Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger (1977) User Reviews

For children when wonder and Imagination were still in vogue!

[lambiepie-2 · 7/10 · 28 June 2003]

(Minor Spoilers)

Let's be honest and a tad realistic about this film, shall we?

By TODAY'S standards, this is a "cheesy" kinda film compared to what technology we've got. And I think at the time of this release we had gotten "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" and "Star Wars" so our expectation levels were running higher for "special effects" and "whimsy" than this.

But I still can get entertainment out of this film.

How?

By remembering how old I was when I saw it and WHOM I was with when I saw it. My family.

I was a child. This film wasn't in my all time top ten, but it was...fun. It was one of those movies local channels threw on Sunday afternoon before or after a televised ball game..or when a ball game was rained out. Come on, admit it..you remember!

And that's the point. This film's special effects were nice..not spectacular..not even up to Ray Harryhausen's standards, but the Harryhausen mark was there which made it entertaining (Admit it, you LOVED the walrus scene!! How 'bout that Cyclops?!?! As a child this was all good! You remember!!).

For very young girls, this Sinbad was REALLY nice to look at back then. For the very young guys, so was Miss Jane Seymour and Miss Taryn Power. Then there was the story which was kinda fun, the adventure which was kinda whimsical and the happy ending where the bad guys got theirs'.

This was done at a time of assuming children would love this kinda stuff. Back then, more would have. Now, most children don't even think "Spy Kids" can give them a buzz.

This movie is about childhood and remembering what it was like to have an imagination and watch a story unfold for nothing but the sheer enjoyment of it...the fun of eating "Good 'n' Plenty", "Snowcaps", "Malted Milk Balls" and Popcorn without thinking about calorie content to make this even more fun to watch...and the "eye candy" of Wayne, Seymour and Power help a so-so story that's really better than a lot of stuff I've seen today that they charge ya $10 a ticket for! Parents may not have liked it as much as the children but that too is part of the fun!

Have a heart when watching this. Watch this as a "fun" romp....as remembering when families watched shows together (..or in my case my dad mumbling under his breath about how the game was due on and he had to sit through this 'crap' first!), the pre-teen tingles of watching a handsome Wayne, young Seymour and/or Power (...ya know...before having breast implants and weighing 95 pounds was mandatory in Hollywood for women to do this kind of film work?!?) and telling your parents you were REALLY interested in the story...really.

Maybe I've got a more "nostalgic" view about this film..its because I'm not looking for academy award winning material with this kind of film, but it does its job of...entertaining...and if you have children and want them to be children for a tad longer, this may be the film fare for them. Or just for you, if you want to curl up with some popcorn and remember "the good old movie fluff days" where special effects were done by hand and stop motion photography by the "grand-daddy" of the genre and a Sinbad movie where Sinbad actually looked like you might imagined him to look like back then and evil characters who were evil and got theirs....pretty much simplified.

Open your mind and when you have a moment...enjoy. Don't take it seriously just sit back... watch...and HAVE FUN..with your children, as a family.

Still holds up pretty well after 26 years

[Apollo_Tweed · 7/10 · 4 December 2003]

After having re-visited Harryhausen's Sinbad trilogy recently, I have decided that this one, overall, compares very favourably with the other two. It is the most epic of the trilogy and has the most ambitious storyline (POSSIBLE SPOILER) involving a voyage into a lost world hidden behind the ice sheets at the North Pole (no doubt an idea partly influenced by Disney's 1974 'The Island at the Top of the World').

The creatures in this one are the least spectacular of the trilogy (THE SEVENTH VOYAGE & THE GOLDEN VOYAGE have better and more spectacular ones) but Harryhausen's artistry is as great as ever and he really should have been given a special accolade for imbuing Kassim the Baboon and the Troglodyte with so much character. It really is remarkable watching them 'act'. Demanding kids may find the creatures disappointing but now that I am older I can appreciate the fine work that went into realising them. Harryhausen's puppet work possesses a tangibility that CGI is only just now coming close to emulating.

I also find that I care about the characters in this film and what happens to them. The woodenness of the acting and the dialogue of the previous 2 films in some way stopped me from caring very much. This picture does not suffer in the same way, as both acting and dialogue, while nothing special, are better here. Jane Seymour is also very easy on the eye and is the best looking Sinbad girl of them all.

Overall, highly recommended for young (but not very young) children and for adults who were kids when it first came out and want to recapture some nostalgic vibes. I feel that this one is best for a sense of epic adventure and empathetic characters, THE SEVENTH VOYAGE OF SINBAD is best for the monsters and THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD is quite possibly the best of the trilogy overall.

