The free film series "The Screening Room: Classics, Crowd-Pleasers, Cult Favorites and Neglected Gems" unveils a thrilling, eye-popping spectacle for all ages with this week’s 70th-anniversary showing of Alexander Korda’s lavish Technicolor production of "The Thief of Bagdad" (1940).
Originally billed as “One Thousand and One Sights for One Thousand and One Nights,” the Oscar-winning "Arabian Nights" epic will be screened at 2 p.m. Sunday, April 25, at the Florence-Lauderdale Public Library, 350 N. Wood Ave., downtown Florence.
Produced by Korda and co-directed by Michael Powell, Ludwig Berger and Tim Whelan, "The Thief of Bagdad" follows the story of the rightful King of Bagdad, Prince Ahman (played by John Justin), who has been blinded and cast out as a beggar.
Now a captive of the wicked Grand Vizier Jaffar (Conrad Veidt, best remembered for his roles in
"The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" and "Casablanca"), the prince is cast into a dungeon with Abu (Sabu), the finest thief in Bagdad. Escaping from the evil wizard, the two embark on a series of fantastic adventures involving a genie in a bottle (Rex Ingram), a mechanical flying horse, an all-seeing magic jewel, a flying carpet and a beautiful princess (June Duprez).
Still visually stunning today, "The Thief of Bagdad" earned Academy Awards for Best Color Art Direction, Best Color Cinematography and Best Visual Effects. The film received an additional Oscar nomination for Best Music for Miklos Rozsa’s rousing and romantic score.
"The Screening Room" is sponsored by the Florence-Lauderdale Public Library and Pillar of Fire. The series is hosted by film historian and Pillar of Fire founder Terry Pace, who teaches English at the University of North Alabama.
All "Screening Room" programs are free and open to the public. For details, call the library at (256) 764-6564 or Pillar of Fire at (256) 366-4512, or e-mail pillaroffire@bellsouth.net.
“You’re a clever little man, little master of the universe, but mortals are weak and frail. If their stomach speaks, they forget their brain. If the brain speaks, they forget their heart. And if their heart speaks … they forget everything.” – The Genie (Rex Ingram) in Alexander Korda’s production of "The Thief of Bagdad" (1940)
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