the army of skeletons. The animation and non-computerized FX are eye pleasing enough that one wishes for more screen time for the monsters. The plot occasionally gets in the way of the action. Once the FX kicks in, things get livelier. John Phillip Law is okay, if a little bland, as Sinbad. Caroline Munro in a slave girl costume distracts the male viewer from quibbling over minor faults along the way. Sometime Doctor Who, Tom Baker, is effective as Koura, the evil magician. This is good "G" rated entertainment that pleases Ray Harryhausen fans and pre-teens of all ages. Suspend disbelief and have fun. ;-)
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