THE SINBAD TRILOGY [1958 / 1973 / 1977 / 2017] [Limited Edition] [Blu-ray + DVD] [UK Release] The New Miracle of DYNAMATION!
‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ [1958], ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ [1973] and ‘SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER’ [1977]. These all-time classic adventures, each featuring pioneering special effects by filmmaking legend Ray Harryhausen, are presented here in stunning restorations on Blu-ray for the very first time in the UK by Powerhouse Films + INDICATOR. Containing a wealth of new and archival extras, including exclusive interviews with actors Caroline Munro, Jane Seymour and Tom Baker, and rare recordings of Ray Harryhausen and producer Charles H. Schneer in conversation. This stunning Limited Dual Format Edition Box Set from Powerhouse Films + INDICATOR is strictly limited to 6,000 units.
FILM FACT No.1: Awards and Nominations: ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ 1959 Hugo Awards: Nomination: Best Dramatic Presentation for Nathan Juran (director), Ken Kolb (screenplay) and Ray Harryhausen (story). 1988 International Film Music Critic Award: Nomination: FMCJ Award for Best New Recording of a Previously Existing Score for Bernard Herrmann. ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ 1975 Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA: Win: Golden Scroll for Best Fantasy Film. Win: Golden Scroll for Best Stop Motion Animation for Ray Harryhausen. 1974 National Board of Reviews, USA: Win: Special Citation for Outstanding Special Effects. ‘SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER’ 1978 Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA: Nomination: Saturn Award for Best Fantasy Film. Nomination: Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress for Margaret Whiting. Win: Saturn Award for Outstanding Stop Motion Animated Film. Nomination: Saturn Award for Best Costumes for Cynthia Tingey. Nomination: Saturn Award for Best Special Effects for Ray Harryhausen.
FILM FACT No.2: It took Ray Harryhausen 11 months to complete the full colour, widescreen stop-motion animation sequences for ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’ Ray Harryhausen's "DYNAMATION" label was used for the first time on this film. The music score for ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ was composed by Bernard Herrmann, better known at the time for his collaboration with the director Alfred Hitchcock. Bernard Herrmann went on to write the music scores for three other Ray Harryhausen films: ‘Mysterious Island,’ ‘The Three Worlds of Gulliver,’ and ‘Jason and the Argonauts.’ An early charcoal/pencil illustration showed the one-eyed centaur battling a giant Neanderthal-like creature, who was later ultimately replaced by a griffin in the final version. ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ live action sequences were filmed in Almería city in Andalusia, Spain, Malta and Jordan. The idea of the Neanderthal was later featured in ‘SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER’ [1977].
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‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’
Cast: Kerwin Mathews, Kathryn Grant, Richard Eyer, Torin Thatcher, Alec Mango, Harold Kasket, Alfred Brown, Nana DeHerrera, Nino Falanga, Luis Guedes, Virgilio Teixeira, Robert Barnete and Juan Olaguivel (uncredited)
Director: Nathan Juran
Producers: Charles H. Schneer and Ray Harryhausen (uncredited)
Screenplay: Ken Kolb (written) and Ray Harryhausen (story) (uncredited)
Composer: Bernard Herrmann
Image Resolution: Blu-ray: 1080p (Technicolor) + DVD: 1080i (Technicolor)
Technicolor Color Consultant: Henri Jaffa
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
Audio: English: 1.0 Dolby Digital Mono Audio
English: 5.1 Dolby Digital Audio
English: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Orchestration only: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Subtitles: English
Cinematography: Wilkie Cooper, B.S.C. (Director of Photography)
Special Effects: George Lofgren (Technical assistant) and Manuel Baquero (Special effects technician) (uncredited)
Visual Effects: Ray Harryhausen (Special Visual Effects Creator)
Running Time: Blu-ray: 87 minutes + DVD: 87 minutes
Region: Blu-ray + DVD All Regions
Number of discs: 2
Studio: Columbia Pictures / Powerhouse Films / INDICATOR
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‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD’
Cast: John Phillip Law, Caroline Munro, Tom Baker, Douglas Wilmer, Martin Shaw, Grégoire Aslan, Kurt Christian, Takis Emmanuel, John Garfield, Aldo Sambrell, Ferdinando Poggi, Robert Rietty, (voice) (uncredited) and Robert Shaw (uncredited)
Director: Gordon Hessler
Producers: Charles H. Schneer and Ray Harryhausen
Screenplay: Brian Clemens (screenplay / story) and Ray Harryhausen (story)
Composer: Miklós Rózsa
Image Resolution: Blu-ray: 1080p (Eastmancolor) + DVD: 1080i (Eastmancolor)
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
Audio: English: 1.0 Dolby Digital Mono Audio
English: 5.1 Dolby Digital Audio
English: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Orchestration only: 5.1 Dolby Digital Audio
Subtitles: English
Make-up Department: José Antonio Sánchez (Make-up Artist) and José Quetglás (Assistant Make-up Artist) (uncredited)