7/10 ~ 4/5 ~ Imperfectly Wonderful Ray Harryhausen Fantasy Fun.

[Doctor_Mabuse · 7/10 · 10 March 2005]

Sinbad the Sailor voyages to the mythic northern realm of Hyperborea to restore a caliph from an evil witch's transformation.

Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger, the follow-up to the classics The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad and The Golden Voyage of Sinbad, is an uneven conclusion to Ray Harryhausen's celebrated "Sinbad Trilogy". The troubled production began with a draggy script, budgetary restrictions and an inexperienced director; the film as released suffers from choppy editing, over-length and routine music scoring. One animation highlight (the giant walrus) is obscured by an optical snowstorm. The attractive cast performs listlessly and the villain is campy rather than truly menacing, although former "Doctor Who" Patrick Troughton is delightful as a befuddled wizard.

Yet, for all its flaws, Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger remains an entertaining escapade in the old-fashioned Saturday-Matinée tradition. Costuming and settings are colorful and the film looks handsome in widescreen. The quest for the mystical Shrine of the Four Elements has a particularly epic quality with the usual eclectic blend of mythical elements set against the backdrop of the Arabian Nights.

Most importantly, Harryhausen's realistic stop-motion animation is as extraordinary as ever, with two of the animated-puppet creatures -- Kassim the Baboon and Trog the Troglodyte -- successfully functioning as actual communicative characters within the body of the story. Other wonders include insectoid demons, an over-sized mosquito, Minaton the Brass Minotaur and the saber-tooth tiger of the title.

Genuine movie fantasy is a rare commodity, and Ray Harryhausen's vision and conviction shine through the circumstances of production to make this a satisfying final visit to the land beyond Beyond.

DVD release is a gem for Harryhausen fans

[midnightrane · 6/10 · 29 December 2001]

Okay, so the film isn't a masterpiece for anyone involved, but the DVD is worth the price for Harryhausen fans. I won't reiterate a fairly lame plot but to say that a prince is morphed into a baboon and Sinbad must find a way to correct this untimely development in order to repay a friend and win the hand of the lovely Jane Seymour. All in all, the film turns out to be rather entertaining once Patrick Troughton makes it on-screen to flesh-out the dialogue. Overshadowing the movie's multiple shortcomings, however, is the always inspiring stop-motion work of Ray Harryhausen. The Trog and sabre-tooth are two fine creations and while we don't see anything on par with the 7 skeletons in "Jason & the Argonauts" or Medusa from "Clash of the Titans" there are some great moments with other creatures. While to be treasured as one of Harryhausen's last films the DVD also includes the added bonus of "The Ray Harryhausen Chronicles", an in-depth documentary narrated by Leonard Nimoy featuring a bio and interviews with today's FX masters. This and other features combine to make an otherwise average fantasy/adventure film worth a look--if you're a Harryhausen fan and you've got a DVD player. For all the extra features, I'll give the DVD a 6/10.

Enjoyed this film in 1977

[whpratt1 · 6/10 · 13 January 2007]

Enjoyed seeing this film after first viewing this film in 1977 and was spellbound and enjoyed the great acting of Patrick Wayne,(Sinbad) who manages to accomplish his task against the forces of Evil vs. Good. Taryn Power, (Diane) was very beautiful in her supporting role along with Margaret Whiting, (Zednobia). Sinbad has to face the evil powers of a wicked witch who uses all her powers to prevent Sinbad from carrying out his mission. It was nice to see Jan Seymour, (Princess Farah) who was very young and just starting out on a great career on the Silver Screen. In 1974 I really enjoyed that Sinbad film and this was even better when I first viewed this in 1977, it brought back fond memories, however, I love the films today and all the great graphics. This was just a look back at movies we thought were outstanding. They STILL ARE!

A weak Sinbad, but still a first-rate tale.

[G.Spider · 30 October 1999]

A film with animation by Ray Harryhausen. It's a pity he couldn't have animated Patrick Wayne, who's bland performance means he comes across as the least interesting Sinbad. It is Patrick Troughton's excellently enigmatic Melanthius and Margaret Whiting's icy Zenobia who are the real stars of this show.

Sinbad travels to find a way to break the spell which has turned a prince into a baboon, but Zenobia, who has plans to ensure her son is crowned king in the prince's place, calls upon the help of various mythical creatures. The minotaur is by far the best of these and ought to have faced Sinbad and his crew rather than just being crushed in an ignoble exit. Other memorable creatures include a giant walrus, insectoid-faced demons and a sabre-toothed cat. Though the central character of the title is somewhat lacking, this is still first-rate entertainment and genuine escapism, two things somewhat lacking in more recent films.

