The Thief of Bagdad (1940)

My Review

The vastly entertaining “The Thief of Bagdad” still holds audience’s attention today. This Arabian fantasy story filmed in Technicolor won Academy Awards for Special Effects, Art Direction, and Cinematography (George Perinal). It was the first movie to employ use of the bluescreen, where actors are filmed in front of a solid blue background, with the blue later removed and replaced by a different background. It was developed by special effects artist Lawrence W. Butler.

It took three directors (Michael Powell, Ludwig Berger, Tim Whelan) to film this story of a young street thief who gets involved with a prince cheated of his throne. A genie promises to helps to get everything back on track, they hope. The screenplay by Lajos Biro and Miles Malleson was a remake of the 1924 silent picture starring Douglas Fairbanks.

The star of the show is Sabu Dastagir as Abu, Conrad Veidt as Jaffar, June Duprez as the Princess, John Justin as Ahmed, Rex Ingram as Djinn, Mary Morris as the Silver Maid, and Glynis Johns as a maid of the princess. “The Thief of Bagdad” was a major box office sensation for producer Alexander Korda, London Films, and United Artists. It was filmed in England, Wales, and at the Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona.