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Prepare to be dazzled as all the wonder, excitement, triumph, and treachery of the Arabian Nights come vibrantly to life in Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves! Orphaned as a young child and adopted by a band of notorious thieves, now-grown Ali Baba (Jon Hall) sets out to avenge his father’s murder, reclaim the royal throne, and rescue his beloved Amara (Maria Montez) from the iron fist of his treacherous enemy. Lushly shot in glorious Technicolor® and featuring a cast of thousands, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves is a cinematic feast for the senses to be enjoyed time and again.
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Last updated: August 16, 2009, 3:25 pm
Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves Customer reviews:
Average Rating: 4.5 Total Reviews: 7
(Kay's Gazebo, 2009-09-18) Ok, I have a LOT of material on MJ (to compare this to) THIS SUCKS!!!!!!!!! As other have mentioned here, British production, very 'thrown together' took a FEW film clips we've all seen and planted them repeatedly over & over amongst a handful of psychoanalyst giving their analogy of "his" life, peppered w/ a lot of boring fan-on-the-street comments. I COULD NOT BELIEVE HOW MANY TIMES THEY RAN THE SAME CLIPS OVER & OVER & ... (w/ REALLY bad music in the background .. No, not MJ's). Thank God for reviews keeping me from even CONSIDERING purchasing this (I was a glutton for punishment and rented it)! WAAAAY better MJ material out there.
(Margret Fox, 2009-09-16) I read all of the above reviews and they told me all I need to know. This is just another false premise look at someone they know nothing about. I include myself in the leagues of Michael's loyal and loving fans. To me and millions of others, he does not need to be explained by so-called experts. Just so much hogwash.
(cinnamon, 2009-09-10) I understand the intention of this video to "protect MJ" from further attacks by saying that "he was a child" because of the numerous traumatic experiences he had to go through as a child star. Although it could hold certain degree of truth, it is considered quite one-sided because in this video, his strangeness is under microscope while his exceptional talent is totally put aside. When you talk about a human being, you need to handle it as one whole package. History shows us that the strangeness and the genius are often strongly connected in a man. You shouldn't just cut apart just one of them and cook it. All the geniuses in history had the experience of being stigmatized by the mediocres as strange because they acted based on their own observation of the world and their own decisions, rather than just following the manual called "social norm". Geniuses are the people who have the spiritual strength to see the facts without biases and think by themselves, while the mediocre does not have the mental and intellectual toughness to do so, and therefore they totally depend on the "answered questions" or "social norm". However, a social norm is nothing absolute. As a manual, "social norm" can ease you to act, saving your time to think what to do, but it is useful only in a certain place in a certain time, and its validity is limited only to "normal" situation. For example, you would not be in the same bedroom with your friend's son if he is doing fine, but what if this boy is terminally ill and confesses you that he cries every night out of fear of death? A person who thinks by themselves might then think that holding him through the night is the right thing to do. He might think that leaving the devastated boy alone to play safe is a hypocritical deed. "Social norm" does not work in those emergency cases. So analyzing everything in the light of social norm is a dangerous mistake we tend to make. Remember what happened to Galileo? Remember how Michelangelo was condemned to paint God and saints showing their whole bodies? Remember how Mozart's Figaro and Bizet's Carmen were criticized for being vulgar? Those geniuses just saw the reality with non-jaded eyes, and just expressed the truth just like the child who said "But the King has nothing on!"" Calling him as a child is okay, I agree that MJ had amazing childlike quality in him, but then, you also need to analyze how important it was, is, will be to have a child eye to be a great scientist, artist, or a philosopher.
(Deborah Keeton, 2009-09-09) i should've read the reviews before wasting my money on this piece of garbage. The author of this video obviously NEVER met Michael. Why didn't they talk about all the charities and people he helped all over the world instead of his plastic surgeries and the FALSE allegations that were brought against him? This is nothing more than all the tabloid fodder compiled into a dvd. Trust me.....save your money !!
(Natce, 2009-09-01) I had expected something interesting from Moonwalking - when in fact this video is quite crappy. DO NOT waste your money. Seems as if this video was made to show all how different he was and did not emphasize the person he truly was- a humanitarian who loved all and cared about the human condition. In addition, there is minimal footage of Michael Jackson. I'd have to say in total there's probably less than 4 minutes of footage of him on the "entire" DVD. This also comes with a small book of which I haven't read - but after seeing the video, I do not have the desire to do so. I repeat: DO NOT PURCHASE DO NOT PURCHASE DO NOT PURCHASE!!
(Ted M., 2009-09-19) This review is for the Criterion Collection DVD edition of the film. "Last Year at Marienbad", directed by Alain Resnais, released in France as "L'Année dernière à Marienbad" is a film about a man who attemps to convince a woman he just met that they had a love affair a year earlier. The film takes place at a Chateau and includes some very interesting scenes. There is a famous surreal scene with some people casting shadows while the surrounding trees do not. The film itself is very impressive and won many awards. The Criteiron Collection version has some great special features and the packaging is very minimalist in style. The picture of the cover shown here does not do justice to its appearance. The release is a two disc set and includes a booklet with more material. Disc one contains the film and the original theatrical tralier with a re-release trailer. Disc two contains an exclusive interview with Alain Resnais, a new documentary on the film's production, an interview with film scholar, Ginette Vincendeau, and two documentaries by Resnais. "Toute la mémoire du monde" is a documentary about the National Library of France and has an in-depth tour of the stacks and how books are catalogued and shelved. The second documentary is "Le chant du Styrène" is about the molding of plastics. I found the documentary about the French National Library to be very interesting, in part, because I work in a college library. This DVD set is the best version of the film available and a must for cinephiles.
(Joshua N. Carnes, 2009-09-12) (This review refers to the Blu-Ray edition) Criterion has done it again! The beautiful black and white imagery of this haunting film is presented in a flawless transfer. Incredibly sharp and detailed image for a nearly fifty year old film. The booklet has three or four interesting essays, plus there are the usual informative extras. There has been plenty written about the film, i.e. what it means, etc. so I won't go into that except to say that if you want to watch something totally different, then this film is for you. Fans of non-linear plots step to the front of the line! I also reccommend going to Roger Eberts site after you watch and read his essay under 'great movies'.
(Bartok Kinski, 2009-08-31) "Last Year at Marienbad". This is a Boring, basic "French" movie, although I wouldn't put it in the same sentence with "The Seventh Seal". It's a movie with questionable Claude Levi-Strauss language in spots, some meaningless New Wave scenes, no character development in others, and a somewhat predictable ending that altogether serves to pass the time away and/or play in the background while you do something else. Not exactly a landmark of French film making. Technically speaking, this movie is well made, which somehow makes it even worse.
(Doreen Appleton, 2009-08-29) Marienbad falls into the category of the movie that had to be made, like Repulsion, like Deliverance, a few others, the movies that opened a door through which other filmmakers (not to mention poets, artists, writers) were grateful to walk. A movie that says something about consciousness, about human experience, that hadn't been said before. These films are not pleasant to watch, and they lend themselves to pastiche (especially Marienbad) but they serve a purpose. You have to give Resnais credit for having the idea and getting it financed. To me the movie feels like a depiction of a dream. Situations are seen, seen in reverse, everything is repeated, everything is contradicted, always with the same verbal refrain: "Try to remember. You love me." Many dreams feel like this. Delphine Seyrig falls onto a bed in five different ways in one scene. Resnais is making a point about repetition and variation. The Russian guy with the game that no one can win -- in my opinion he was put in so that someone would come into the theater and see the movie, rather than no one. Something for people to talk about.
(Glenn Gallagher, 2009-08-25) After the first 30 minutes of the film Last Year at Marienbad I thought it was the most pretentious film I had ever seen. For some reason, I stuck with it, and by the end of the film, I had decided it was one of the most brilliant films I had ever seen. Don't look for a linear, simple story with a discernible plot. Let the film wash over you like waves on the beach, and just accept that what is happening on the screen is not necessarily supposed to make logical sense. My feeling on the film is that the characters are not even alive, they are probably in limbo between life and death, and that is why they appear to be trapped in a world they cannot leave, and why the woman cannot remember what happened to her just a year ago. The beautiful thing about this film is that it allows you to form your own opinion on what is happening to the three main characters - the director himself said the film had no meaning, although I think he was being disingenuous. The film has plenty of meaning, but it's a little like holding up a mirror to the viewer, you see what you bring with you. The film is all about mood, atmosphere, and setting. This film made me think more than the average ten films put together. Highly recommended if you like experimental cinema and want something different than the usual Hollywood movie of the week.
