The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1974)

Gordon Hessler directed this new Sinbad adventure with fine Ray Harryhausen F/X. John Philip Law takes over the role of Sinbad(though this isn't really a sequel to 1958's "7th Voyage") Here, Sinbad and his woman companion, a former slave girl (played by the beautiful Caroline Munro) intercept a golden tablet that is part of an inter-locking map that an evil magician named Koura(well played by future "Doctor Who" actor Tom Baker. In fact, it was this role that got him cast as the Fourth Doctor in 1974!) Koura is desperate to get the map, and will go to any lengths to achieve this... Good film isn't quite as compelling as its predecessor, but the three leads make all the difference.

John Phillip Law dons the turban last worn by Kerwin Matthews (OK, so Kerwin Matthews didn't actually wear a turban), Caroline Munro is a pleasingly pneumatic maid of mystery, and Tom Baker makes a splendidly sinister master of magic. Plus there are exotic locations and a fabulous score.And who cares? We want Ray Harryhausen's creatures! let's be fair, a bad script and poor production values could have fatally harmed Harryhausen's movies: fortunately, in this one (16 years after the previous Sinbad venture), all the backup is great, which enables Ray's creations to shine.And there are some wonderful creations in this entry, although my favourites have to be the 6 armed Kali - a sword fight to rival the skeletons from Jason - and the cyclops/centaur as is full of character as the cyclops from 7th Voyage.Whenever I watch this movie it transports me to the land of my imagination, just as it did when I first watched it all those years ago. Which, I suspect, is exactly what Mr H hoped for.

This story unfolds effortlessly with noble characters who take us on a spontaneous adventure. It is a spin on the original story from "1,001 Arabian Nights." John Philip Law makes a dashing Sinbad, and he and his costars do a great job of underplaying. Even the villain is likable. This movie is a feast for the eyes with amazing costumes, sets, and Ray Harryhausen's legendary special effects. I love the historical and anthropological references to the evil eye, the temple of faces at Ankor Wat, the Gryphon, and a multi-armed Kali doing best version of Bharata Natyam. I also appreciate the message of fighting evil with bravery, positive attitude, etc. This is a great movie for kids.

I enjoyed this movie right up to the ending, the special effects are really cool and I loved the homunculus, it is probably one of Harryhausen's best creations. Overall a very decent and enjoyable movie to watch for the first three quarters of the movie. Unfortunately things go wrong toward the end; that bearded head that comes out of the well and tells Sinbad to go north is unfathomably unbearable to watch and the closeups of it's mouth made me cringe, this isn't even the worst part - those green cavemen are even worse, I could not even look at them without wanting to burst out laughing, they totally ruined the atmosphere of the movie, I suspect they were just extras that were just thrown into the movie in the last few days of shooting to somehow make the ending more interesting but with disastrous results. Also there was not enough explanation as to why the Griffen was there, was he just passing by? or was he also just thrown in at the end to somehow make the ending more interesting? Overall I give this movie an 8/10 for the first three quarters and 1/10 for the ending. The other 2 Sinbad films are more consistent and enjoyable to watch and I really do think the 'The Eye of the Tiger' Is very under-rated.