THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD (1973) in '70s Horror and Sci-Fi Forum

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THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD (1973)

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MovieMatt	THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD (1973)	Lead	[-]
Dec 1 11 2:41 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	After the failure of THE VALLEY OF GWANGI, the duo, Ray Harryhausen, and Charles Schneer decided to go back to what they are good at, and that was Sinbad. First they want to go with the idea where Sinbad meets dinosaurs in KING OF THE GENIES. But that was aborted very quickly after they realized that dinosaurs were unsuccessful. So they came up with an idea that happens to be original and imaginative. So the team spent four or five years to create this. And now for some facts. Christopher Lee was a front runner for the role of Koura. Robert Shaw desperately wanted the role of Sinbad but was placated by being cast uncredited as the Oracle. His face was heavily swathed in make-up and his voice electronically altered by a sound engineer. Miklós Rózsa was one of Ray Harryhausen's original choices (along with Max Steiner) to score The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958), but Charles H. Schneer persuaded Harryhausen to agree to hire Bernard Herrmann instead. While Herrmann ended up scoring four of Schneer and Harryhausen's films, he was not available for The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1974), so Harryhausen finally got his wish to have Rózsa score a Sinbad movie. This film was given good reviews that it was the KING KONG of 1974. It was about time, America was in a grim situation (such as the Oil Crisis, Vietnam War, teenage rebellion and disaster movies), this film got their minds of the horrors of the bad times. So here is the movie on Youtube. Part 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OE6TL9GwxWk Part 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyY6jSwRscE Part 3 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gr30BwESgwI Part 4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXTFamRxQxw Part 5 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFs0wlJ_D00 Part 6 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_vPNCnzUPU Part 7 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlItsAygm8Y Part 8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzcZKyLX8kc Part 9 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8h96EpLKWo Part 10 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHxoBsIDQOM Trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-dMFrPI2ck ABC Promo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4FTAoJbT5qE Intro on KXTV's The Movies http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7x7yTa9atpo Closing of KXTV's The Movies when that film was featured http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIUE7DWj8oY 1979 opening of The Movies where this film was featured http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxQ7B6QpDxU Rated G. So it is fun for everyone. Enjoy. Last Edited By: MovieMatt Dec 1 11 7:27 PM. Edited 1 time.
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BijouBob8mm		#1	[-]
Dec 1 11 4:25 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Since 7th VOYAGE was a staple on local TV on Thanksgiving Day when I was a kid, I trot out Harryhausen's Sinbad trilogy to view on that holiday weekend...a tradition once again observed this year. Robert Shaw desperately wanted the role of Sinbad but was placated by being cast uncredited as the Oracle. Prior to Shaw getting the role, Orson Welles was the first choice for the Oracle but overpriced himself right out of the running. Would have been interesting to see what Shaw would have done as Sinbad, but I think John Phillip Law did a great job. Harryhausen has said that, very early on, the basic germ of the story was going to be about an original character (called Babou or something like that), but he and Schneer soon realized Sinbad would give the project greater appeal.
hermanthegerm		#2	[-]
Dec 2 11 10:01 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	We saw the original 7th Voyage of Sinbad at the drive-in in San Diego. That was so cool. I truly don't remember when this came out, but we must have seen it on re-release around 1977-8 in a Tijuana theater. I think we saw this one a month or so after Eye of the Tiger, but it could have been the other way around. I remember I was disappointed when the face from the well ended up being a guy in make up: I wanted a cool stop motion animated monster. At the time It felt as if the film must have been older (than 1974,) it seemed quite old fashioned, I was fuzzy on film release dates at the time. We saw a lot of re-releases on Saturday matinee type shows, and sometimes it was difficult to tell what was what. I didn't catch up with Jason till a decade later, so Sinbad remains my favorite. "There is a lot of money tied up in this film and people expect to hear a boom when something blows up, so I'll give them a boom." George Lucas as quoted by Harlan Ellison's WATCHING Last Edited By: hermanthegerm Dec 2 11 10:05 AM. Edited 3 times.
BijouBob8mm		#3	[-]
Dec 2 11 1:48 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I know 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD was reissued theatrically after the box office success of GOLDEN VOYAGE, around 1975 or '76 I think, but don't know how long it continued to play on the big screen after that. JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS was also reissued somewhere in there (maybe the same year SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER came out), and played at one local drive-in on a double bill with THE PEOPLE THAT TIME FORGOT. (When 7th VOYAGE got that mid-Seventies reissue, it played downtown with a handful of Three Stooges shorts. My buddies and I sat through the whole program twice.) Last Edited By: BijouBob8mm Dec 2 11 4:20 PM. Edited 3 times.