Wonderful adventure filmed in Spain where Sinbad seeks to restore a prince from monkey spell to which an evil witch has reduced him

[ma-cortes · 6/10 · 22 May 2012]

Loose retelling of the ¨ 1001 Arabian nights¨ , based on ancient legends , deals with Sinbad The Sailor (Patrick Wayne) sails to deliver a cursed prince Kassin (Damien Thomas) to a dangerous island in the face of deadly opposition from a powerful witch (Margaret Whiting) . In the mysterious land Hyperboria Sinbad along with a sorcerer (Patrick Troughton) and his crew encounter magical and mystical creatures .

This exciting picture contains swashbuckling , magic , fast-moving plot , thrills , impressive fights among monsters and lots of fun . It is an exciting fantasy-adventure full of special effects created by means of stop-motion technique by the magician Ray Harryhausen . The runtime is adequate with various incidents and sub-plots . Harryhausen works his animation magic around a passable-developed screenplay and engaging acting by the entire performers . The cast is enjoyable with sons of famous actors as Patrick Wayne and Taryn Power and a gorgeous and very young Jane Seymour . Agreeable film but hamhanded and confusing if you seek the hidden plot . Ray can once again claim credit for the unusual and marvelous mythical creatures springing to life , such as Smilodon , Troglodite , Mandril , an enormous mosquito , a giant Morse and many others . The picture belongs a trilogy , produced by Ray Harryhausen and Charles H. Schneer , along with ¨The seventh voyage of Simbad¨ (1958) by Nathan Juran with Kerwin Matthews and Kathryn Grant and ¨Golden voyage of Simbad¨ (1973) by Gordon Hessler with John Philip Law , Tom Baker and Caroline Munro . Great and rousing musical score by Roy Budd . Colorful cinematography by Ted Moore , filmed in Jordan (Petra) and Spain . Rating : Acceptable and passable . The motion picture was professionally directed by the usual actor Sam Wanamaker . Don't watch this one for the screenplay , which almost doesn't exist , otherwise , mildly fun .

Other pictures about the great hero Simbad are the following : ¨Sinbad the sailor¨ (1947) with Douglas Fairbanks Jr , Maureen O'Hara and Anthony Quinn ; ¨Sinbad of the seven seas¨ by Enzo G Castellari with Lou Ferrigno and John Steiner and the cartoon movie ¨Simbad the legend of seven seas¨ (2003) produced by Dreamworks , a combo of computer generator and hand-drawn animation by Patrick Gilmore and Tim Johnson with voices from Brad Pitt and Catherine Zeta Jones.

I liked this Sinbad movie!

[GOWBTW · 7/10 · 7 April 2007]

I haven't seen many Sinbad movies, but this one I liked very much. I remember seeing the preview when I was younger. And I said to myself, "This movie looks like fun!" The animation in the movie gave it plenty of character. And Sinbad(Patrick Wayne) was a fine man as well. The witch(Margaret Whiting) was a very fiendish woman. She makes all other witches look like amateurs, especially when she used her sorcery. Her only flaw is when her re-transformation from a bird didn't complete itself. It's when her right foot is still a bird's. The growth formula was something when one of the bees drank it. and was later killed by Sinbad. Jane Seymour does a great job playing Princess Farah. She really knows how to control, and tame things that Sinbad couldn't do. The giant walrus, the golden minotaur, and a the vicious saber-tooth tiger gives the movie something to see. I think this movie is very watchable, and very entertaining. I wished it had gotten better reviews than it did. 3 out of 5 stars!

Ray Harryhausen at his very best

[wvcruffler · 10/10 · 13 February 2005]

When I saw this in the theater as a 7 or 8 year old kid, I cried when it finished. It was by far the most captivating movie I had ever seen. I liked it better than Star Wars. The unbelievable stop-motion effects of Harryhausen still look great, even when compared to CGI. Things have not improved much. And Jane Seymore in the belly-dancer outfit! Good Lord! You must see this movie to believe it! The gold minotaur rowing the boat and the fight between the troglodyte and the saber-toothed tiger at the end stand out in my mind so strongly when I think of this movie.Get a copy of this movie, Jason and the Argonauts, and then Clash of the Titans and you have a fantastic Saturday afternoon of movie watching.

