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The Golden Voyage of SinbadRating:
Release Date: 01 July, 2003 Retail Price: $19.94 OUR Price: $17.99 You SAVE: $1.95! Cast: Complete Cast (8 total) |
The Golden Voyage of Sinbad Reviews
Vintage Harryhausen
I vividly remember seeing The Golden Voyage of Sinbad as a child one Christmas and it both terrified and thrilled me. Years later, it still sticks in my mind. The film kicks off with Sinbad (John Philip Law) setting sail for an uncharted island with a beautiful slave girl (Caroline Munro) and his motley crew. Along the way, he meets up with a mysterious vizier and does battle with the evil sorcerer Koura (Tom Baker who would later go on to play Doctor Who) who is on a quest to find the fabled Fountain of Destiny.
As with any Harryhausen vehicle, though, the monsters steal the show. Exciting as the final battle between a centaur and griffin is, the one you'll always remember is the six-armed sword-wielding goddess Kali. That scene alone is worth the price. The film has dated amazingly well and is a fitting testament to Harryhausen's genius. All in all, a classic and terrific fun for all the family.
Dance! Dance for me!
Golden Voyage of Sinbad places second in a trio of master FX pioneer Ray Harryhausen movies starring Sinbad - the dashing Arabian folk hero whose exploits involved sailing the seas in search of adventure. Throughout this well produced fantasy, whose low budget can't be felt anywhere, Harryhausen's creatures fly, dance and gallop to life with a smooth fantastical grace which showcases some of his very best work. However, the highlight of the film has to be Kali, the six-armed sword wielding statue Goddess.
Harryhausen's final creation is a true wonder to behold. With a mysterious, inscrutable visage that would make Mona Lisa proud framed by an impressive headdress which adds to the height and impact, this Kali looks authentic to it's cultural roots, while slickly imparting the dramatic heft and fantastical aura necessary to forge an unforgettable cinematic presence. Harryhausen's attention to detail is legendary and everything from the decorative designs on the headdress to the creepy skull belt to her six bracelets boasts detailing. Finally, Kali controlled by the movie's villain starts to dance. As a startled primitive tribe looks on, their enormous effigy starts to move - slowly at first - spookily creaking all the while. What follows is some of the most surreal and wildly hypnotic movements ever seen on film, set to traditional Hindu music which is both lively, mysterious and infectious in encouraging dance. Harryhausen hired one of the most popular Indian music composers at that time to create the dance music and it adds much to the scene. The dance moves are classical and their subtlety in achieving just the right feel is tremendously realized.
Kali's bobbing head movements alone are worth the time to view the scene - which only clocks in at about 2 minutes 10 seconds. Harryhausen's incomparable touch which bestows upon the puppet truly lifelike movements along with that non-committal facial expression achieve a singularly brilliant illusion of life. We know it's only optical illusion, but then the entire concept behind film is one big optical illusion, however the Kali dance sequence due in large part to Harryhausen's brilliant facial sculpt, design and exacting dance execution excites one on a level few others approach.
Inevitably, the creatures of Harryhausen, as in any action fantasy film, must fight. And this is noteworthy to emphasize; Harryhausen always called his creations exactly that - creatures - not monsters or demons or things - they're creatures who may be from another world, or sent by the Gods or in this case courtesy of a magician's mystical potion. Harryhausen left the moralizing up to the audience, while he focused on their actions. Here of course Kali fights Sinbad and his sailors. Alhough it's one mystical creature against a group, Sinbad's men may indeed be outnumbered, for Kali has six limbs and wields a deadly sword skillfully with each one.
Kali isn't the last of the fantastic creatures for Sinbad and crew to deal with, she's just arguably the coolest. This film showcases fantastic stop motion magic while providing a fun romp for the whole family. The DVD contains great extras including a wonderful documentary on Harryhausen narrated by Leonard Nimoy of Star Trek fame.
Today digital FX realized through computers can achieve much more complexity than Ray Harryhausen could alone in his small work shop. However there's something to be said about the artistry of producing something yourself, by hand and with a unique vision and in terms of that, the stop motion work here is some of the most artistic you'll ever see.
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