A Thousand and One Nights
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A Thousand and One Nights
Plot
Thousand and One Nights is an occasionally strident but generally successful satire of the popular Universal Jon Hall/Maria Montez epics. Cornel Wilde stars as a twentyish Aladdin, whose magic lamp yields two genies: Collosus-like Rex Ingram (repeated the role he played in 1940's Thief of Baghdad) and ravishing redhead Evelyn Keyes (who, like future TV genie Barbara Eden, was seemingly born without a navel). Wilde uses his new-found wealth and magical powers to woo princess Adele Jergens, but not without the opposition of villainous Dennis Hoey. Phil Silvers plays Wilde's comic sidekick, a man "born 2000 years ahead of his time" who wears glasses, spouts jive-talk ("Slip me some skin, Abdul!") and cracks anachronistic jokes. The final gag in Thousand and One Nights, in which the genie gives Phil Silvers the voice of Frank Sinatra, has been removed from many TV prints. ~ Hal Erickson, RoviReview
It's harder to get much sillier than A Thousand and One Nights, but in this instance silly pays off. This take-off on the familiar Aladdin tale may confuse some modern viewers with references that were so up-to-the-moment in 1945 but are ancient history now, but it's all done with such sparkle and such a sense of fun that most viewers will just shrug at the dated aspects and move on. Nothing in Nights is played very straight, and the result is not too far off from what Bob Hope, Bing Crosby and Dorothy Lamour were doing whenever they went on "the Road." In Cornel Wilde, Nights doesn't have an actor with the same flair for comedy as Hope or Crosby, but he knows his way around a sword fight and knows enough not to take himself too seriously. Phil Silvers, fortunately, knows how to land a laugh line and takes advantage of this at every opportunity. Evelyn Keyes and Adele Jurgens make for some attractive distractions, and the supporting cast features a number of character actors that certainly know their stuff. Surprisingly, given that it's a Columbia picture, it even has a lush physical production, not to mention some great Technicolor photography. It all adds up to a very silly film -- but a very enjoyable one as well. ~ Craig Butler, RoviCast
- Cornel Wilde - Aladdin
- Evelyn Keyes - The Genie
- Phil Silvers - Abdullah
- Adele Jergens - Princess Armina
- Dusty Anderson - Novira
Credit
Stephen Goosson - Art Director, Rudolph Sternad - Art Director, Jean Louis - Costume Designer, Alfred E. Green - Director, Gene Havlick - Editor, Marlin Skiles - Composer (Music Score), Morris W. Stoloff - Musical Direction/Supervision, Ray Rennahan - Cinematographer, Sam Bischoff - Producer, Frank A. Tuttle - Set Designer, Lawrence W. Butler - Special Effects, Richard English - Screenwriter, Jack Henley - Screenwriter, Wilfred H. Pettit - Screenwriter, Wilfrid H. Pettitt - Short Story Author| A Thousand Years of Good Prayers (2007 Film), A Thousand Words (2012 Film) | |
| A Thousand and One Nights (1968 Film), A Thousand and One Years Ago: Inca Art of Peru (1987 Film) |
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A Thousand and One Nights
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A Thousand and One Nights (film)
| A Thousand and One Nights | |
|---|---|
 original film poster |
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| Directed by | Alfred E. Green |
| Produced by | Samuel Bischoff |
| Written by | Wilfred H. Petitt (story and screenplay) Richard English Jack Henley |
| Starring | Cornel Wilde Evelyn Keyes Phil Silvers Adele Jergens |
| Music by | Marlin Skiles |
| Cinematography | Ray Rennahan |
| Editing by | Gene Havlick |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
| Release date(s) | July 20, 1945 |
| Running time | 93 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
A Thousand and One Nights (1945) is a tongue-in-cheek Technicolor fantasy film set in the Baghdad of the One Thousand and One Nights, starring Cornel Wilde as Aladdin, Evelyn Keyes as the genie of the magic lamp, Phil Silvers as Aladdin's larcenous sidekick, and Adele Jergens as the princess Aladdin loves.[1]
It was nominated for two Academy Awards, for Art Direction, Color (Stephen Goosson, Rudolph Sternad, Frank Tuttle) and Special Effects.[2]
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Contents
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Plot
Vagabond singer Aladdin (Cornel Wilde) has his hands full keeping his pickpocket friend, Abdullah (Phil Silvers), out of trouble. Abdullah is thought mad as he claims to have been born 1200 years too early, speaks in 1940s slang and knows about television.