Flawed but very enjoyable childhood favourite

[TheLittleSongbird · 7/10 · 22 June 2010]

Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger was something I loved as a child. From a 18 year old perspective, it doesn't enthrall me as much, but it still entertains me, even with its flaws. The screenplay is pretty weak and cheesy, the pacing rather uneven not helped by the fact the film is a tad overlong and Patrick Wayne a dashing if bland Sinbad, but there is still a lot to enjoy. For one thing, the special effects are absolutely incredible especially the chess-playing baboon and the ferocious sabre-tooth tiger and the scenery is breathtaking. Add a nice story, decent direction and a rousing score and you have an entertaining enough adventure. A few acting mentions wouldn't go amiss though. Jane Seymour is fabulously sexy as the Princess Farrah, the late Patrick Troughton is a deliciously enigmatic Melanthious and Margaret Whiting is very icy and chilling as cruel villainess Zenobia. Overall, entertaining and enjoyable, with flaws yes but I recommend it. 7/10 Bethany Cox

Rounds out the trilogy nicely.

[hitchcockthelegend · 7/10 · 9 July 2010]

Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger is directed by Sam Wannamaker and is the third and final Sinbad film that Ray Harryhausen (and his stop-motion creations) made for Columbia after The 7th Voyage of Sinbad and The Golden Voyage of Sinbad. It stars Patrick Wayne (Sinbad), Jane Seymour (Princess Farah), Taryn Power (Dione), Patrick Troughton (Melanthius), Margaret Whiting (Zenobia) and Nadim Sawalha (Hassan). Studio work was done in England, with the exterior location work done in Spain, Malta and Jordan.

Evil sorceress Zenobia has designs on the throne and transforms the heir, Prince Kassim, into a Baboon. Kassim's sister calls on Captain Sinbad for help, who learns that a fabled man by the name of Melanthius may be their only hope. They face a perilous journey to the end of the World (a place called Hyperborea) with Zenobia and her black magic tricks in hot pursuit.

Depending on if you are a fantasy/adventure fan or not may determine how much, if at all, you get from Sinbad & The Eye Of The Tiger. For the film is chocked full of cheese and acting of the hammiest kind. The plot is your standard set up for the irrepressible Sinbad-he must travel to some remote destination to stave off evil and realign the World, and our faith, in the name of good. While it's safe to say that the film is about 15 minutes too long for a Sinbad adventure. On the other side of the coin, tho, fans of the genre and Harryhausen's work are in for a treat.

The cast have as much charisma than you can shake a stick at, perhaps not surprising when you have the offspring of John & Tyrone starring, and the adventure is colourful and dealing nicely in the realm of the fantastique. It also finds Harryhausen on super form as we are treated to skeletal demons, a bronze minotan, a big bad wasp, a gigantic walrus, a trog and a snarling sabre tooth tiger. But best of all is his baboon because the creature is part of the cast from practically start to finish, thus it interacts with the human actors and has a personality all of its own. With one particularly emotive scene a real standout in the Harryhausen/Sinbad trilogy. For the girls is the sight of Wayne in fine physical and swash buckling shape, and for the boys is the twin niceties of Power and Seymour who steadily get skimpier in their attire during the course of the story. Troughton has a good time as the mad/eccentric/genius alchemist, while Whiting owns the film with her delightfully over the top trip into evil villainy.

It's presumed that newcomers to the movie know what to expect going into this one, whilst old fans revisiting it should hopefully find that it's holding up rather well considering the genre it sits in. Good old family fun that may be weak on story but strong on popcorn entertainment value. 7/10

Fun Sinbad Adventure with Patrick Wayne, Jane Seymour & Taryn Power

[Wuchakk · 7/10 · 12 December 2013]

I don't get why so many people pan this 1977 Sinbad adventure film, the third in a trilogy featuring Ray Harryhausen's special effects creations. The previous installments are 1958's "The 7th Voyage of Sinbad" and 1973's "The Golden Voyage of Sinbad."

THE PLOT: Princess Farah's (Jane Seymour) brother, who's about to be crowned Caliph of the kingdom, is turned into a baboon by the envious sorceress Zenobia (Margaret Whiting) who wants her son to be Caliph instead (Kurt Christian). Sinbad (Patrick Wayne) escorts Farah and her baboon brother on a grand adventure to restore his humanity before Zenobia's son is crowned. The long quest includes meeting the wizard Melanthius (Patrick Troughton) and his beautiful daughter Dione (Taryn Power). They travel to arctic regions and along the way are exposed to all kinds of fantastical creatures and supernatural experiences.

