Movie Review: Arabian Nights

Movie Review: Arabian Nights

Written by Damian PennyPublished February 23, 2007

It seems hard to believe today, but there was a time when Americans thought of the Middle East as a land of romance, adventure, and mystery, not intolerance and violence. Arabian Nights, a 1942 “Western with camels”, newly restored and available on DVD, portrays this world of palaces, walled cities, harems, dancing girls, swordplay, thieves and - most importantly - non-stop adventure. The result is quite dated, but it is also very entertaining.Needless to say, Arabian Nights has very little to do with the epic One Thousand and One Arabian Nights beyond its title, though running gags have Aladdin and Sinbad the Sailor (played by Shemp Howard, no less) reduced to working with a traveling circus, boring everybody with endless tales of their unbelievable old adventures.

The plot involves a dispute between the caliph of Baghdad and his brother’s attempts to usurp the throne and win the hand of a sensuous dancing girl. When the rightful caliph is left for dead, he shaves off his beard, hooks up with the circus, and plots his revenge - all the while falling for the fierce, independent dancer, who has no idea of his real identity.

Arabian Nights clocks in at less than ninety minutes and moves at a ferocious pace. The film, one of Universal’s first Technicolor productions, is also stunning to watch. It was an expensive production for its time, but every penny made it into the elaborate costumes and sets. (The matte paintings are less convincing, but I’m willing to forgive that in a 65-year-old movie.) The action scenes, unfortunately, don’t work quite so well. During some crucial battles, director John Rawlins inexplicably seems to be directing his camera toward the sets, with the action as an afterthought.

Male lead Jon Hall - who speaks with an American accent, naturally - is nothing special, but I thought Maria Montez - “the worst actress who ever lived,” according to one reviewer - gave a deliciously fiery performance as the object of his (and everyone else’s) affections. The Indian actor Sabu is charming as the only performer who knows Hall’s real identity, and as the circus leader, Billy Gilbert deserves special mention for the way he uses his ample belly as an effective battle weapon.

It goes without saying that Arabian Nights doesn’t even try to portray the Middle East realistically. (I’m not even sure anyone in the movie speaks with the same accent.) The film is all about showing a heavily romanticized version of that place and time, and it does so in a very entertaining fashion. Some will complain about it being old-fashioned and insulting, but I’d say it’s probably an improvement over what we think of the Middle East today.