(Antonio Grazie, 2009-11-07) After forty years, I discovered "The Band." What a delight! I remember references to their name, but did not realize that is what they called themselves. I remember one or two of the songs that made it on the radio in the sixties. At that time, I was totally into the Fab Four (John, Paul, Ringo and George). These gentlemen are accomplished musicians. I enjoyed their "story songs" and how they meld varied styles, e.g., rhythm and blues, country, rock, and rock and roll to name a few, into super sounds and words. Most touching, however, is the palpable feeling of connection between these gentleman and their polished ensemble playing and singing that Scorsese's filming and direction reveals. The sound is great, and this is one film that I will watch over and over again.
(Arthur J. Bird, 2009-11-05) I FIRST SAW THE MOVIE ON LARGE SCREEN, THEN BOUGHT THE ALBUM,AND NOW I HAVE THE DVD JUST A GREAT PERFORMANCE BY ALL ENVOLVED I WOULD SAY A HISTORIC PERFORMANCE!!!
(Belerophon, 2009-10-30) I remember when This first came out. I saw it in the Theatre and had it on tape and DVD before finally getting The Blu-Ray version. I love music deeply and I remember "The Band" and those early days of Rock and Roll. I have been in and out of Music myself and have some small appreciation of what it is to make music and what it is to have and run a band. This Movie is a wonderfull collection of roots music with some of the best talent in the world comming together to celebrate one of the most influential groups of the Era. The performances are stunning and the range of talent that came together for this "LAST WALTZ" is like a phone directory of Who's Who in the Music business. The filming and lighting and sound are fantastic. Even if you are not old enough to remember these guys and this type of music may not be your cup of tea I highly reccomend it anyway. You will get a sense of things from a unique perspective and a beautiful one at that. Also there are quite a few short interviews with some very interesting Tid bits about Music, the business, other musicians and various events that make this like a little biography complete with music and Video. Its a music lovers dream especially if you were alive back then. This review is of The Blu-Ray version But if you dont have a Blu-Ray player I have owned The regular DVD version and it is of very good quality but The Blu-Ray is the best because Scorcesse recorded this on 35mm film which really makes a difference when you master a film to Blu-Ray.(they had originally planned to record the event on 16mm) On a side note This film was done as a colaboration between Robbie Robertson and Martin Scorcesse. There are a lot of people who have a beef with this because some band members later on aired their dirty laundry after the film came out, But I think its totally irrelivent about the internal politics and personal rubs inside "The Band" itself. Anyone who has ever had a band will tell you that its like a family and Families usually have lots of quarrels and disagreements and do terrible things to each other behind closed doors. Also there is usually one person Who calls the shots. Bands are usually like that too. Robbie Robertson was the leader and owned most of the rights to the music. Thats why the documentary focuses on him more then the other memebers (as you would expect ......if your sensible.)
(J. Mohr, 2009-10-14) I read the reviews and bought this based on that it was a behind the scenes band interaction and then some of their concert. The bulk of it was their concert and songs - which I didn't care for and the movie was so boring, I got halfway through and stopped watching. Unless you are a fan of this band, and want concert footage, this isn't worth watching.
(Matthew D. Scherba, 2009-09-21) Wish I could have been at this concert, all the legends plus the ultimate band "The Band".
(G. Dochtermann, 2009-10-29) Highly recommended. An inspiring look into the life of the late, great Les Paul. Les Paul was one of the few modern innovators who could hold a candle to great inventors like Edison and Bell, and he smoked on the guitar! What he did for the world of music recording is also impressive, and anyone who records a note of pop or rock music is indebted to Les Paul.
(L. Power, 2009-10-27) Quite often the word genius is bandied about, and given to people who barely deserve it, people who will be little noted nor long remembered. Let it not be so with Les Paul, one of the most musically innovative people of the twentieth century, whose innovations with sound have inspired generations of musicians. When you listen to the Rolling Stones or The Beatles or Eric Clapton or many other recording artists, the guitar sound you are listening to may be coming from a Les Paul Gibson guitar, or a Les Paul designed pick, one of the first electric guitars ever made, which enabled a revolution in sound, and the evolution of rock and roll. If you listen to The Beatles Eleanor Rigby, Paul McCartney double tracking his own vocals, with 'Ah, look at all the lonely people,' this is thanks to Les Paul's innovation in creating multitrack recording. Similarly, when Michael Jackson multi tracks his own vocals on 'Leave Me Alone'. Similarly Paul McCartney's first album McCartneywas entirely recorded on a 4 track Studer multi track recorder, with McCartney playing all the instruments. Les Paul started out as a musician, and became an outstanding one, learning his craft as a jazz musician with greats such as Django Reinhardt, and then becoming a recording artist, even collaborating with Bing Crosby, and having numerous hits with his own wife Mary Ford. He had a desire to multilayer his own musicianship, and his wife's singing, and this inspired his many innovations in sound. You may be familiar with one of his number one hits 'How high the moon,' and if you listen, you can notice his riffs are so quick, dazzlingly fast. If you're like me, you may find this movie inspiring, and next time you listen to a recording you may wonder what aspect of it may have been made possible by an inventiness and enterprise, and the genius of Les Paul. I hope this review is helpful to you, and I hope you enjoy the movie.