Sinbad adventures play like a Middle Eastern version of Conan the Barbarian, albeit with a slightly funner edge and a less dour protagonist. So, if you love Conan you'll likely appreciate all three Sinbad films. And even though I describe it as having a fun edge, don't think "Eye of the Tiger" is goofy. It's not. This is a serious Sinbad adventure, but the protagonists exude the joy and vitality of living.

The items I demand in a Sinbad adventure are obvious: A good casting choice for Sinbad, a great adventure story & locations, a colorful assortment of likable characters & love-to-hate villains, beautiful women, and quality F/X work. "Eye of the Tiger" delivers in all these areas: Patrick Wayne is superb as the titular hero and IMO the best of the three actors who played the character in the trilogy (the others being Kerwin Mathews and John Phillip Law). I don't see why so many criticize him as "wooden" or somehow sub-par. He's perfect for the role and I'm bewildered as to why he didn't have a more stellar career. I know this is blasphemy to some, but I prefer him to his famous father. He's in the same masculine league as Charleton Heston and Burt Reynolds.

The story is everything you'd want in a Sinbad yarn -- grand adventure on the high seas with intermittent supernatural elements. The locations are fabulous -- Jordan, Petra (Melanthius's lair), Malta and Spain. There's even an arctic sequence with snowy locations and fairly convincing studio sets.

The characters are indeed colorful and well-cast. Whiting puts her heart & soul into her role as the witch with a capital "B" and Troughton is charismatic as the likable old magician.

As for women, this is one of the highlights of the film as the young brunette Jane Seymour and blond Taryn Power (Tyrone's daughter) are breathtaking to behold in every scene they appear. The film's worth watching just for Jane & Taryn. As for Harryhausen's effects, they're pretty much the same as his work in his other films, e.g. "Clash of the Titans," "Jason and the Argonauts" and "Mysterious Island." It just comes down to whether or not you like the creature(s) in question. Nothing here is as good as his Medusa and skeleton gang in other films IMHO, but it's a matter of preference. I personally don't find the saber-tooth tiger very impressive, but who can deny the greatness of the troglodyte as a sympathetic animated character? Anyway, the F/X sequences are just icing on the cake as far as I'm concerned. They don't make or break the film. The story, characters and locations are what really matter.

FINAL ANALYSIS: Don't listen to the critics! This is a very entertaining Sinbad adventure on all counts. It's main flaw is that it's too long for it's own good. Regardless, I have a good time whenever I see it and prefer it to the previous two films. Patrick Wayne is a great Sinbad, the story captures your attention, the locations are fabulous, and Jane Seymour & Taryn Power are delectable. It's at least on par with "The Golden Voyage," although I give "Eye" the edge.

The film runs 113 minutes.

GRADE: B

...not a strong Harryhausen-movie, but better than many people say...

[Prometheus9263 · 6/10 · 6 December 2002]

I must say first that I´m a great fan of Ray Harryhausen, and that may have a great influence to my opinion, but that movie isn´t really bad. It has good actors and the best-looking-Sinbad ever (if I should say that because I´m a man...). The effects are, as always in a Harryhausen-movie, excellent, but many people say that it was not for the best that Harryhausen took some creatures from earlier films: that might be partially true, the creatures from the beginning sequence are looking like the selenites from FIRST MEN IN THE MOON, but it is not the right of the master to copy himself? He did also in JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS with the fighting skeletons, where he copied Kerwin Mathews´ fight in 7TH VOYAGE OF SINBAD against the skeleton that Torin Thatcher took to life. Margaret Whiting (surely a good actress) as the opponent of Sinbad is not very strong. No comparison with Torin Thatcher in 7TH VOYAGE OF SINBAD or Tom Baker in GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD.

Is this the only film in which the hero gets to fight a gigantic killer walrus?

[JamesHitchcock · 6/10 · 11 September 2008]

Prince Kassim, the young heir to the throne of Baghdad, is magically transformed into a baboon by his evil stepmother, the witch Zenobia, who wants the throne for her own son, Kassim's half-brother Rafi. Sinbad, accompanied by Kassim's beautiful sister Princess Farah, as well as the Prince himself in his monkey form, sets sail in search of a cure. This being a Ray Harryhausen film, much of the plot involves the heroes struggling against various monsters, all animated by the stop-motion process which Harryhausen pioneered. This must be the only film in which the hero gets to fight a gigantic killer walrus. The title "Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger" may refer to the fact that, having seen off the walrus, Sinbad then has to battle a sabre-toothed tiger, although I am not sure how the "eye" part fits in.

