7th Voyage Of Sinbad (1958)

Returning home to Baghdad from one of his adventures, Sinbad the Sailor (Kerwin Mathews) stops at an island for food and water and rescues a magician (Torin Thatcher) fleeing from a giant Cyclops. The magician insists Sinbad return to the island to retrieve a lamp containing a genie but he refuses as he is eager to return home to marry a Princess (Kathryn Grant). But the evil magician, who has ulterior motives, uses his diabolical powers to shrink the Princess to the size of a doll. Directed by Nathan Juran, this Arabian Nights adventure is one of Ray Harryhausen's best fantasy films and his stop motion creations are as magical today as they were in 1958. This one features two of his best creations, the dancing half woman/half snake and the duel between Sinbad and the skeleton. It's not the kind of film where the acting matters much but Mathews is dashing if dull and Grant makes for a fetching Princess. The one sticking point is the child actor Richard Eyer as the genie who pulls one out of the Arabian Nights and straight into Nebraska whenever he appears ("I puddit in the cabin fer ya"). There's a sensational score by Bernard Herrmann, one of his best. With Alec Mango and Nana DeHerrera.