(J. Blackburn, 2009-10-03) The DVD is described well by others here but I watched it last night and just wanted to add another positive review. Talk about a person who operated without any creative or innovative boundaries. Les is the man. And this DVD addresses his ability to multitask at the very highest levels in a very complete and organized way. I also found it every bit as interesting for the insights into the life of Mary Ford. She was the perfect collaborator for him and the ground breaking music they made together utilized her intelligence, creativity and natural musical gifts as much as it did Mr. Paul's. Great DVD. And apparently there's another hour and a half of "extras" that I still get to watch. Les Paul certainly deserves a lifetime achievement award and thanks to both Les and Mary for some really amazing music.
(C. Eggers, 2009-01-20) This video, correction, this Man (Les Paul) has changed the music industry forever! How we listen, how we record, how we play. This man has more inventions under his belt than NASA. I would recommend this movie for any person into music. This is one movie to have in your collection.
(Timothy S. Coffey, 2009-01-14) What an extraordinary video! I grew up in part of this time, but had no idea he did so much in the music industry. His influence is still felt today and will continue to be felt for musical generations to come! If you love music, you will love this video!
(Simon Davis, 2009-10-16) I've always been a huge fan of Arabian Nights tales and no matter what age you are they always provide (even if it is only for an hour and a half) a much needed release from the stresses of life. Those exotic tales of far away places populated by beautiful damsels in distress just waiting to be rescued by dashing princes seem to have always been favourites with general audiences of every decade too. Certain performers such as Sabu and Turhan Bey are automatically associated with this genre of film making however on the "B" movie level one of the most loved screen teams in this field in the 1940's were Maria Montez and Jon Hall. Paired in a number of colour filled and exotic escapist yarns far from any reality audiences would ever know, they were the perfect medicine for wartime audiences trying to escape the harsh realities currently being played out in the real world. Maria Montez had the exotic looks that combined perfectly with the very masculine and virile appearance of Jon Hall and despite the limitations of each's acting skills the pair struck an immediate cord with audiences in exotically titled films such as "Arabian Nights", "White Savage", "Sudan" and especially in their biggest hit together "Cobra Woman" (badly needing to be released on DVD!). Here we have one of their best teamings in Universal's lavish "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves" made right at the peak of their popularity and it's easy to see from this production the great faith that Universal Studios had in this acting team. It is a wonderfully lavish production filled with grand sets, a stirring musical score, breathtaking costumes and hundreds of extras all rolled up in a hugely enjoyable romp never for one moment to be taken seriously which is the best way to enjoy it. I have a great affection for this childhood favourite and this superb "Universal Backlot Series" DVD release of the film certainly does it proud. The storyline as in most of these tales is pure hokum of course which is partly what makes it such fun. After being driven out of Baghdad when his father the Caliph of Bagdad is ruthlessly betrayed and killed young Ali (Scotty Beckett) is forced to flee and finds refuge with the famous "forty thieves" who have a treasure filled cave as their headquarters and are determined to drive out the Mongol Khan (Kurt Katch) who is inflicting terror on their country. Ali grows to manhood (transforming into Jon Hall in the process!) and he sets out with the help of the forty thieves to revenge his father's death by ridding Baghdad of the evil Khan and winning back the hand of his childhood friend, the beautiful Princess Amara (Maria Montez) who has been tricked by her traitor of a father into marrying the Khan against her will. Real Saturday matinee fare is the best way to sum up the appeal of "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves". Of course no one in the cast looks even remotely Middle Eastern (gravel voiced Andy Devine playing an arab thief called Abdullah??) and everyone looks a little too well scrubbed for a story taking place in the desert but put the logistics aside and you are sure to be swept away by this rousing tale. Maria Montez certainly earned her famous title as "The Queen of Technicolour" in this epic and by the time this film came along she and Jon Hall, aided by Turhan Bey in another of his exotic roles, were a well oiled team who combined perfectly