This was the third and last of Harryhausen's films about the legendary hero Sinbad the Sailor, the others being "The Golden Voyage of Sinbad" and "The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad". It was not, however, Harryhausen's final film; that was to be "Clash of the Titans" from four years later. In the fifties and early sixties his techniques of film-making (which he named "Dynamation" or "Dynarama"), combining stop-motion animation with live action, seemed something new and exciting, opening up new possibilities for fantasy films. By the late seventies they were starting to look old-fashioned; there is little in "Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger" (which came out in the same year as "Star Wars") to distinguish it from "The Seventh Voyage" which had come out nearly twenty years earlier.

Today, of course, films made using the "Dynamation" process have a very retro feel to them, but I have long had a soft spot for Harryhausen's work ever since I was taken, as a child, to see a double bill of "The Seventh Voyage" and "Jason and the Argonauts" as part of a friend's birthday treat. I would not rate "Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger" quite as highly as either of those films. The acting is variable; neither Patrick Wayne as the hero nor Taryn Power has the talent or the charisma of their famous fathers, but Margaret Whiting as Zenobia makes a splendidly over-the-top villainess, former Doctor Who Patrick Troughton is good as the wise old philosopher Melanthius and Jane Seymour as Farah looks as lovely as ever. With its fairy-tale Arabian Nights atmosphere, this film can perhaps best be described as the cinematic equivalent of a pantomime, and like most pantomimes serves as very enjoyable family entertainment. 6/10

Really cheesy but lots of fun

[Marta · 10/10 · 7 February 1999]

This is one of my guilty pleasures; everyone makes fun of me because I love this movie. Ray Harryhausen has been panned over this film, but I think he did a fantastic job. It's inventive and eye-catching, and the Minoton is a marvel.

Patrick Wayne is strong-jawed and stalwart as Sinbad, but Jane Seymour, as the princess, obviously hadn't done much acting yet when she made this film. She's really bad in the role of Sinbad's love interest. She beat Bo Derek by 4 years in starting the cornrow hairstyle, and most of her hairdos in this movie are more interesting than her acting. The biggest hoot in the movie is Margaret Whiting as the evil Queen. She's got an accent that won't quit, but as the film goes on that accent begins to fascinate the viewer; she's a really good actress, which surprised me. Even when she turns herself into a seagull.

It's the outlandish creatures, scenes, and settings that a Harryhausen movie always has that are its great charms, and this film is one of the most inventive of his career. Don't expect rocket science when you watch this, just expect to be royally entertained. The new Twilight Time Blu-ray release (December 2013) of the film is a wonder and highly recommended, but hurry and order it today...there are only 3,000 copies available.

Supporting characters rule the ship

[jcholguin · 6/10 · 16 June 2002]

Whenever I think of Sinbad, I always think of creatures, more creatures and then Sinbad and his sword. This movie has some interesting creatures but the whole story revolves around people. A prince is changed into a baboon just before he is crowned as the new ruler. Magic from a witch by the name of Zenobia is the culprit. Sinbad loves the sister of the prince and vows to seek out Melanthius a wise man played wonderfully by Patrick Troughton. Melanthius does not process any special powers except that of knowledge. Is knowledge enough to overcome the evil potions of Zenobia? The baboon, oops, I mean the prince falls in love with Melanthius's daughter Farah, played by Jane Seymour. So the beauty of Farah is used to the advantage of the travelers as a large Trog also falls for Farah. A fair outing for a Sinbad feature, but the real gems of the film are Troughton and Seymour, and of course some creatures to fight.

Great Harryhausen effects make up for poor screenplay

[Alberto-7 · 5/10 · 6 April 2006]

**Some light spoilers** If you compare the three Sinbad movies produced by Charles H. Schneer and Ray Harryhausen, this one is easily the weakest. Firstly, Patrick Wayne is dull as heck in the role of Sinbad. Secondly, the film is much too long. Thirdly, the dialog and story are poor even for this kind of movie. But not to despair there are several great reasons to watch it. The great Harryhausen monsters and the very sexy Jane Seymour are the main reasons. The great locations in Malta, Jordan and Spain are also very well chosen and add to the atmosphere. They seem like mysterious lands where monsters could be lurking at every turn(and usually are). The Harryhausen monsters are great especially the Troglodyte and the chess playing baboon. The Minoton is also cool (only in the animated sequences but certainly not when it is a man in a rubber suit). What can I say about Jane Seymour but WOW!! What she lacks in acting ability she makes up for in screen presence and beauty. Upon re-viewing the film I realized that the Sinbad character does almost nothing useful until the very end when he fights the Tiger. He is mainly there to go along with the other characters and look good. Wayne plays him with almost no personality whatsoever. Taryn Power (Tyronne's daughter) is OK in a secondary role but I suspect she was cast more for her looks than anything else. Margaret Whiting is completely over-the-top as the villainous Zenobia but at least she seems to be having fun with all the corny dialog(her transformation into a seagull is laughable and the only bad special effect in the film). One thing that struck me as odd is with the amount of great location footage shot in this film almost all the closeups were shot in a studio with a blue screen. This is very weird as it is obvious that the main cast are in the long and medium shots, shot on location. Did the producers run out of time or money before shooting the close-ups or what? Overall a good film to see on a rainy day or with a child. If you let your imagination take over it works even better.

