Imprisoned by the wicked Grand Vizier Jaffar (Conrad Veidt), Ahmad (John Justin), the rightful king of Bagdad, befriends a young thief called Abu (Sabu). When Ahmad falls for a beautiful princess (June Duprez) and is magically blinded by Jaffar, who wants the princess for his bride, the intrepid duo embark on a series of adventures in a bid to undo the spell and save the princess.
THE LOWDOWN A triumph of filmmaking in its day and one of Alexander Korda's best-loved films, this Oscar-winning Arabian fantasy (opens in new tab) is a magical, atmospheric carpet ride that still dazzles thanks to its sensational sets, flamboyant art direction and elaborate special effects. John Justin (opens in new tab) turns on the matinee idol charm as the messiah-like Ahmad, while Sabu (opens in new tab) has boundless energy as the pocket-sized action man. But it’s Conrad Veidt (opens in new tab)’s briliiant, dastardly Jaffar who set the benchmark for the ultimate panto villain.
THE UK BLU-RAY RELEASE Released as part of Network’s The British Film collection, The Thief of Bagdad (opens in new tab) is presented in a HD transfer from original film elements, in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio, and includes an unrestored theatrical trailer and image galleries.
ALSO AVAILABLE
The original 1924 version of The Thief of Bagdad, which was produced and starred Douglas Fairbanks, was one of the costliest films made in Hollywood during the silent era. This vintage classic is also available in a restored version on Blu-ray and DVD in the UK (opens in new tab) http://youtube.com/v/Vu5Lpsyzpz8
