The Thief of Bagdad (1924 film)
- Douglas Fairbanks: Thief of Bagdad
- Snitz Edwards: His friend
- Charles Belcher: The holy man
- Julanne Johnston: Princess
- Sojin: Mongol Prince
- Anna May Wong: Mongol slave
The Thief of Bagdad is an American silent film from 1924, the first film adaptation of a tale from 1001 nights.
Action
The idea came from Douglas Fairbanks, who was at that time at the height of his career. He was the first Hollywood actor who was in adventure films an international star of cinema. The film also helped Anna May Wong, who appeared in a supporting role, the artistic breakthrough and made them internationally known as the first American actress of Chinese descent.
The story, based on the novel by Achmed Abdullah, is a cliched classic love story, in which the thief Ahmed tries to win the heart of the beautiful princess. His opponent is the Mongol prince, played by Japanese actor Sojin. The " Thief of Bagdad " experienced in a fairytale world of exciting adventures. The film is a mixture of fantasy adventure with special effects such as the trip on the flying carpet and the stylistic means of Expressionist film. The work of William Cameron Menzies film production designer is one of the outstanding works of the silent film.
See also: The Thief of Baghdad - British sound film from the year 1940.
Reviews
- Lexicon of international film: Immensely resourceful and tricky stages. As a Hollywood fairy tale classics still worth seeing.
Awards
DVD Release
The film was released in 2005 on DVD in Germany in a restored version. Gaylon Carter played the music on an organ. In the bonus section reports the director of the film collection of the Cinémathèque française on the restoration work. Can also see the rogue of Baghdad, a short film.