A weaker Sinbad movie, but with one of the best collection of monsters.

[vip_ebriega · 7/10 · 18 February 2007]

My Take: Good special effects make up for a somewhat lackluster storyline.

I love watching Ray Harryhausen monster movies, they are really fun to watch. I consider it a gem whenever I find one in a video outlet, an addition to my collection. Harryhausen's effects may be dated to other viewers, but never for me. I mean, for I can see, he started it all. Currently, I have 4 Harryhausen monster flicks. "The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms", "Clash of the Titans", and two Sinbad films, "The 7th Voyage of Sinbad" and "Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger".

"Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger" is a weaker entry in the many movies having Harryhausen's stop-motion monsters, but it contains one of the most elaborate collection of fantasy monsters. Well, we get to see a group of bug-eyed ghouls, a near-human baboon (which is actually a cursed prince), a bronze Minaton (also known as Minatour in mythology), a large bee, a gigantic Walrus (one of my favorite of the batch), a club-wielding Troglodyte and a saber-toothed tiger. All pretty well done.

But lets go to the bad things about this movie. Well, the story's fine, but the script is lacking and the acting is fair. Patrick Wayne lacks the makings of a great Sinbad. I think that the only good performer is Patrick Troughton as the wise Melanthius.

The film is weaker, compared to the fantasy films of this kind, but it is still a wondrous Arabian Nights adventure. Oh yeah, for those who wonder what the Eye of the Tiger is, your guess is as good as mine.

Rating: ***1/2 out of 5.

entertaining but slow, not too memorable

[rebeljenn · 3/10 · 13 May 2006]

'Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger' is an old-fashioned action film about the sailor hero. This time, he tries to defeat a witch who has transformed the rightful king into a monkey so her son can be king. Throughout the journey to defeat her and restore the throne to its rightful owner, Sinbad and the others fight mythological creatures and provide several entertaining action sequences throughout the film. Although it is packed with action, the acting seems a little fake, and the direction seems somewhat lost throughout the film without a strong, defining characters and conflicts as one action sequence blends into another. Overall, it is not too bad for an older action film, but do not expect much in the way of a plot. It could have probably been a better story as the ideas were interesting.

Far-Out Tale Involving Sinbad

[BaronBl00d · 29 June 2003]

Okay, the story for this film, already stated to some length, is obviously weak. A prince turned into a chess-playing baboon is taken to the Artic to go to some mystical land, Hyperbalia or something like that, so that he can resume his former shape. The legend basis of this film is almost non-existent as we see a pyramid at the the northern-most part of the world that is guarded by an ice-covered sabre-tooth tiger. Hmmm...okay, Ill buy. In the process of this "world", we see images of Egyptian, Indian, and even Greek deities abounding throughout. Boy, what travelers all these folks were! Story notwithstanding. This film is fun if not ridiculous. Patrick Wayne easily makes the weakest and least-interesting Sinbad. An in-grown toe nail oozes more passion. The female leads are "fleshed" out with Jane Seymour and Taryn Power(daughter of Tyronne Power). Seymour has moments that show her ability to act; Power has no such moments. The real plusses come from supporting players Patrick Troughton( a former Dr. Who) and Margaret Whiting as the evil Zenobia, foil to Sinbad and his baboon-changing-back-to-prince plans. Troughton plays Melanthius, the wisest man on earth, yet makes one inept, incredibly stupid mistake after another when the ship is visited by Zenobia ala gull. Watch and see if his actions make any sense to you. Troughton CAN act though and brings some much needed life to the human cast of the film. The real joy of the cast is Whiting playing this thickly-accented evil persona chewing up as much scenery as she can. Watching her hobble about and use her eyes was a real hoot! But like any other Harryhausen film, the "real" cast takes a backseat to the animated ones. The film definitely has a weaker array of creatures for a Harryhausen film, and no one stand-out creature, but there are some good ones like the gold Miniton(minitour), the sabre-toothed tiger, and the Trogolyte, a creature that exudes a great deal of emotion for a figure such as this. The giant walrus was a bit lame as were the creatures created out of flames by Zenobia in the beginning of the film. Harryhausen and Producer Charles Schneer still deliver some good action and effects amidst the very, very weak script(co-written by Harryhausen), the mediocre direction of Sam Wanamaker, and the listless performance of Patrick Wayne.