hermanthegerm		#4	[-]
Dec 2 11 7:17 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	BijouBob8mm wrote: ...7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD was reissued theatrically after the box office success of GOLDEN VOYAGE, around 1975... That sounds about right, I would have been 10 then. But I didn't see Golden till later. "There is a lot of money tied up in this film and people expect to hear a boom when something blows up, so I'll give them a boom." George Lucas as quoted by Harlan Ellison's WATCHING
Mark Hodgson		#5	[-]
Dec 8 11 2:53 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	But how on Earth did GWANGI fail? It's one of Ray's very best! I saw some awesome clips on the TV, but never registered it appearing at my local cinemas. It didn't even get re-released, which JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS and SEVENTH VOYAGE OF SINBAD both had in the UK, late 70s. Black Hole DVD Reviews
rvoyttbots		#6	[-]
Dec 9 11 1:52 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	hermanthegerm wrote: We saw the original 7th Voyage of Sinbad at the drive-in in San Diego. That was so cool. I truly don't remember when this came out, but we must have seen it on re-release around 1977-8 in a Tijuana theater. I think we saw this one a month or so after Eye of the Tiger, but it could have been the other way around. I remember I was disappointed when the face from the well ended up being a guy in make up: I wanted a cool stop motion animated monster. At the time It felt as if the film must have been older (than 1974,) it seemed quite old fashioned, I was fuzzy on film release dates at the time. We saw a lot of re-releases on Saturday matinee type shows, and sometimes it was difficult to tell what was what. I didn't catch up with Jason till a decade later, so Sinbad remains my favorite. 7TH VOYAGE was re-released in 1975. I saw the re-release poster for JASON at a SF convention but I didn`t see it advertised as playing anywhere in SoCal in 1975 or thereafter.
BijouBob8mm		#7	[-]
Dec 9 11 9:35 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	But how on Earth did GWANGI fail? It's one of Ray's very best! According to Ray H., there was a change in management at Warner Bros. between the time the film began production and the time it wrapped. He said the new folks weren't overly enamored of the project and, as a result, put little effort into promoting it. Ironically, while WB didn't feel the film would have enough appeal for an adult audience, when they had a more adult dinosaur film (WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH), the studio trimmed out the nudity and sexual situations to make it more kid-friendly.
ryanbrennan		#8	[-]
Dec 11 11 7:22 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	BijouBob8mm wrote: But how on Earth did GWANGI fail? It's one of Ray's very best! According to Ray H., there was a change in management at Warner Bros. between the time the film began production and the time it wrapped. He said the new folks weren't overly enamored of the project and, as a result, put little effort into promoting it. Ironically, while WB didn't feel the film would have enough appeal for an adult audience, when they had a more adult dinosaur film (WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH), the studio trimmed out the nudity and sexual situations to make it more kid-friendly. I've told this story before: I was driving past my local theater and saw something called VALLEY OF GWANGI on the marquee. I stopped and went to look at the one-sheet (which is T-rific). I was flabbergasted to see it was a Ray Harryhausen movie. I hadn't heard of it and didn't remember seeing anything about it, not even in Famous Monsters of Filmland (which I must have simply overlooked or forgotten). I immediately bought a ticket and entered during the roping sequence. I sat through the rest of the movie and then watched it again straight through from the beginning.
gorgozilla		#9	[-]
Dec 11 11 10:56 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Mark Hodgson wrote: But how on Earth did GWANGI fail? It's one of Ray's very best! I saw some awesome clips on the TV, but never registered it appearing at my local cinemas. It didn't even get re-released, which JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS and SEVENTH VOYAGE OF SINBAD both had in the UK, late 70s. I think the re-releases were strategically timed between releases. THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD was rereleased the summer before SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER hit the theater. Then JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS ("From the makers of Sinbad in spectacular Dynarama!") was rereleased the year before the similarly-themed CLASH OF THE TITANS came out.
Grant		#10	[-]
Dec 11 11 11:51 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I think I've mentioned it before, but I think one of the clever little touches of Golden Voyage is how Koura's helper seems genuinely worried about the spells and their effect on him, and how Koura (in spite of being a regular costume drama villain) seems to "appreciate" this. In one scene the helper tries to interrupt one of the spells, and instead of knocking him across the room and spitting out some movie villain curse, Koura EXPLAINS to him how he has to go through with it.
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Spoiler II		#11	[-]
Dec 12 11 12:46 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I think one thing that worked against VALLEY OF GWANGI is the title. In the realm of epic and spellbinding fantasy titles,it doesn't really grab you in its clutches and demand you watch it,particularly when compared to most of Harryhausen's other titles. BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS! EARTH VS THE FLYING SAUCERS! GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD! CLASH OF THE TITANS!...Valley of Gwangi?? Without seeing a one sheet or any sort of ad art,one might assume its some sort of run of the mill jungle film or something much,much more mundane.
gorgozilla		#12	[-]
Dec 12 11 1:37 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Yeah, the title is the weakest part of the movie- most people seeing just the title would go,"What's a gwangi?". If I hadn't seen the TV ad, I would have missed it too. Maybe they should have called it VALLEY OF DOOM, BEAST FROM FORBIDDEN VALLEY, THE MONSTER THAT ROAMED THE WEST, or even VALLEY OF THE DINOSAURS (that title hadn't been used yet). Hell, COWBOYS VS DINOSAURS would have brought in more people.
