The Golden Arrow (1962)

Genies help a bandit recover a golden arrow, which will show that he is the heir to the sultan's kingdom.

Director:

Antonio Margheriti

Writers:

Giorgio Arlorio, Augusto Frassinetti

Stars:

Tab Hunter, Rossana Podestà, Umberto Melnati

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tab Hunter	...	Hassan
Rossana Podestà	...	Jamila
Umberto Melnati	...	Low Genie
Mario Feliciani	...	Baktiar
Dominique Boschero	...	Queen of Rocky Valley
Renato Baldini	...	Prince of Bassora
Giustino Durano	...	Absent-Minded Genie
Franco Scandurra	...	Bearded Genie
Gloria Milland	...	Queen in the cave
Renato Montalbano	...	(as Renato Montalban)
Rosario Borelli	...	Prince of Aleppo
Calisto Calisti	...	Prince of Bassora's General
Abdel Moneim Ibrahim	...	Captain Hamit
José Jaspe	...	Sabrath
Gian Paolo Rosmino	...	Mokbar (as Giampaolo Rosmino)

Storyline

Genies help a bandit recover a golden arrow, which will show that he is the heir to the sultan's kingdom.

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Plot Keywords:

magical carpet | psychotronic film | camp | campy | man tied up | 

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Taglines:

1001 Adventures in a Land of Magic and Miracles!

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Genres:

Adventure | Fantasy

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

Tab Hunter's voice is dubbed by another actor in the English language version.

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Connections

Featured in Tab Hunter Confidential (2015)

User Reviews

THE GOLDEN ARROW (Antonio Margheriti, 1962) **

I was looking forward to this one, being a fan of Arabian Nights fantasies and in view of cult director Margheriti's participation (unusually billed under his real name here, instead of the familiar pseudonym Anthony M. Dawson!); distributed internationally by MGM, the film used to crop up from time to time on the TCM U.K. schedule – but it may have been the 1936 Warner Bros. effort bearing the same title, and which I acquired not too long ago via this very channel, all along!

Anyway, the movie is appropriately colourful and intermittently diverting; yet, given the utter lack of originality, the result is mainly dreary – not helped by lifeless treatment, ill-advised star casting (blond Tab Hunter as the proverbial 'prince who was a thief'!) and ropey special effects (the handiwork of the obligatory suppliers of resistible comedy relief, a buffoonish trio of wizards who literally come down to earth to aid the hero regain his throne)!! The current princess (Rossana Podesta', a regular of such costumed fare) is contended by a number of potentates, one of whom is in league with the – what else? – wicked Grand Vizier (for once, though, he does not covet either the girl or the throne himself, apparently content merely to pull the strings at court!). Eventually, she asks them to bring her the most precious gift – but, what they come up with (a crystal ball, a life- restoring potion and a magic carpet), has equal value in her eyes when she is stricken by a 'mysterious' illness and near death!

Hunter naturally has a coterie of bandit pals (who initially turn against him when he allows the kidnapped princess to flee rather than demand a ransom for her) – but their role is downplayed in favour of the afore-mentioned magicians. Incidentally, the script is indiscriminate in its borrowings: the titular weapon is first presented as having Excalibur-type powers i.e. only the right person can handle it; while, halfway through, we get thoroughly pointless sections that would have better served the peplum genre involving a cave guarded by flaming monsters and, subsequently, a Theban community – from what I could gather, under some sorcerer's spell – which the hero saves (by destroying a temple in the desert)! The climax, then, features the protagonist's 'supernatural' sidekicks dumping jars from the air on the assailing forces and Hunter adopting the golden arrow to slice up the villains' own flying rug!

Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

May 1964 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Golden Arrow

Filming Locations:

Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut, Deir el Bahari, Egypt

Company Credits

Production Co:

Titanus

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1