Costume Design: Gabriella Falk (Costume Designer) and Verena Coleman (Costume Designer)
Special Masks: Colin Arthur
Cinematography: Ted Moore, B.S.C. (Director of Photography)
Special Effects: Antonio Baquero (Special Effects/Special Effects assistant) (uncredited), Fernando Pérez (Special Effects technician) (uncredited) and Manuel Baquero (Special Effects) (uncredited)
Visual Effects: Ray Harryhausen (Creator of Special Visual Effects), Roy Field (Special Photographic Effects) (uncredited) and Vic Margutti (Special Photographic Effects) (uncredited)
Running Time: Blu-ray: 104 minutes + DVD: 104 minutes
Region: Blu-ray + DVD: All Regions
Number of discs: 2
Studio: Columbia Pictures / Powerhouse Films / INDICATOR
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‘SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER’
Cast: Patrick Wayne, Taryn Power, Margaret Whiting, Jane Seymour, Patrick Troughton, Kurt Christian, Nadim Sawalha, Damien Thomas, Bruno Barnabe, Bernard Kay, Salami Coker, David Sterne, Pierre Mattocks (uncredited) and Peter Mayhew (uncredited)
Director: Sam Wanamaker
Producers: Andrew Donally (uncredited), Charles H. Schneer and Ray Harryhausen
Screenplay: Beverley Cross (screenplay / story) and Ray Harryhausen (story)
Composer: Roy Budd
Image Resolution: Blu-ray: 1080p (Metrocolor) (uncredited) + DVD: 1080i (Metrocolor) (uncredited)
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Audio: English: 1.0 LPCM Mono Audio
English: 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
English: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Orchestration only: 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
Subtitles: English
Make-up and Hair Department: Colin Arthur [Makeup Artist] and Jan Dorman [Hairdresser]
Costume Design: Cynthia Tingey
Cinematography: Ted Moore, B.S.C. (Director of Photography)
Special Effects: Chris Corbould [Special Effects assistant] (uncredited), Colin Chilvers [Special Effects] (uncredited), Fernando Pérez [Special Effects technician] (uncredited), Les Bowie [Models] (uncredited), Pablo Pérez [Special Effects coordinator] (uncredited), Tony McVey [Sculptor] (uncredited) and Wally Veevers [Special Effects] (uncredited)
Visual Effects: Ray Harryhausen [Creator of Special Visual Effects]
Running Time: Blu-ray: 113 minutes + DVD: 113 minutes
Region: Blu-ray + DVD All Regions
Number of discs: 2
Studio: Columbia Pictures / Powerhouse Films / INDICATOR
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Andrew’s Blu-ray Review: Powerhouse Films + INDICATOR with the cooperation of Columbia Pictures, brings you this brilliant and outstanding ‘THE SINBAD TRILOGY’ that is totally superb and totally sublime Blu-ray box set and especially from the master of stop motion visual effects, the totally brilliant and professional Ray Harryhausen, who brought us the following awesome magical fantasy films ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD,’ ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ and ‘SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER,’ that has been released under the fantastic banner of INDICATOR, which is a British Blu-ray label owned and operated by Powerhouse Films Ltd, London, England. INDICATOR was founded with a passion to make available lots of extensive range of classic and overlooked films, especially in producing exclusive Blu-ray Limited Editions. INDICATOR releases also contain lovingly produced extra features, with many of which are world premiere releases and mastered from the finest available materials, come packaged in containing exclusive booklets, newly commissioned essays, contemporary interviews, articles and reviews.
For more than two decades, Ray Harryhausen was number one in a field of one, a rare example of an auteur who was not a director but whose films were and remain instantly recognisable as his work, not just for the stop motion animated sequences that he alone created, but for their stories, their characters, their look, their subject matter and their pacing. Directors, cinematographers, editors, composers and actors all contributed hugely to the individual films, but each served the distinctive overriding vision of Ray Harryhausen and his supportive producing partner, Charles H. Schneer.
The definitive Saturday morning films, like ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ inspired waves of impressionable young children to go into the special effects business and felt Ray Harryhausen was a cinematic genius for fantasy film fans. Ray Harryhausen was a pioneer in the art of stop motion animation, Ray Harryhausen had already made an impression with his black-and-white sci-fi spectacles films like ‘20 Million Miles to Earth’ and ‘It Came from Beneath the Sea.’ However, the three Sinbad films offered for the first time special effects that could now be seen in vivid colour, and even better, Ray Harryhausen provided a whole slew of imaginative creatures, rather than one simple octopus or alien. ‘THE SINBAD TRILOGY’ films proved so popular that Ray Harryhausen remained very busy producing other fantastic literary adaptations and of course two more highly enjoyable Sinbad adventures. But for those who are not familiar with ‘THE SINBAD TRILOGY’ films, well here is a brief synopsis of the following brilliant and imaginative Ray Harryhausen stop-motion animation films.
‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ [1958] It's an incredible cinematic adventure as the legendary Sinbad [Kerwin Mathews] sets off on a dangerous journey to the mysterious Island of Colossus. Sinbad’s quest is to break the spell cast over his beloved Princess Parisa [Kathryn Grant] by a diabolical Sokurah the Magician [Torin Thatcher]. But before Sinbad can save Princess Parisa, Sinbad must battle an awesome collection of terrifying mythical monsters, the man-eating Cyclops, sabre-wielding skeletons, a ferocious two-headed bird called the Roc and a fire-breathing Dragon. Starring Kerwin Mathews, Kathryn Grant, Torin Thatcher and highlighted by the stunning visual special effects mastery of Ray Harryhausen. Now in pristine hi-definition transfer that captures the magic of Ray Harryhausen's “eye-popping” special amazing animated effects in dazzling Technicolor. Ray Harryhausen, utilised a combination of colour effects and stunning stop-animation, which he developed and termed “DYNAMATION!” to create the film’s many fantastical creatures and sequences. The lasting success of The 7th Voyage of Sinbad led to two sequels in the mid-1970’s and Rat Harryhausen’s animation. To this day, ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ remains a cinematographic achievement and a classic medievalist fantasy film which, is “beyond criticism.”
‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ [1973] This is a spectacular adventure set in mysterious ancient lands inhabited by incredible creatures! Sinbad [John Phillip Law], Prince of Baghdad and legendary sailor, finds an intriguing map and sets sail for the previously uncharted island of Lemuria with a beautiful slave girl, Margiana [Caroline Munro], and the Grand Vizier of the land of Marabia. Prince Koura [Tom Baker], an evil wizard who is trying to gain control of malevolent spirits, follows in an effort to thwart Sinbad's quest. Sinbad reaches Lemuria in spite of an enchantment Prince Koura casts upon the giant figurehead of Sinbad's ship which brings it to life. On Lemuria, Sinbad and his stalwart crew encounter a six-armed, sword-brandishing statue, a one-eyed centaur and a griffin. Finally, Sinbad confronts Prince Koura in a face-to-face duel to the death! This an all-time classic fantasy adventure, featuring the pioneering special effects of filmmaking legend Ray Harryhausen, and presented here in a stunning restoration on Blu-ray.
‘SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER’ [1977] Legendary adventurer Sinbad [Patrick Wayne] stops in a port town to visit his friend Prince Kassim [Damien Thomas], only to find the city walls locked and no one there to greet him except an evil witch, Queen Zenobia [Margaret Whiting], and her monstrous henchmen. Prince Kassim's sister, Princess Farah [Jane Seymour] finds Sinbad and informs him her brother has been transformed into a baboon by wicked Queen Zenobia, so now it's up to Sinbad to find the magic shrine that may be the only hope for restoring Prince Kassim to his human form. To break the wicked spell, Sinbad must set forth on a journey to the land of Hyperboria unlike any ever travelled. It is witchcraft and derring-do from the start to finish. Sinbad battles fantastical adversaries along the way, including a trio of ghouls, a killer wasp, a giant walrus and a troglodyte. The incredible, animated special effects by Ray Harryhausen will keep you spellbound as you sail with this Sinbad classic film.
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Blu-ray Image Quality – Columbia Pictures, Powerhouse Films + INDICATOR presents this brilliant box set of THE SINBAD TRILOGY and gets off to a fantastic start with a new 4K restoration of ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ and is presented the equally impressive 1.66:1 aspect ratio and the imagery is noticeably so much more refined than that of the inferior 2008 USA Blu-ray release, with totally brilliant enhanced detailing and a tighter film grain structure evident throughout the film. With the film ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ you have a 2K restoration which is another image presentation success this does an impressive highlighting the film's bold colours and intricate textures, but is also helped again with the enhanced 1.66:1 aspect ratio. Finally, the film ‘SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER’ is a slightly different story to the other two films, because the comparison to the 2013 Blu-ray release from Twilight Time indicates that the 1.85:1 aspect ratio seems to of been accessed from a much older HD master print that seems to suffer from a slightly blown-out highlighted imagery and edge-enhancement. But fear not, it is far from a total disaster, but is still disappointing knowing that better-quality source material does exist, but looks like this will be the only upgrade in the forcible future, so please make the most of it and again with these prints, unless Powerhouse Film + INDICATOR can only access the prints available, and again it is not a total disaster.
Blu-ray Audio Quality – Columbia Pictures, Powerhouse Films + INDICATOR brings us this brilliant box set of ‘THE SINBAD TRILOGY’ with three brilliant films and all three films feature a 1.0 Dolby Digital Mono Audio and an even more impressive is the 5.1 Dolby Digital Audio option. The sound quality across all three films is really excellent, with the biggest beneficiaries of the 5.1 remixes, especially for the film music scores and especially the Bernard Herrmann's film musical score for the first film, but the other two composers Miklós Rózsa and Roy Budd also manage to do equally impressive film music scores and with all these film music composers they help to bring all of the three films upgraded into the 21st century.