BijouBob8mm		#13	[-]
Dec 12 11 1:39 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Then JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS ("From the makers of Sinbad in spectacular Dynarama!") was rereleased the year before the similarly-themed CLASH OF THE TITANS came out. Pretty sure JASON was reissued slightly earlier than that; I seem to recall it playing drive-ins in this area the year after EYE OF THE TIGER (summer of 1978), paired with the previous year's THE PEOPLE THAT TIME FORGOT. Yeah, the title is the weakest part of the movie In Castle of Frankenstein magazine's in-depth 1973 two-part interview with Harryhausen (CoF 19 & 20), the comment is made that many who saw the name "Gwangi" in print thought it was a Japanese monster movie with a guy in a suit. Last Edited By: BijouBob8mm Dec 12 11 1:42 PM. Edited 1 times.
MovieMatt		#14	[-]
Dec 12 11 1:55 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	In Castle of Frankenstein magazine's in-depth 1973 two-part interview with Harryhausen (CoF 19 & 20), the comment is made that many who saw the name "Gwangi" in print thought it was a Japanese monster movie with a guy in a suit. I agree which is why the film flopped. Maybe if they put Willis O'Brien was credited, none of this would happen.
BijouBob8mm		#15	[-]
Dec 12 11 3:05 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Maybe if they put Willis O'Brien.... Drifting slightly off-topic, I wish BEAST OF HOLLOW MOUNTAIN would get a legit DVD. (Although there is a decent letterboxed bootleg out there.)
Alias the Scarecrow		#16	[-]
Dec 13 11 3:22 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Grant wrote: I think I've mentioned it before, but I think one of the clever little touches of Golden Voyage is how Koura's helper seems genuinely worried about the spells and their effect on him, and how Koura (in spite of being a regular costume drama villain) seems to "appreciate" this. In one scene the helper tries to interrupt one of the spells, and instead of knocking him across the room and spitting out some movie villain curse, Koura EXPLAINS to him how he has to go through with it. I've noticed this as well and I attribute part of this to Tom Baker's charisma in the part...it was the role of Koura which led to him being cast as the next Doctor Who when Jon Pertwee decided to leave in 1974.
horrorfilmx		#17	[-]
Dec 14 11 10:07 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	MovieMatt wrote: In Castle of Frankenstein magazine's in-depth 1973 two-part interview with Harryhausen (CoF 19 & 20), the comment is made that many who saw the name "Gwangi" in print thought it was a Japanese monster movie with a guy in a suit. I agree which is why the film flopped. Maybe if they put Willis O'Brien was credited, none of this would happen. Gwangi appeals to die-hard Harryhausen fans only (although I am one and I still find the film a bore) and O'Brien's name on the poster would have meant nothing. I'm not surprised it flopped. You can't expect a mainstream studio film to succeed when it only appeals to a small niche audience.
Steve R		#18	[-]
Dec 15 11 1:23 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I remember seeing the ads for it on TV. It looked very exciting and brought back memories of Mighty Joe Young and the cowboys. The poster, ad art was fantastic! Very nicely drawn T-Rex featured prominently. IIRC it was dumped into a few "neighborhood theaters" and vanished pretty damn quickly. I saw it first on TV and again IIRC it wasn't all that long before it showed up. I got the distinct feeling that the studio gave up on it and put little effort into the release. I like it a lot. After the midway point there is a lot of dino-action to be had. It's like a Harryahusen festival.
Friend of Daniel		#19	[-]
Dec 15 11 3:50 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	hermanthegerm wrote: BijouBob8mm wrote: ...7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD was reissued theatrically after the box office success of GOLDEN VOYAGE, around 1975... That sounds about right, I would have been 10 then. But I didn't see Golden till later. I recall seeing a double feature of GOLDEN and 7TH. I'm thinking it was when GOLDEN was originally released. Maybe our theater owner just had a print of 7TH laying around. Sometimes their showing of older films didn't seem to correspond to any set rerelease dates. I know they showed CURSE OF THE MUMMY'S TOMB at about the same time DRACULA AD 1972 came out.
gorgozilla		#20	[-]
Dec 15 11 11:14 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Steve R wrote: I remember seeing the ads for it on TV. The poster, ad art was fantastic! Very nicely drawn T-Rex featured prominently. Both the TV commercial and the poster for GWANGI had me chomping at the bit to see the movie when it came out. I can't figure out why such a great poster wasn't used for the cover of the DVD instead of that awful European poster art. I ended up making my own DVD cover after moving the disc to a slimcase. The original DVD cover: My homemade cover:
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THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD (1973)

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