Il viaggio fantastico di Sinbad

Made 14 years after The 7th Voyage Of Sinbad, this follow up is ,unsurprisingly, not as good, but that WAS a ground breaking classic. Perhaps sensing that they could not top the first film, the filmmakers give this movie a slightly different feel. If 7th Voyage was full of colour and size, Golden Voyage is somewhat darker and less spectacular. Most of the action occurs at night or in caves, while none of the creatures are especially large. This makes Golden Voyage slightly less of a delightful romp, but it's certainly not just a rehash. There is a strong sense of the uncanny to some scenes,such as the villain's resurrection of the tiny humunculus, or the coming to life of the ship's figurehead.

The pace is possibly a little two leisurely, but the action is still terrific, the showstopper being Sinbad and his men battling the 6 armed statue of the Indian goddess Kali, a masterpiece of effects and editing. Tom Baker is the most sinister of all Harryhausen's villains, and Miklos Rozsa's wonderfully rich and grand score never fails to provide excellent backing. It's very different from Bernard Herrmann's classic Harryhausen scores, but as effective.

Despite their flaws, there is a wonderful innocence to these Harryhausen films. A modern version would be filled to the brim with CGI, hyperactive editing, 'clever' laughs that show that no one is bothering to take any of this seriously ,etc....... Is that really an improvement?

'Golden Voyage' is much better than the later 'Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger' and equal to the earlier 'Seventh Voyage of Sinbad'.

The Harryhausen creatures are impressive. Stop motion animation does give solidity to the image, more so than the usual CGI effect. There are some fine ones here including a one eyed centaur, a homunculus, a griffin, a six armed statue, a ship's wooden figurehead. The story is standard but the effects, the locations and the plot weave together well. There is also a dry humour in the dialogue which is entertaining. Scenes like the sword fight with the six armed statute (with six swords!) or the final confrontation at the fountain of wisdom (or something like that) are exciting. The great Miklos Rosza's music adds considerably to the atmosphere.

John Philip Law is OK as Sinbad and does attempt an Arabian accent unlike the usual English one, but the role isn't Shakespearean and he does well enough. Caroline Munro looks splendid in her costume, low cut almost everywhere. The rest of the cast support well.

Tom Baker is excellent as the villain Koura. He makes him sympathetic; what drives him is common to all people. He just uses different means to gain his ends. He dominates the scenes he is in and it is a pity that more big screen roles never came his way. He was the best 'Doctor Who' in the BBC series, in my opinion of course.

A good fantasy romp to appeal to the adventurer in all of us. Did I mention Caroline Munro's costume? Oh, I did.

Ah, yes; Ray Harryhausen and Sinbad. This is my favorite of the Sinbad films. Yes John Phillip Law is not an a-list actor; but, for once, he's not bad. Tom Baker is outstanding as the evil wizard. Carolie Munro is the breast, er, best sight in the film.

Harryhausen really captures the atmosphere of the Arabian Nights. There is adventure, mystery, terror, love, comedy, and some pretty good sword fights. I'll put the six-armed Kali up against the skeleton from the Seventh Voyage of Sinbad any day. And Tom Baker's wizard is far more evil.

Look, forget about CGI and enter the world of Dynamation! You'll have a good time. Now, where's that scene where Caroline Munro.........

Contrary to a previous viewer's opinion, The Golden Voyage of Sinbad is a wonderful, exciting film. The plot is a bit complex as a malevolent sorcerer races with Sinbad against time to secure a missing piece of an amulet that will insure the holder of powers beyond imagination. John Phillip Law is a pretty decent Sinbad, and the rest of the cast is quite adequate with Caroline Munro busting out of her outfit as both a figurative and literal standout and Tom Baker is very good as the evil magician. The real star once again, however, is Ray Harryhausen. His stop-motion creations are all very good. This time round we get a gargoyle-like homonculus, a wooden siren, a griffin, a centaur, and the image of six-armed Kali. The action sequences are riveting and the pace of the film is nice and brisk. Very entertaining!

How can you not love this film .. it's difficult to imagine that anyone could pan the astounding performance of John Phillip Law as Sinbad ..

His turn as the beloved Arabic pirate is more adventureous than the boring and cardboard studio fave, Kerwin Matthews and far better than the bland and horrific Patrick Wayne ..

The special FX of Ray Harryhausen are his best to date ..

The plot is solid and the talent pull this tale off without a hitch or glint of camp which is generally the norm in a cult film such as this..

This is Saturday afternoon television at its best ...

Onward and upward with John Phillip Law all the way ..