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Blu-ray Special Features and Extras:
‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’
Special Feature: Audio Commentary with Ray Harryhausen, Phil Tippet, Randall William Cooke, Steven Smith and Arnold Kunert [Audio only] [2008] [1080p] [1.66:1] [84:28] With this featurette, we get to hear this exclusive audio commentary with Director Ray Harryhausen, Visual Effects Experts Phil Tippet and Randall William Cooke, Author Steven Smith and Producer Arnold Kunert. First of all this audio commentary is a valuable inclusion, primarily for the presence of the late great Ray Harryhausen, who is then joined by Arnold Kunert, next is Randall William Cook, then Phil Tippett and finally Steven Smith and are all here to talk about the amazing fantasy film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’ We get to hear Ray Harryhausen outlining his working methods and techniques and explaining how specific sequences were created, while Phil Tippett and Randall William Cook reflect on Ray Harryhausen’s influence on their careers. Steven Smith provides some welcome detail and background on composer Bernard Herrmann's contribution. As we get near to the end of the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ on the 50th anniversary of the release of the 1958 film and each commentator thanks for their audio contribution to this very unique audio commentary, and talking about their favourite film composer Bernard Herrmann, and they also say that the 1958 film influenced their lives a lot, and it has been totally magic watching he film again and they also say to Ray Harryhausen that he is a living legend, and all thanks us for listening to this unique audio commentary, and it was really great fun. All in all, there is so much relevant information we get to hear, which is a shame, as I can only you give you some of the highlights due to the lack of space, and if you are a fan of the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD,’ and this is a totally essential extra, and there is plenty of material here that you will not find replicated elsewhere in these special features.
Special Feature: The Secrets of Sinbad [2017] [1080p / 480i] [1.78:1 / 1.66:1] [10:56] With this featurette, we get to view a nice in-depth interview with Visual Effects expert Phil Tippett who is here to talk in-depth about the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’ Phil Tippett reveals that he used to steal 8mm copies of Ray Harryhausen films in order to watch them over and over again, and recalls how he met and became friends with the Ray Harryhausen who inspired him to pursue a career in visual effects. Phil Tippett also informs us why Ray Harryhausen preferred to work alone, the recognisable aspects of his animation style, and how Ray Harryhausen became an inspiration for the next generation of visual effects artists. Phil Tippett also describes Ray Harryhausen as “a fun guy, as long as you didn't ask him how he really did things.” Please Note: Phil Tippett is an American movie director and Oscar and Emmy Award-winning visual effects supervisor and producer, who specialises in creature design, stop-motion and computerized character animation. As an added bonus we first get to view a short clip from the 1958 film entitled “Dragon’s Lair” where we see the Dragon come out of the cave to fight the Cyclops, and then the Dragon is killed and falls and kills the evil Sokurah the Magician. We also get to view some clips from the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’
Special Feature: Remembering the ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ [2008] [1080p / 1080i] [1.78:1] [23:32] With this featurette, we are remembering the late great genius of animation Ray Harryhausen with this unique and rare interview. We get to view an in-depth look at the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ with the personal comments by the legendary Ray Harryhausen, who traces his career from his first interest in stop-motion animation, and breaks with his earlier secrecy about his working methods to outline the technical challenges presented by some of his most celebrated sequences and how Ray Harryhausen overcame the technical challenges. We also get to view some totally amazing rare hand drawn illustrations of Ray Harryhausen. In the process, Ray Harryhausen highlights details on one of the creatures in ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ [1973] and about a technical issue regarding the colour temperature of the film. We again get to view more clips from the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’
Special Feature: A Look Behind the Voyage [1995] [480i] [1.37:1] [11:48] With this featurette, we look back at the genius of Ray Harryhausen, plus Charles H. Schneer and Kerwin Mathews to talk about the Columbia Pictures film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’ Initially the focus is on Ray Harryhausen and his early career, though this proves to be a prologue for discussion on various aspects of the ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ film's production, all of which is of considerable interest. We also get to view scenes from the 1958 film which includes Harufa [Alfred Brown] (archive footage) (uncredited), Princess Parisa [Kathryn Grant] and Sokurah the Magician [Torin Thatcher] (archive footage) (uncredited). We again get to view more clips from the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’ Contributors include: Charles H. Schneer [Producer], Ray Harryhausen [Animator] and Kerwin Mathews [Actor].
Special Feature: ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ Super 8mm Version [1973] [480i] [1.37:1] [29:58] With this featurette, we are informed that the popularity of cut-down Super 8mm versions of popular films were distributed for audiences to watch at home. In the case of the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ and we get to view four separate instalments were produced to showcase the film’s major set-pieces and distributed in both colour with sound and black-and-white silent editions. With all four instalments you get a selection of colour and black-and-white versions and what you get to view is the following: The Cyclops; The Strange Voyage; The Evil Magician and The Dragon’s Lair. You can either play each instalment separately or Play All. Be warned, the quality of what you view is atrocious.
