Il principe ladro

To begin, I've always found movies with Arabian Nights settings to be curiously seductive, even if infested with clichés. The exotic (though studio bound) locales, pastel colours, lavish interiors, voluptuous dancing girls, and lively daring-do provide, if not quality, an irresistible recipe for pure escapism. Universal Studios regularly churned out these carpet rides during the late '40s and early '50s, often using them as proving grounds for many of its young contract players.

THE PRINCE WHO WAS A THIEF may well be the best of the lot. It is a happy combination of above-average script sourced from a short story by Theodore Dreiser, technically competent direction, and fortuitous casting of the two leads.

Tony Curtis plays a young Prince of Tangier, marked for assassination as an infant but raised into adulthood by thieves and becoming one himself until he can reclaim his birthright, all with the help of fellow thief, Piper Laurie. Both players, who went on to better films and even critical praise, attack their roles with a boundless energy that's contagious, yet they avoid upstaging each other. So appealing was their on-screen rapport that they would make three subsequent films together. Here, the accent is on acrobatics and the athletic Curtis and the agile Laurie deliver in spades, performing all of their own stunts with the exception of Laurie's (she was 19 at the time) climb to the top of a high wall on the backs of men near the climax. A playful banter between the two throughout adds a good-natured battle-of-the sexes to the proceedings and keeps the story humming along.

Direction was deftly handled by Rudolph Maté, a Hungarian ex-pat who had previously apprenticed with Alexander Korda as cameraman and with Fritz Lang and René Claire as cinematographer. While none of his later work produced what can be called certified classics, his films, such as D.O.A., Branded, and The Mississippi Gambler remain effective and visually appealing as evidenced here.

Early in the movie whilst the lovely Piper is in his arms, Tony gracefully utters- "Yonder lies da castle of my fadder da King." Cut him a little slack! At that time he was VERY new to the movies! What better example could there be of starting out 'shaky' and then becoming a film legend? At least in 'Spartacus', when Olivier told Tony that he preferred "Both oysters AND clams", Tony disappeared without a trace, and Olivier just smiled.

Several years ago, many viewers rediscovered this lively, literate gem with script by Gera;d Drayson Adams, direction by Rudolph Mate. It was show as a rerun on a local TV Aos Angeles station hosted by Jackie Joseph, and ignoring critics who look down on all adventure genres, she and many of her crew fell in love with the movie. And why not? Theodore Dreiser's noted story has here been turned into a well-acted and entertaining movie; and master director Mate draws a very fine performance from a very young Piper Laurie indeed. The storyline is a sense-of-life piece, one where the hero, ably played (if one ignores his accent) by young, handsome Tony Curtis who has been raised by the thief who spared his life years before discovers that he is the rightful Prince of the kingdom. To save his adopted father from death, he helps him catch the man who has stolen the great pearl on which the safety of the city from a hostile army depends. This mission involves him with two women, Tina, thief, daughter of a thief played by Laurie and the princess, ably played by Peggie Castle; of course there are thefts, escapes, arguments, misunderstandings, fine dialogue scenes, a Guild of Jackals who are both help and hindrance and an usually satisfying climactic battle and denouement to a romantic ending. Admas' script is masterful, the direction very smooth, and all the technical aspects unusually satisfying, specially Hans J. Salter's music. Those in the cast besides the leads include talented Everett Sloane, Bettey Garde, Donald Randolph,Hayden Rourke, Marvin Miller, and Jeff Corey. There are some dancing girls seen here, but there are also scenes in the great souk, first-rate comedy, a robbing of the Treasury that is a classic caper, and enjoyably-three-dimensional characters. Favorite line--the Prince appoints his father to be the new keeper of the keeper of the new keeper of the Treasury--the Master of the Guild of Jackals. Colorful, abounding in action and very memorable, this treat is deserves to be a favorite with all those who enjoy uncomplicated adventure and the Grecianized-Near-eastern genre particularly.

Universal Studios provided many of this kind of features in the forties and fifties. After the magic duo Maria Montez - Jon Hall in the forties, who brought us in Arabia, ungles, paradise islands in the South Seas, the studio found Maureen O'Hara, Yvonne de Carlo, Piper Laurie, Tony Curtis, Jeff Chandler, Rock Hudson, to replace the mythical duo of the previous decade. The early Tony Curtis career will be prolific with such movies; you can find him in THE SON OF ALI BABA, Rock Hudson in THE GOLDEN BLADE, Jeff Chandler in FLAME OF ARABIA. So this One Thousand and One Nights like tale is enchanted for old timers audiences in search of their childhood memory, colorful, full of romance and dance, action, beautiful indoor settings, palaces with pools.... No matter the naive and predictable topic. Just dream for a eighty five minutes.

Am a huge fan of classic film and 'The Prince Who Was a Thief' interested me. Mainly to see a very young Piper Laurie and Tony Curtis in his tenth film (credited) in just three years, though his first film as the star, and how they would fare individually and as a partnership. Also because the story on paper seemed intriguing if silly.

Saw 'The Prince Who Was a Thief' with the mind-set of not expecting a masterpiece and just 90 or so minutes of escapist entertainment without expecting too much or everything to be of superb quality. 'The Prince Who Was a Thief' achieved this goal. It may not blow the mind and it may not be one of Curtis's best films or contain one of his best performances. A lot is done right however and it compels and entertains throughout its length, which didn't feel too long or too short.

The story sure is pure nonsense and the silliness occasionally goes overboard, complete with some over-familiarity. The costumes are somewhat unlikely and don't look as appealing, in colour and style, as the rest of the production values.

Curtis's accent is a bit of a stretch too.

However, he is at his most athletic and is both youthful and charming, clearly having fun with his role. Lovely Piper Laurie matches him in the charm factor and is equally spirited. Their chemistry has a real warmth and playfulness. Everett Sloane in particular has fun as a suitably hissable character of the more than able supporting cast. The script is not one with many surprises, but has wit and lively character. The direction has an efficiency that suits the adventurous element of the story perfectly.

It is very difficult to dislike the story completely. For all its ridiculousness and predictability, it is not a dull one and clips along at a breezy pace, with a clear idea at what it was trying to be and appeal to without trying to do more. The characters are archetypes but likeable ones. The action-oriented parts, especially towards the end, excite and the music is rousing. 'The Prince Who Was a Thief', costumes aside, is shot with vibrant colour and the setting exotic-looking if perhaps not evocative.

Overall, good fun. 7/10 Bethany Cox