together on screen. Universal's new DVD line being released under the title "Universal Backlot Series" is proving to be sensational in bringing some very obscure and hard to come by movies from the 1930's and '40's back into the spotlight. Although "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves" has been previously released on DVD, this new edtion is really wonderful and a definite improvement over the older release with great care taken on the overall restoration of the film. Colours seem much brighter and vivid and the rousing musical score has never sounded better. In fact the film as presented on this disc couldn't be faulted as it looks like it was made yesterday. The only drawback to this DVD release is the sad lack of any extras to make this deluxe presentation complete. I would have liked for example to have seen a documentary prepared about the screen team of Maria Montez and Jon Hall and the impact they had on audiences in the 1940's complete with some biographical information on both performers as well. I'm also a big fan of the wonderfully talented Turhan Bey and I feel he is also long overdue for a proper retrospective on his highly successful career in Universal's fantasy and horror films throughout the 1940's. This would have made another great extra for inclusion on this disk. Despite this short fall however all lovers of these Universal fantasy films like myself should be very pleased here and the obvious care that has gone into restoring the film makes me hope that more of the Montez/Hall teamings, especially the camp classic "Cobra Woman" will see a DVD release sometime in the near future. While not acting "Oscar" material "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves" is great escapist entertainment and it's excitng to see the film returned to all its gaudy technicolour splendour in Universal's new DVD release in their "Universal Backlot Series". Enjoy!
(Kevin Blumenstock, 2009-09-27) This is in color and in perfect condition, remember its before Robin Hood and if you go way back as a kid growing up in Brooklyn this is for you this high quality movie....kevin
(Stan V. Sprengert, 2009-09-17) i was about 12 yrs old when i first saw this movie, blew me away with the special effects..but i couldn't understand why he would say "open sesame" until later years when i saw it on television that they said "open says me" wow i felt like a doop..but when this dvd became available , i jumped on it..the acting is great and jon hall was a very good hero of course maria montez..oooo lah lah ... anyway if you wish to be entertained well this is the movie for you..enjoy it .oh, andy devine is just that devine..
(E. D. Deuss, 2009-09-13) This is another pairing of Maria Montez and Jon Hall in the Universal series of Arabian Nights-type action and adventure films. The plot is slight (who cares?) but we have the most gorgeous Technicolor ever, with the babelicous Maria Montez! The music is quite good, and the overall effect is quite a handsome film. I recommend it for nice escapist entertainment. I hope Universal Home Video releases the rest of the Hall/Montez series -- they are well worth your viewing time!
(William R. Ray, 2009-07-17) The DVD transfer is very good. The original Technicolor is well preserved. The detail is all there and the richly colored costumes show up just as brilliant as the first screenings of the film. The evil leader of the Mongol Horde, the Haluga Khan (Kurt Katch) overruns Baghdad with the aid of Prince Cassim (Frank Puglia). The good Caliph (Moroni Olsen) is killed but his son Ali (protrayed later in adulthood by Jon Hall) escapes to find the secret cave of the 40 theives. He is immediately taken in by Al Baba, the older, who adopts Ali, hence the name Ali Baba. 10 years later, enter the Lady Amara (the beautiful Maria Montez). Ali falls in love with her thinking her only a slave girl. Meanwhile, Amara'a father, Prince Cassim, has offered Khan the lovely lady's hand in a political marriage. Ali Baba, now leader of the 40 thieves is determined to free the Lady Amara and drive the evil Khan from Baghdad. We see some incredible horsemanship from the 40 thieves as they ride through the streets of Baghdad at breakneck speed. We also see that these are singing thieves as their song proclaims they steal from the rich and give to the poor. We get dancing mongols waving sabers and a great sword fight between the thieves and the mongols. Humor is supplied by Andy Devine as Abdullah, 1 of the thieves. There is some mild violence, no gore or graphic violence so a little parental guidance is probably needed for kids under 7 but kids 7 to 13 should enjoy this film very much. Parents too! High recommendation for: families with kids, grownup kids, movie fans, Maria Montez and Jon Hall fans, and anyone looking for a little good old escapism. This is really good Universal classic film.