Special Feature: Music Promo [Audio only] [1958] [1080p] [1.37:1] [2:35] With this featurette, we are informed that as part of its advertising campaign for the 1958 holiday release of the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD,’ Columbia Pictures – in collaboration with its records division Colpix Records which got its name from combining Columbia (Col) and Pictures (Pix) created a 45rpm single entitled “Sinbad May Have Been Bad, But He's Been Good to Me” which was sung by Ann Leonardo, and Cinema Managers nationwide were encouraged and intention to play the song in cinema lobbies when the customers arrived and they were informed that it would be perfect for all their music promotion department for the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD,’ and including disc jockeys and radio airings, and also offered prizes in contests the managers would care to create in their cinema theatres. The song was doubtless targeted to appeal to the younger viewers of the day, and it was shamelessly written and recorded to promote the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’ Please note: All you get to view is one image of the cinema poster for the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’
Special Feature: The Music of Bernard Herrmann [2008] [1080p] [1.78:1] [26:52] With this featurette, we get a very nice dedicated tribute for the genius film score composer Bernard Herrmann that is hosted by Bernard Herrmann biographer Steven Smith [Music Historian] and takes us on a journey in covering all aspects of the genius of film music composer Bernard Herrmann, and goes into the initial background of Bernard Herrmann by informing us that he was born Maximillian Herman on the 29th June, 1911 in New York City, U.S.A., passed away on the 24th December, 1975 after completing the composed film score for the film ‘Taxi Driver.’ Between two films made by Orson Welles, Bernard Herrmann wrote the score for William Dieterle's ‘The Devil and Daniel Webster’ [1941], for which he won his only Academy Award. In 1947, Bernard Herrmann scored the atmospheric music for ‘The Ghost and Mrs. Muir.’ In 1951, his score for ‘The Day the Earth Stood Still’ featured the Theremin. Bernard Herrmann was closely associated with the director Alfred Hitchcock and wrote the scores for seven Alfred Hitchcock films, from ‘The Trouble with Harry’ [1955] to ‘Marnie’ [1964], a period that included ‘Vertigo,’ ‘North by Northwest’ and ‘Psycho.’ Bernard Herrmann was also credited as sound consultant on ‘The Birds’ [1963], as there was no actual music in the film as such, only electronically made bird sounds. Steven Smith also informs us that Bernard Herrmann initially turned down the offer to compose the film music score for the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD,’ but of course after second thoughts decided to take on the project and was very proud of his work on the film. Here Steven Smith deconstructs the film music score for specific sequences in the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’ We again get to view more clips from the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’ We also get to view film clips from other Ray Harryhausen’s films that includes ‘3 Worlds of Gulliver;’ ‘Mysterious Island’ and ‘Jason and the Argonauts’ that Bernard Herrmann also composed the film score for those three films. All I all, this is a very interesting featurette and you get to hear a log of fascinating facts about Bernard Herrmann.
Special Feature: Isolated Music Score for ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ by Bernard Herrmann [1958] [1080p] [1.66:1] [84:30] With this featurette, we get to hear the brilliant film music composer Bernard Herrmann with his brilliant majestic film music score without any distraction, and you really get to hear how this music master worked at his best and especially for this brilliant Ray Harryhausen film and there is enough composed film music score to not make you get bored even with the silent gaps and is well worth making the effort in listening to this amazing Bernard Herrmann film music score.
Special Feature: Phil Tippett’s Birthday Tribute to Ray Harryhausen [2006] [380i] [1.37:1] [0:58] With this featurette, we get a personal happy birthday message to Ray Harryhausen from a much younger Phil Tippett, who lists all of Ray Harryhausen's stop-motion animation films at a breathless speed, and then sings the famous “Happy Birthday” song and joining Phil Tippett is a group of armed animated skeletons also singing Happy Birthday along with Phil Tippett.
Special Feature: Theatrical Trailers: With this featurette, we get to view three Original Theatrical Trailers for the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ and this is what you get to view:
This is DYNAMATION! [1958] [480i] [1.37:1] [3:26] With this featurette, we get to view this enthusiastic promotional teaser for the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ and introducing Ray Harryhausen’s ground breaking stop-motion animation effects. It is shown in both colour and black-and-white. Also they inform us that “You have just seen a demonstration of DYNAMATION!”
Special Feature: This is DYNAMATION! [Audio only] [2013 / 1958] [1080p] [1.78:1] [4:36] With this featurette, we get to hear from director Brian Trenchard-Smith giving us a personal critical audio commentary on the Original Theatrical Trailer for the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ which again is shown in both colour and black-and-white. Brian Trenchard-Smith also includes a recommendation for Ray Harryhausen's book, “An Animated Life.” This was originally made for the internet “Trailers From Hell” series.
