The Thief
of Bagdad (1924) (****)
review by Jon
Waterman
Bagdad has a relatively uncommon thief in their midst. He
knows all the tricks of the trade as well as some that he invents
on the fly. He makes a living by taking from other people,
but it’s still not enough for the adventurous side of
him. So, he decides to infiltrate the King’s palace and
go looting. Once inside, his eye catches the beauty of the
princess and he forgets all about his purpose. Now, his sole
reason for being is to steal her heart. After all, his motto
is “What I want, I take.” In order to do that,
he must con her into thinking he is a prince and then win a
contest that brings her back the rarest treasure in the world.
Action star Douglas Fairbanks (“The Mark of Zorro,” “The
Three Musketeers,” “Robin Hood”) stars in
this incredible tale of fantasy, love and adventure. There
are others in the cast, but Fairbanks completely steals the
show and the spotlight from them all. His stunts and acrobatics
bring to mind a live action cartoon. Far from campy, his exaggerated
movements are purposefully funny. His sweeping arm gestures
and uncomfortable poses give the movie an extremely animated
and fun feel. It’s not overacting – it’s
flashy. He probably didn’t have to grip his genitals
so much or make the undercarriage tickling motion, but still
his good time transfers over to us.
The atmosphere is complimented nicely by the incredible, expressionistic
sets. The tall set pieces contain warped staircases, oddly
shaped walls and structures and larger than life everything.
They might not be incredibly detailed, but the sheer size of
them is overwhelming enough. Despite those visual points of
interest (or perhaps because of them), the film watches like
a novel or a short story collection. There are clear chapters
of separation and where you start won’t be anywhere close
to where you’ll end up at the end. The tone shifts several
times, yet the film never loses its interesting style or flare.
The movie is a great example of movies making the impossible
possible. From the opening shot with the words “Happiness
must be earned” beautifully written in the stars to the
extravagant sets and magic ropes to the obviously fake, yet
completely stunning (and probably unprecedented) underwater
scene, we are immersed in a world full of fantasy and excitement.
The only drawback this movie has is that modern audiences that
are used to watching talking pictures won’t be as inclined
to give a two and a half hour silent film a try. But the movie
is still fun and completely worth your while.
respond to jon@filmbrats.com
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