Thief of Baghdad (1960)

Thief of Baghdad (1960)

Il Ladro di Bagdad, the original title, is another movie in the Steve Reeves cv. Although Steve Reeves does not have many movies under his name, his impact in the peplum or sword and sandal movies will be forever remembered. Before going to Italy, Steve Reeves had two other movies under his belt: Jailbait and Athena. There was nothing too impressive about them, but then luck looked Steve in the face and, in 1959, Joseph Losey took him under his wing and flew him to Italy where destiny awaited him.

Hercules - also known as Le Fatiche di Ercole was the first of a chain of movies about the mythological character, Hercules. It was an instant success. For me it was a milestone. It was the first movie I watched unaccompanied by my parents. I was only 8 years old, but that movie remained vividly imprinted in my mind.

After having seen this movie, every movie in which Steve Reeves took part was an instant favourite with me. I've seen them all, and still treasure them lovingly in my memory. Of course I have them all in my collection, except Sandokan, La Tigra di Mompracem. Steve Reeves' last move was a western named Long Journey from Hell. He quit the movies because of an injury to his shoulder, during the filming of Gli Ultimi Giorni di Pompeii (1959). He returned to the US and started breeding horses as a new passion. He died when he was 70 years old, of cancer.

The 1960 version of Thief of Baghdad is one of the many versions which have cropped up from time to time to entertain us, movie-goers, since cinema came into existence. Douglas Fairbanks, Sabu, Steve Reeves, Kabir Bedi ... all had their vision and added, albeit slightly, to the character from the Arabian Nights. All succeeded with varying success. Douglas Fairbanks' thief was a swashbuckler, Sabu's thief was an adventurer, Steve Reeves' was a romantic, and Kabir Bedi was back in Douglas Fairbanks' mould. But the most remembered, and deemed a success, was Alexander Korda's Thief of Baghdad with Jon Hall, Conradt Veidt and Sabu.

Il Ladro di Bagdad, to limit the confusion of all these movies, was an Italo-French production. It had some good special effects with a flying horse, invisibility, and multiple personalities. On the whole, although not on a grand scale, it was an excellent movie fit for the matinee slot - and there it succeeded. There were many viewings on TV, but it seems that this movie has now vanished into thin air. The last time I've seen it was about 3 years ago, on satellite TV.

The story is about a kind-hearted sort of eastern Robin Hood, robbing the rich to give to the poor. His victim-turned-rival, Arturo Domenici, appeared in many of the Steve Reeves films, one of them being Hercules. If I'm not mistaken Arturo Domenici always played the baddie - sort of the Italian Conradt Veidt - even in likeness.

The adventure, in this movie, is about a search for a blue rose for an Arabian princess, who is love-sick and dying. Only the blue rose can save her. Will our hero manage to get this fantastic flower? Steve Reeves has to pass through many adventures to finally rescue the princess. But at the end, as in all adventure movies of the time, goodness always wins over evil and the good guy gets his gal. Overall, a good movie to pass some time with the kid in us!

Hope you like this short article.  This was published a year ago on Cinemageddon!

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