Re-release Trailer [1975] [480i] [1.37:1] [1:42] With this featurette, we are presented with the 1975 Re-release Original Theatrical Trailer for the film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD,’ and is decent enough sell that focuses on the film's showcase scenes, of which there are many, where the announcer is certainly sounding very excited about this forth coming 1975 Re-release film that was arriving at your local cinema theatre.
Special Feature: Image Gallery: With this featurette, we get to view a wonderful 1080p selection of 74 slides of extensive promotional material, including some black-and-white hand drawn drawings by Ray Harryhausen, black-and-white and colour promotional photographs, and poster art for the stop-motion animation film ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’ Once again you have to use the right hand next function button on your remote control to navigate to forward the gallery images you get to view. To leave, you have to press either MENU or TOP MENU.
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‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD’
Special Feature: The John Player Lecture with Ray Harryhausen and Charles H. Schnee [Audio only] [1970] [1080p] [1.66:1] [86:30] With this featurette, we have a very fascinating rare archival audio recording of an interview with Director Ray Harryhausen and Producer Charles H. Schnee at the National Film Theatre in London and at the same time you get to view the film ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’ We are warned up front that the quality of this audio recording of the interview conducted at the National Film Theatre, which is now the BFI Southbank and they inform us that audio recording has some technical issues, but as the opening caption suggests, the content is far too valuable for anyone who cares to be bothered by that statement. This National Film Theatre interview is Charles H. Schnee contribution, which is substantial, informative and often entertaining. One favourite story we get to hear about revolves around them having to sneakily shoot plates for ‘It Came from Beneath the Sea’ on the Golden Gate Bridge was filmed from inside a bakery truck when official permission to do so was denied, and you will laugh out loud at the idea that Ray Harryhausen's response to Charles H. Schneer's insistence that they needed to trim the budget of that film was to reduce the number of legs on his giant octopus by two. I found most of the time the audio recording quite good and is all very well worth listening to and Ray Harryhausen and Charles H. Schneer are actually totally intelligent, fascinating and totally amazing to listen to. I personal give this featurette a five star rating.
Special Feature: Golden Years: Time Travelling with Tom Baker [2017] [1080p] [1.78:1] [35:33] With this featurette, we have the very eccentric and loveable actor Tom Baker, talking about his acting career and recalling with great affection working on the film ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD,’ and particularly working with the delightful Ray Harryhausen and comments, “It was so nourishing to be in a room with him” and after that encounter became a very good friend to Ray Harryhausen. Tom Baker has a number of engaging stories about the shoot, and his journey from jobbing actor to building site worker to landing the career-changing role as The Doctor in the BBC TV Series “Doctor Who” is covered in enthralling detail. Unfortunately, Tom Baker does tend to shoot off at tangents now and again when a new anecdote pops into his head mid-sentence, but full marks to those who shot the interview for letting it run without cutting any of these random anecdotes out, as it's always entertaining. I was particularly amused by Tom Baker’s comment about how he has left his strict Catholic religious upbringing behind. As usual, we get to view several clips from the film ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’
Special Feature: Golden Girl: Looking Back with Caroline Munro [2017] [1080p] [1.78:1] [14:29] With this featurette, we get a brand new and very interesting interview with the celebrated actress Caroline Munro and talks and reminisces about her character Margiana in the film ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’ Caroline Munro recalls landing her role as Margiana in ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ through her connection with the film's screenwriter Brian Clemens, with whom she was working on ‘Captain Kronos – Vampire Hunter’ and her experience working on the film itself. Caroline Munro enthusiastically praises her fellow performers and Caroline Munro was clearly bewitched by John Philip Law, whom she describes as “beautiful” and reveals that they had a dialect coach to help with the Middle-Eastern accents, and outlines how the Kali combat sequence was blocked and rehearsed. Once again, we get to view several clips from the film ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’
Special Feature: The Harryhausen Legacy [2008] [1080p] [1.78:1] [25:32] With this featurette, we have a potpourri of legendary visual effects artists, that includes John Landis, Joe Dante and many more, in a brilliant tribute to the extraordinary influence Ray Harryhausen had on all of them when growing up and going to see a Ray Harryhausen movie. Almost all seem to have been inspired to enter the business after watching the Cyclops scene in ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD,’ and there are appreciations galore of Ray Harryhausen's work and what continues to make it so special today. I was personally thrilled to hear effects supervisor Kevin Kutchaver talk about Talos slowly turning his head in ‘Jason and the Argonauts’ as one of those moments that everyone remembers. Contributors include: Bob Burns [Archivist and Film Historian], John Landis [Director], Phil Tippett [Visual Effects Artist], Hoyt Yeatman [Visual Effects Artist], Ken Ralston [Visual Effects Artist], Joe Dante [Director], John Dykstra [Visual Effects Artist], The Chiodo Brothers: Charles Chiodo [Visual Effects Artist], Edward Chiodo [Visual Effects Artist], Stephen Chiodo [Visual Effects Artist], Dennis Muren [Visual Effects Artist], Doug Beswick [Visual Effects Artist], Jon Berg [Visual Effects Artist], Rick Baker [Special Make-up and Creature Effects Artist], Kevin Kutchaver [Visual Effects Artist], Frank Darabont [Director], Forrest J. Ackerman [Famous Monsters of Filmland] and Stan Winston [Special Make-up and Creature Effects Artist].
