Tales of 1001 Nights (1921) Review- By Michael J. Carlisle

Title: Tales of 1001 Nights
Year: 1921
Director: Victor Tourjansky
Country: Russia
Language: N/A

Arabian Nights fantasies were beloved entertainment throughout the silent era and still were produced throughout the history of Cinema. This production is one of the rare adaptations that puts great effort into sticking to the original source. Falling fallen into obscurity since its initial release,  no complete print is known to have survived. I watched an abridged version on Youtube, although far can't seem to find any reviews on it. 

Newly married to Shahryar, a deranged monarch who murders his brides after the wedding night, Scheherazade manages to keep her head by entertaining her husband with exciting stories that always end in thrilling cliffhangers. 

The Arabian Nights reminds me of the serials Raiders of the Lost Ark was based on. Our hero and heroine are constantly wandering into danger and being forced to free themselves from it. Each encounter gets more dangerous, and each solution is that more unpredictable. The inclusion of a real-world religion in the narrative is rather interesting. The Islamic faith is treated with utmost respect, similar to how Christianity is treated in the West. 

Most Arabian Nights stories, especially during the 21st Century, would drop the religious aspect to the story. Maybe a mosque would show up, like in Disney's Aladdin, but it wouldn't dive too much into religious phrasing or imagery. Overall the acting in The Arabian Nights is pretty good, the cinematography is impressive for 1920, but the direction is poor. Character movements and staging can be pretty random at times, although sprawling desert sands and looming beaches make up for it. 

Information on this film is a bit hard to find. I do know that it was released in the US in 1927 but it did not make much of a critical or commercial impact at all. It's not a "masterpiece" by any means but it does have many fun moments. This would certainly be worthwhile to restore and put on home video.