The optical effects are half-baked and don't always line up with the action in the scene. Without Harryhausen, the stop-motion creatures are pretty rough and unmemorable. Where 7th Voyage of Sinbad looked and felt like an epic adventure, there is a chintzy cheapness that percolates throughout Jack The Giant Killer. A good imitation at that, but an imitation none the less. While some of the ingredients are the same, this stew is very different.Ĭertainly, you can't fault Small for wanting to craft his own Sinbad after missing out on a huge opportunity, but in his quest to copy the success of another film, he merely created an imitation.
In an effort to undo a bad decision, Small cooked up the scheme to bring in Sinbad director Nathan Juran, hire on principal leads Mathews and Thatcher, and get genre veteran Orville Hampton to craft the script. He felt the sting of that decision once the big box office receipts were counted. He had an opportunity to get in on The 7th Voyage of Sinbad with Harryhausen but passed on it. In a nutshell, we have producer Edward Small to thank for Jack The Giant Killer. The one thing Pendragon didn't count on was the brave determination of a young farmer named Jack (Kerwin Mathews) to save the day. Through the dark arts and enlisting the help of witches, demons, ghosts, and a giant, Pendragon sets about his evil schemes. By kidnapping and marrying Princess Elaine (Judi Meredith), he aims to force the king to abdicate the throne and turn over control of the entire kingdom. The Kingdom of Cornwall wall has enjoyed a time of peace and prosperity after the evil wizard Pendragon (Torin Thatcher) was banished. It's a silly affair that offers up some good family-friendly entertainment value. With its heart in the right place and an adventurous spirit, but the creatures lack the punch and pizazz of Harryhausen's creations. Four years later, Juran reassembled Matthews and Thatcher to bring the tall tale Jack The Giant Killer to life. With Kerwin Mathews as the titular sea-faring adventurer and Torin Thatcher as the diabolical evil wizard coupled with some truly legendary creature effects, the movie was a massive hit in 1958. When Nathan Juran partnered up with Ray Harryhausen for The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, they made movie magic.
When a studio captures lightning in a bottle once, it's perfectly understandable that they'd want to try again.
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