Special Feature: ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ Super 8mm Version [1973] [480i] [1.37:1] [29:07] With this featurette, we are informed that the popularity of cut-down Super 8mm versions of popular films were distributed for audiences to watch at home. In the case of the film ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ and we get to view four separate instalments were produced to showcase the film’s major set-pieces and distributed in both colour with sound and black-and-white silent editions. With all four instalments you get a selection of colour and black-and-white versions and what you get to view is the following: Sinbad and the Oracle; Sinbad Battles the Monsters; Sinbad Duels the Magic Sword and Sinbad Duels the Idol with Many Arms. You can either play each instalment separately or Play All. Be warned, the quality of what you view is atrocious.
Special Feature: Isolated music score on ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD’ by Miklós Rózsa [1973] [1080p] [1.66:1] [100:40] With this featurette, we get to hear the brilliant and dramatic composed film music score by composer Miklós Rózsa and also his brilliant majestic film music score without any distraction, and you really get to hear how this brilliant music master worked his best and especially for this brilliant Ray Harryhausen film and there is enough composed film music score to not make you get bored with the silent gaps and is well worth making the effort in listening to this amazing Miklós Rózsa composed film music score for the film ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’
Theatrical Trailer [1973] [1080p] [1.66:1] [2:40] With this featurette, we get to view the Original Theatrical Trailer for the film ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’ The very serious announcer sure gives us a very fast-cut and slightly over the top theatrical trailer. But what we also get to view is a plethora of all the creatures, as well as many of the major action scenes in quick succession throughout the movie trailer and they also inform us that it was filmed in DYNARAMA!
Special Feature: Image Gallery: With this featurette, we get to view a wonderful 1080p selection of 149 images of extensive promotional material, including Columbia Pictures publicity images, black-and-white publicity images, wonderful Ray Harryhuasen hand drawn black-and-white drawings, more wonderful black-and-white publicity photograph images, more colour Columbia Pictures publicity images, and around the world cinema posters for the stop-motion animation 1973 film ‘THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’ Once again you have to use the right hand next function button on your remote control to forward navigate the gallery images. To leave, you have to press either MENU or TOP MENU.
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‘SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER’
Special Feature: The Guardian Interview with Ray Harryhausen [Audio only] [1981] [1080p] [1.85:1] [85:27] With this featurette, we to get to hear a very rare archival audio recording of an interview conducted at the British Film Institute in London interviewing Director Ray Harryhausen and was conducted with film writer and critic Philip Strick and was conducted shortly after the film ‘Clash of the Titans’ had just opened in London. By this point in his career, Ray Harryhausen was talking openly about his once secretive working methods, and does so in some detail here, and while some of this is duplicated elsewhere in this set, it's still all of considerable interest. Understandably, perhaps, there is a good deal of focus on ‘Clash of the Titans,’ models from which Ray Harryhausen has brought with him and talks about, sometimes in a way that makes you wish this had been captured on video as well. Despite this, it is all very interesting. At the same time we get to view the film ‘SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER’ while listening to the interview. We are informed that the following audio recording exhibits a range of technical problems which are to be expected from a recording of its age and type. Its importance as a unique archival document makes its inclusion here essential and they hope you agree. While listening to the audio recording, I found it really excellent; it is only when the audiences asks Ray Harryhausen questions that the audio recording is not very good.
Special Feature: The Princess Diaries [2017] [1080p] [1.78:1] [11:38] With this featurette, we have a brand new interview with the lovely award winning actress Jane Seymour and recalls landing the part of Princess Farah for the film ‘SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER,’ and recalls how half of her role was given to Dione when Taryn Power came on board, and although she remembers it as a fun shoot. Jane Seymour has a few stories about how tough it also was at times, and talks about the problems caused by her braided hair, how Ray Harryhausen was secretive about his working methods, and how she became typecast in ethnic roles in the UK, partly as a result of her work here. Jane Seymour also admits to not being a fan of the film when she first saw it, but now appreciates its influence on the next generation of filmmakers. While watching this featurette, we get to view scenes from the film SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER.’
