''Captain Sindbad'' is a 1963 independently made fantasy and adventure film, produced by Frank King and Herman King, directed by

Byron Haskin Byron Conrad Haskin (April 22, 1899 – April 16, 1984) was an American film and television director, special effects creator and cinematographer. He is best known for directing '' The War of the Worlds'' (1953), one of many films where he ...

, that stars Guy Williams and Heidi Brühl. The film was shot at the

Bavaria Film Bavaria Film GmbH is a German film production and distribution company located in Grünwald, Bavaria at the district of Munich. It is one of Europe's largest film production companies and one of the leading production and distribution companies ...

studios in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

and was distributed by

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

. The screenplay was rewritten by Guy Endore, then rewritten again by co-producer Frank King a week before filming began in order to reduce production expenses; the film was reedited again prior to release. Haskin also shot some of the film's special effects sequences for an

MGM Television Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television, formerly known as MGM/UA Television, is the television studio arm of the American film studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), specializing in broadcast syndication and the production and distribution of television sh ...

television pilot, but no network picked it up.

Plot

The peaceful kingdom of Baristan is ruled by the evil El Kerim. He plans to capture his rival, Sindbad, who will soon return from a voyage to marry Princess Jana. The Princess convinces the magician Galgo to turn her into a Firebird, so that she may fly off to warn Sindbad of the trap set for him. She is able to do so, just as Galgo is discovered by the guards, who take him to El Kerim. As Sindbad and his crew sail towards Baristan, the Princess/Firebird lands aboard their ship. Before she can deliver the message, however, El Kerim has his guards transformed into giant human falcons, which manage to sink Sindbad's ship using large rocks. Sindbad and some of his crew survive the attack and carefully make their way ashore. Galgo stretches out his arm over a long distance in order to steal El Kerim's

magic ring A magic ring is a mythical, folkloric or fictional piece of jewelry, usually a Ring (jewellery), finger ring, that is purported to have Magic (supernatural), supernatural properties or powers. It appears frequently in fantasy and fairy tales. M ...

. El Kerim, however, wakes up in time and burns Galgo's hand using a nearby oil lamp. Sindbad, posing as a petty thief so he can arrested, is taken before the evil ruler as planned. El Kerim is not fooled by the pretense and orders him to be executed. Sindbad breaks free and stabs him directly in the heart with a sword, but El Kerim cannot be killed, protected by one of Galgo's magic spells. He orders Sindbad be put to death in the public arena the next day. Sindbad must now do battle with a giant

invisible Invisibility is the state of an object that cannot be seen. An object in this state is said to be ''invisible'' (literally, "not visible"). The phenomenon is studied by physics and perceptual psychology. Since objects can be seen by light fr ...

creature. Fortunately, it knocks over two large braizzers in its pursuit, starting a large fire. This incites a mass exodus of the arena's large crowd, allowing Sindbad to escape during the confusion that follows. Sindbad goes to Galgo and finally convinces the magician to reveal El Kerim's secret: The evil ruler had his vulnerable heart removed, and it is now kept safe in a distant tower, guarded by supernatural forces. In the meantime, El Kerim insists that the Princess marry him, but when she finally refuses, he orders her to be executed at dawn. Sindbad and his men must traverse a swamp of horror in order to reach the tower containing the evil heart. They encounter carnivorous hanging vines, gigantic crocodiles, fiery volcanic lava pits, and boiling whirlpools. With their numbers reduced, they finally arrive at the tower, where they face a huge dragon-like creature with nine heads which they dispatch with a giant rock in order to enter. Sindbad, with the aid of a hook, begins climbing the tower's immense rope, which rings a huge warning gong, alerting El Kerim. When he reaches the top, Sindbad discovers the still beating heart is encased in crystal. It is protected by a giant gloved hand, which pursues Sindbad around the chamber, until he throws the hook at the crystal, dislodging the heart. This causes El Kerim to suffer a heart attack. Seeking to protect his vulnerable heart, El Kerim rapidly flies to the tower with Galgo in a winged chariot. Just as Sindbad is about to impale the evil heart, El Kerim arrives. A fierce sword duel between them begins. Galgo tosses the heart over the side of the tower and it explodes upon hitting the ground. El Kerim stumbles and dies, and his body falls over the tall tower's edge. Later, amid much pomp and circumstance, the entire kingdom celebrates the marriage of Captain Sindbad and Princess Jana.