When the beautiful Princess Armina (Adele Jergens), the daughter of the Sultan (Dennis Hoey), is borne through the streets in a covered litter, however, it is Aladdin who gets into difficulty. Despite knowing the punishment is death for a commoner to see the princess's face, Aladdin cannot resist. He distracts the guards and slips into the litter. He persuades Armina to let her veil be lifted and is delighted to discover the stories of her beauty are true. He falls in love instantly. She is not so enamored of him, but does not raise an outcry when he slips away.
Later, Aladdin returns to the palace to woo Armina. He is caught and thrown in a cell (where he finds Abdullah) to await execution the next day. A distraught Armina has her trusted servant Novira (Dusty Anderson) steal the key to the cell from the jailer and slip it to Aladdin. Aladdin and Abdullah flee the city, pursued by the Sultan's guards. They hide out in a cave, where Kofir the sorcerer (Richard Hale) is waiting for them. Kofir persuades Aladdin to enter the bowels of the cave to fetch a magic lamp. Aladdin and the uneasy Abdullah dodge a laughing giant (Rex Ingram, dressed and coiffed the same as the genie he portrayed in the 1940 film The Thief of Bagdad) and return with the lamp, only to find that Kofir has blocked the entrance with a giant boulder. Kofir demands the lamp before he will let them out, but Aladdin does not trust him. The sorcerer leaves them to die of thirst and starvation.
When a frustrated Aladdin throws the lamp away, a redheaded genie (Evelyn Keyes) appears and instructs him to rub the lamp, which makes him her master. She explains that only her master can see or hear her. She insists he call her Babs and, like Abdullah, behaves and talks like she is from the twentieth century. He orders her to get them out of the cave. He then decides to go back for the princess, much to the genie's disappointment (as she has fallen in love with him), and has her conjure up a retinue of servants, clothes and rich gifts.
Meanwhile, the Sultan's twin brother, Prince Hadji (also played by Dennis Hoey, with a British accent in both roles), who has already tried to overthrow his brother once before, makes the Sultan his captive and takes his place undetected. Hadji is aided by the treacherous Grand Wazir Abu-Hassan (Philip Van Zandt), who is promised Armina's hand in marriage as a reward.
When Aladdin shows up pretending to be a prince of Hindustan, however, the Sultan changes his mind, preferring a rich son-in-law. The genie, however, does her best to derail the romance. Spotting Kohir, who has watched the proceedings through his magic crystal and is pretending to be a merchant offering new lamps for old, the genie arranges for the unsuspecting Novira to exchange the magic lamp. Once Kohir becomes the genie's master, everything that Aladdin wished for disappears, including the gift robe the false Sultan is wearing for the wedding. Armina realizes the man is not her father, but Prince Hadji, as he does not have a scar on his arm. Aladdin and Abdullah are taken away to be hanged, but Abu-Hassan offers to spare their lives if Armina agrees to marry him.
Aladdin is set free, believing Armina was only toying with him. Later, however, Novira tells him the truth. He and Abdullah track Kohir down and discover that he was overcome with excitement and died of a stroke. They steal the lamp from its next owner, a tailor, and return to the palace. At the end of a swordfight (in which Wilde gets to display his fencing skills), Hadji dies, and the grateful Sultan agrees to Aladdin and Armina's marriage.
Aladdin frees the heartbroken genie. She has an idea. She conjures up Aladdin's twin, who is love with her. To reward Abdullah, she gives him Frank Sinatra's voice to entrance the harem girls (who are all wearing anachronistic bobby socks).
Cast
- Cornel Wilde as Aladdin
- Evelyn Keyes as the Genie
- Phil Silvers as Abdullah
- Adele Jergens as Princess Armina
- Dusty Anderson as Novira
- Dennis Hoey as Sultan Kamar Al-Kir and Prince Hadji
- Philip Van Zandt as Grand Wazir Abu-Hassan
- Gus Schilling as Jafar
- Nestor Paiva as Kahim
- Rex Ingram as a Giant
- Richard Hale as Kofir
- John Abbott as Ali
- Shelley Winters (uncredited) as a Harem Girl
- Nina Foch (uncredited) as a Harem Girl
References
- ^ "Cornel Wilde, Evelyn Keyes In New Technicolor Arabia". Christian Science Monitor: p. 4. 1945-07-13. "A traditional Arabian Nights romance, some modern spoofing comedy, and a bit of trick photography have been put together in a lavish Technicolor production to make "A Thousand and One Nights," the new feature at the State and Orpheum."
- ^ "NY Times: A Thousand and One Nights". NY Times. http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/113478/A-Thousand-and-One-Nights/details. Retrieved 2008-12-20.
External links
- A Thousand and One Nights at the TCM Movie Database
- A Thousand and One Nights at the Internet Movie Database
- A Thousand and One Nights at AllRovi
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