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1977 - 114m.

There are five movies theatre experiences that I vividly remember from my childhood: Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Road Warrior, and Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger. This is the first movie that I saw that features the amazing stop-motion animation effects created by Ray Harryhausen and I remember being completely stunned by what I saw on the screen. My young eyes had never been exposed to mythical creatures like a minotaur, a sabre-toothed tiger, or a troglodyte and I still remember coming out of that movie and the impact it had on me. I was so enthralled by what I had seen on the screen that I begged my dad to get me the poster that was hanging in the lobby so I could look at all the characters that enchanted me. He talked to the manager of the theatre and we went home with the one sheet. Thanks, Dad!

In this adventure, Sinbad (Patrick Wayne - John Wayne's son) has decided that he wants to marry the delicious Princess Farah (Jane Seymour) and has arrived at her home to ask her brother, Prince Kassim, for his blessing. After a battle with some skeledemons, Sinbad learns that Kassim has been turned into a baboon by an evil witch named Zenobia (Margaret Whiting) and there are only seven days to find a way to break the spell and ensure that Kassim become caliph (or ruler) of the land. Sinbad takes Kassimboon and Farah on a journey to find a wise man named Melanthius (Patrick Troughton) who they hope can find a way to break the spell. Hot on their trail is Zenobia along with her son Rafi (Kurt Christian) and a metal Minoton. Sinbad and his crew find Melanthius and discover that although he has a lot of knowledge, he is as dumb as a post when it comes to street smarts. In one scene, he manages to give away all of their plans and to Zenobia, allow her to escape, and almost get killed by a giant wasp that he created. Everyone eventually makes it to the location where they can hopefully restore Kassim back to normal and the tensions between heroes and villains come to a head (with plenty of creatures to entertain).

Patrick Wayne has been named by many as the worst Sinbad from the Harryhausen trilogy but I thought he did a decent job given what he had to work with. The truth is that Sinbad does not have a lot to do in this movie as it is an ensemble piece and much of the focus is given to Melanthius, his daughter Dione (Taryn Power - Tyrone Power's daughter), and the relationships that Dione and Farah have with Kassim. This is certainly the campiest of the trilogy and Wayne fits in quite well in these circumstances. He can certainly rock some of the terrible wardrobe he is given including a horrible flower shirt and some fuschia duds early in the flick. The creatures themselves are impressive with the baboon and troglodyte being especially lifelike and probably the most realistic of Harryhausen's creations. There is also the imposing Minoton that is part live-action and part stop-motion. The live-action portions were portrayed by actor Peter Mayhew who most of us know as his alter-ego Chewbacca. My biggest complaint with the effects was not the creatures but was with the insertion of studio footage on location specific backgrounds. This looks dated and is not done well giving off a cheap vibe that escaped me as a kid but is embarrassingly obvious now. It really makes you realize how far green/blue screen technology has come.

It is amazing to me that Sinbad has not been resurrected in recent years as Hollywood seems to be taking every icon from the past and redoing it with CGI to appeal to today's audiences. I would like to think that this is because of a respect for Harryhausen's effects but this is obviously not the case as Clash of the Titans was remade a few years ago eliciting little to no nostalgia for me. No matter who the favorite Sinbad is or which movie is superior, many people have been exposed to the Sinbad movies and the wonders they created. It would be great if this tradition continues. For me, Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger will always have a special place in my heart and on my wall. Memories are precious.

There are some interesting connections from The Golden Voyage of Sinbad and Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger that movie nerds may appreciate. Patrick Troughton (Melantius) and Tom Baker (the villain in Golden Voyage) both played Doctor Who at different points in the original series. Kurt Christian (Rafi) played a comic relief member of Sinbad's crew in Golden Voyage. Finally, both of Sinbad's love interests, Jane Seymour and Caroline Munro (from Golden Voyage), were Bond girls in Live and Let Die and The Spy Who Loved Me respectively. (Josh Pasnak, 5/4/14)

Directed By: Sam Wanamaker.
Written By: Beverley Cross.

Starring: Patrick Wayne, Taryn Power, Jane Seymour, Margaret Whiting.