During these trying and uncertain times, we have been trying to spread a little bit of love and movie magic by showcasing some of our favourite moments in film.
This week we kick off our ESCAPE month with an early silent classic The Thief of Bagdad (1924).
The first film adaptation of the beloved Aladdin story, this fantastic journey into distant lands draws from One Thousand and One Nights and features all sorts of complex visual imagery - from enormous sets, to surprising special effects, to tinted B&W colour – making it one of the most expensive films of the 1920s. Directed by Raoul Walsh, this film would be an important stepping-stone for the career of Anna May Wong, the first Chinese American movie star, and was selected for preservation in the National Library of Congress for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
In this clip, the final sequence of the film, white American stars Douglas Fairbanks and Julanne Johnston escape from the suitor princes on their magic carpet and ride away into the sunset. Along with Mortimer Wilson’s stirring score, we can’t help but be carried away by this wondrous adventure of a film. Enjoy!
Please note Cinemoments may not be available in all territories.