Sinbad the Sailor man - toot toot

[one9eighty · 6/10 · 2 June 2020]

In order to get the girl, Sinbad must lift a curse on a royal friend. His quest takes him to a mythical island, but he's hunted the duration of the journey by an evil witch. Fun adventure film that was ahead of its time thanks to being touched up by Ray Harryhausen. Lovely imagery in a more innocent time of film. Swashbuckling a plenty, fantasy, action, magic, thrills, and monsters! Absolutely a film for a lazy weekend day with family friendly fun.

The Worst of the Three, but still fun

[dwankan · 7/10 · 15 August 2023]

I recently re-watched the three Sinbad the Sailor movies, and this was my least favorite of the three, but it only barely falls behind The Seventh Voyage.

There are a lot of things I love about this last installment in the series, and quite a few that had me rolling my eyes.

The plot took a lot of interesting turns that were quite different from the previous two. Some of these were great, but some were not so great.

Jane Seymour wasn't even close to as annoying as Kathryn Grant playing Parisa, but her acting wasn't very good, and she was absurdly overplayed as eye-candy. She's great to look at, but they put very little effort into disguising the fact that she served virtually no other purpose in the film.

Some of the creatures were good, but none were as memorable as the creatures in the first two (the second had the best). The titular "tiger" was the best visually, but it felt very tacked on, as if they'd created the title for the film and then figured out a way to cram a tiger into the plot.

I did enjoy Margaret Whiting as Zenobia, adding a bit of nuance with a female antagonist, but there was virtually no logic to her "magic," a problem the other two films had as well, but this one took it to a new extreme.

All in all, it's a fun film to watch, if you can get past the cheesiness of it. Having enjoyed it as a kid might go a long way toward solving that problem, but if you've never seen it before, it may be far too dated for you.

Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger

[CinemaSerf · 7/10 · 4 June 2023]

This is a cracking action fantasy tale with Patrick Wayne as our hero out to restore his friend the Caliph to human form after the evil sorceress "Zenobia" (Margaret Whiting) turned him into an ape. Sam Wanamaker treats the audience as more grown up than in many of these stop-motion animation films; the monsters seem to have bit more "soul" - particularly the cyclops; and Patrick Troughton as "Melanthius" is more of a telepathic scientist than possessor of mystic powers. Ray Harryhausen is in his element and we have plenty of fun with a cast also featuring Jane Seymour and Taryn Power. It doesn't need your brain to get out of second gear, but is a very creatively put together adventure film with loads going on.

Not Much Better Than The '50s Sci-Fi Stinkers

[ccthemovieman-1 · 2/10 · 19 May 2007]

This has the typical good and bad of those 1950s mythical stories with Jason & The Argonauts and Sinbad and The Golden Fleece, etc. The good being Ray Harryhuasen's special effects and the bad being the stupid dialog and sub-par acting. Boy, this one really has both in spades.

Since this film was done 20 years after those other films, I expected Harryhausen's special effects to be far better, to be honest. For a 1977 film, it didn't look far removed from the cheesy efforts of the 1950s. Maybe part of that was the horrible dialog. The latter was so bad this film was embarrassing to watch at times.

I'd like to see some of these re-made today. I am sure they would be far superior to this Class B junk.

good harryhausen fantasy movie

[r-c-s · 8/10 · 29 December 2005]

This is a good, mild, entertaining family-oriented fantasy movie. SFX by Harryhausen are good era & genre-wise. However this movie is not quite a pure SFX extravaganza, but belongs better to a fairy tale, say Krull or else. You get many conventional subplots: * good prince is turned into a baboon while his evil stepmother wants to see her own son becoming Calif. * belle princess in love with the brave sailor Sinbad. * a secret hermit from a mysterious island. * mummies out of hell, giant tigers, a robot minotaur. * only six moons to counter the spell. * a trip through the north pole. etc etc. A nice movie, very easily watchable.