Cast

* Guy Williams as Captain Sindbad * Heidi Brühl as Princess Jana * Pedro Armendáriz as El Kerim *

Abraham Sofaer Abraham Isaac Sofaer (1 October 1896 – 21 January 1988) was a Burmese-born British actor who began his career on stage and became a familiar supporting player in film and on television in his later years. Life and career Sofaer was born in R ...

as Galgo *

Bernie Hamilton Bernard Hamilton (June 12, 1928 – December 30, 2008) was an American actor. He is best known as Captain Dobey in ''Starsky & Hutch'' (1975–1979). Biography Hamilton was born in East Los Angeles; his brother was jazz drummer Chico Hamilto ...

as Quinius * Helmuth Schneider as Bendar * Margaret Jahnen as Lady-in-Waiting *

Rolf Wanka Rolf Wanka (14 February 1901 – 30 November 1982) was an Austrian actor. Biography He was of Czech, German and French origin. His father was Dr. Josef Wanka was head physician in Vienna. His mother was Emma Pippich. His family owned a mans ...

as The King * Walter Barnes as Rolf *

James Dobson James Clayton Dobson Jr. (born April 21, 1936) is an American evangelicalism, evangelical Christian author, psychologist, and founder of Focus on the Family (FotF), which he led from 1977 until 2010. In the 1980s, he was ranked as one of the m ...

as Iffritch *

Maurice Marsac Maurice Marsac (23 March 1915 – 6 May 2007) was a French actor who had a long career, with over 150 appearances in American films and television. He was also a nationally ranked croquet player. Career Born in La Croix-Valmer, France, he wa ...

as Ahmed * Henry Brandon as Colonel Kabar * John Crawford as Aram *

Geoffrey Toone Geoffrey Toone (15 November 1910 – 1 June 2005) was an English actor and former matinee idol. He was born in Ireland to English parents. Most of his film roles after the 1930s were in supporting parts, usually as authority figures, though he ...

as Mohar * Lawrence Montaigne as Jafar

Production

The film was shot at the

Bavaria Studios Bavaria Studios are film production studios located in Munich, the capital of the region of Bavaria in Germany, and a subsidiary of Bavaria Film. History The studios were constructed in the suburb of Geiselgasteig in 1919 shortly after the Firs ...

in Munich with sets designed by the art directors Isabella Schlichting and

Werner Schlichting Werner Schlichting (1904–1996) was a German art director who worked on over a hundred films during a lengthy career. He worked on a number of Austrian films including '' The Congress Dances'' and '' The Last Ten Days'' (1955).Fritsche p.253 Sel ...

. Outtakes of the film's "Dragon-Ogre" were used briefly in the film ''

Natural Born Killers ''Natural Born Killers'' is a 1994 American romantic crime action film directed by Oliver Stone and starring Woody Harrelson, Juliette Lewis, Robert Downey Jr., Tommy Lee Jones, and Tom Sizemore. The film tells the story of two victims ...

''.

Reception

''New York Times'' review, July 4, 1963

Until about the last 20 minutes, it's strictly a broad mishmash of fantasy-comedy, spilling out over some lavishly gaudy sets of Old Arabia. As for plot, there's sinewy Sindbad (Guy Williams) trying to rescue a dead pan princess (Heidi Bruhl) from a wicked ruler (Pedro Armendariz), aided by a tippling, belching old magician. Throw in a tired "Scheherazade"-type of score, as Mr. Williams braves anything from crocodiles to a 12-headed monster (our count, anyway), and you have the kind of harmless trash some kids may tolerate. Yesterday, a cute little blonde in front of us took it all in stride, monsters included. She also perked up, leaning forward, for that final reel, when the picture slips from mediocrity into a wildly funny, eerie and casually beguiling adventure, not hard to take. One set, a garishly tangled swamp, is nifty; so is the final one, for a palace skirmish. The King Brothers produced it, in Munich, of all places. M.G.M. sponsors.

Comic book adaptation

* Gold Key: ''Captain Sindbad'' (September 1963)

References

External links

* {{Byron Haskin 1963 films 1960s fantasy adventure films American fantasy adventure films West German films English-language German films Films directed by Byron Haskin 1960s children's fantasy films German fantasy adventure films Films based on Sinbad the Sailor Seafaring films Films set in the 8th century Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Films shot in Germany Films adapted into comics Films shot at Bavaria Studios 1960s historical adventure films German historical films Films scored by Michel Michelet 1960s English-language films 1960s American films 1960s German films Films about princesses Films about invisibility Films about magic rings English-language fantasy adventure films English-language historical adventure films