Special Feature: Ray Harryhausen Interviewed by John Landis [1995] [480i] [1.37:1] [11:52] With this featurette, we have director John Landis who is the over hyper-enthusiastic fan of Ray Harryhausen and chats about the film ‘Jason and the Argonauts,’ which you can clearly see it is John Landis’s firm favourite film. With Ray Harryhausen, goes into great detail about the process of making a film with the stop-motion animation technique. Ray Harryhausen also recalls in great detail what for him were the most challenging stop-motion animation scenes to create, and of course John Landis gives a great personal salute and admiration to Ray Harryhausen in the amount of personality and especially all the time effort he puts into all of his creatures. Again, while viewing this featurette, we get to view a few flips from the film ‘Jason and the Argonauts.’
Special Feature: The Harryhausen Chronicles [1997] [480i] [1.37:1] [57:56] With this featurette, we get a wonderful in-depth Television documentary exploring Director Ray Harryhausen’s legendary career. For over 30 years Ray Harryhausen has brought aliens, dinosaurs and mythological creatures to life in such classic fantasy/sci-fi films as ‘20 Million Miles to Earth,’ ‘The 7th Voyage of Sinbad,’ ‘Jason and the Argonauts,’ and ‘Clash of the Titans.’ Of particular interest are the extracts from Ray Harryhausen's early work with dinosaur models and his fairy tales for children, and even includes footage from unfinished work. Ray Harryhausen himself is interviewed, as are his regular working partner Charles H. Schneer and ‘James and the Giant Peach’ director Henry Selick, special effects supervisor Dennis Muren, and that Star Wars fellow George Lucas. Now Oscar-winning stop-motion animation effects creator Ray Harryhausen's life and work are spotlighted in this special documentary and is narrated by Leonard Nimoy. Contributors include: Ray Bradbury [Author], Charles Schneer [Producer] and Dennis Muren [Senior Visual Effects Supervisor at Industrial Light & Magic].
Special Feature: Isolated music score on ‘SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER’ by Roy Budd [Audio only] [1977] [1080p] [1.85:1] [113:00] With this featurette, we get to hear the brilliant film music composer Roy Budd and his brilliant film music score without any distraction, and you really get to hear how this music master worked to give the best and especially enhancing for this brilliant Ray Harryhausen stop-motion animation film and there is enough composed film music score to not make you get bored with the silent gaps and is well worth making the effort in listening to this amazing film music score.
Theatrical Trailer [1977] [489i] [1.78:1] [2:13] With this featurette, we get to view the Original Theatrical Trailer for the film ‘SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER.’
Special Feature: Image Gallery: With this featurette, we get to view a wonderful 1080p selection of 88 impressive slides of extensive colourful promotional material, including a few on-set black-and-white promotional photographs, also black-and-white archive material and poster art for the stop-motion animation film ‘SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER.’ Once again you have to use the right hand next function button on your remote control to navigate the gallery images. To leave, you have to press either MENU or TOP MENU.
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DVD Special Features and Extras:
Please Note: All the Special Features and Extras are exactly the same, but with a Blu-ray disc that is 1080p image, whereas with a DVD image presentation it will of course be 1080i, but of course when an image presentation is 480i image it will of course be the same with a Blu-ray disc and a DVD disc.
BONUS: INDICATOR presents us this exclusive beautiful printed 78 page booklet that includes articles like THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD by Michael Brooke [2017]; THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD: AN ORAL HISTORY edited by Jeff Billington; THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD by Michael Brooke [2017]; THE GOLDEN VOYAGE OF SINBAD: AN ORAL HISTORY edited by Jeff Billington; SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER edited by Michael Brooke [2017]; SINBAD AND THE EYE OF THE TIGER: AN ORAL HISTORY edited by Jeff Billington; SINBAD GOES TO MARS edited by Jeff Billington; THE DYNAMATION PROCESS edited by Jeff Billington. Other items include SOURCES & FURTHER READING. ABOUT THE PRESENTATION. SPECIAL THANKS. INDICATOR CREDITS. We also get a plethora of wonderful rare black-and-white, sepia, colour and publicity photographs, also some wonderful hand drawn illustrations, as well film posters of the three films.
Finally, the THE SINBAD TRILOGY Blu-ray + DVD box set from Powerhouse Films + INDICATOR brings us the genius of Ray Harryhausen’s incredible stop-motion animation creations that is full of love and care. The box set is brimming with a plethora of documentaries, interviews, Super 8 versions of the films and also boasts a world premiere on Blu-ray of the 4K remastered version of ‘THE 7th VOYAGE OF SINBAD.’ It is all rounded off with a massive beautiful printed 80-page booklet and THE SINBAD TRILOGY Blu-ray + DVD box set is limited to 6,000 copies, which I suspect will be a massive success and will of course be no more, so do not hesitate for the brilliant box set and fantastic fantasy film that will be enjoyed by the whole family, and I know you will get many hours of pleasure watching the master of special effects Ray Harryhausen at work and you will be totally amazed at what you get to view and I suspect the three films you will definitely want to watch with many repeat viewings, so enjoy folks. Very Highly Recommended!
Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film Aficionado
Le Cinema Paradiso
United Kingdom
