SINBAD WEEK: Captain Sindbad (1963)

Today's Sinbad movie not only boasts a wonderful selection of low-budget magic but also an array of cheesy monsters, and a variant spelling of the protagonist's name.

Heading home to the city-state of Baristan after years of clearly successful "adventuring", the charismatic Captain Sindbad (Guy Williams, better known as Professor John Robinson from the original Lost in Spaces series) is looking forward to marrying the Princess Jana (Heidi Brühl).

However, he is unaware that, since he has been away, the wicked warlord El Kerim (Pedro Armendariz) has seized control and is holding the princess and the king, her father (Rolf Wanka) hostage, with the reluctant assistance of alcoholic court magician Galgo (Abraham Sofaer).

The change in Baristan's power dynamics is graphically demonstrated to Sindbad though when his ship is dive-bombed by a squadron of rock-bearing rocs.

He is rescued by passing fishermen, and eventually makes his way to the city where he reunites with his surviving crew members.

Gaining an "audience" with El Kerim, Sindbad runs the villain through with his sabre, only to discover that the usurper can't be killed!

Forced to fight an invisible beast in the city's arena (possibly the biggest anti-climax of the otherwise fun picture), Sindbad slips free and eventually learns that the secret to El Karim's invulnerability lies at the top of a tower on the far side of the desert.

He, and his men, must then race there to solve the mystery before El Karim executes the princess, who has chosen death over a forced marriage to the wicked barbarian.

Captain Sindbad is a fantastical romp that never really lets its foot off the accelerator.

Considering the limitations of low budget special effects, the sorcerer Galgo utilises a wide variety of magic through the 85 minute movie, mainly leaning towards shape-changing spells, and the monsters - if you are willing to suspend your disbelief - are generally fun.

It has to be acknowledged that the invisible "thing" is a major disappointment though, not because director Byron Haskin doesn't try to demonstrate its presence with green-sparking footprints in the arena sand, but because Ian McLellan Hunter and Guy Endore's script brushes it aside so quickly that it's not really the threat to Sindbad it could have been.

Overall, the effects certainly aren't up to Ray Harryhausen standard (for instance, Galgo, at one point, extends his arm magically... and I was reminded of the Mr Fantastic effects in Roger Corman's Fantastic Four), but at least they tried.

However, what sealed the deal for me was the amazing (if effects- and budget-challenging) final act, which, essentially sees the good captain and his crew thrust into an old school "fun house dungeon", complete with strangling vines, whirlpool traps, alligator ambushes, a 12-headed hydra, a massive tower to climb, and an enormous animated fist for Sindbad to fight as the "boss monster" of the dungeon.

Princess Jana, despite the spunk she shows in the face of El Karim's threats, is rather lacklustre.

The princess aside though, this film is filled with interesting supporting characters, from the assortment of rogues in Sindbad's crew, to El Kerim's number two (Henry Brandon), who tries to act as the voice of reason, curbing his commander's more brutal excesses when he can.

But the breathless pacing from War of the Worlds' director Haskin means that while this isn't exactly high-brow fare, it's certainly colourful and surprisingly good family entertainment.