A farmboy-turned-knight must protect a princess from the schemes of an evil wizard.A farmboy-turned-knight must protect a princess from the schemes of an evil wizard.A farmboy-turned-knight must protect a princess from the schemes of an evil wizard.
- Awards
- 1 nomination
- Nobleman
- (uncredited)
- Peasant Reacting to Giant
- (uncredited)
- Party Guest
- (uncredited)
- Celebration Guest
- (uncredited)
- Royal Court Member
- (uncredited)
- Nobleman
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThis was producer Edward Small's attempt to cash in on the huge success of The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958). He even hired the same director (Nathan Juran), hero (Kerwin Mathews) and villain (Torin Thatcher).
- GoofsAt approximately 14:43 Garna, played by Walter Burke, locks the Princess in the cabin on the ship; as he turns to untie the boat he places the key to the cabin in a waist pocket or under his belt but misses his aim and the key falls out of shot.
- Quotes
[first lines]
Narrator: The legend of Jack the Giant Killer was born over a thousand years ago in Cornwall, England near Land's End. There was a time when the Kingdom of Cornwall lived in fear and trembling of the Black Prince Pendragon - master of witches, giants and hobgoblins - who ravished the land. But at long last Herla, the Wizard drove Pendragon and his witches from the kingdom and exiled them beyond the reaches of the known world... Here on a misty isle, uncharted and unknown, Pendragon schemed and waited for the day when he could return to power in Cornwall. Then, after many years, the day came. It was a day of great rejoicing in Cornwall... and kings and princes bearing gifts came to celebrate in special occasion.
- Alternate versionsProducer Edward Small re-released this film as a musical. Songs were dubbed onto the soundtrack. Some of the footage was doctored to make it look like some of the original cast were singing rather than speaking their dialog.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Fantastic Dinosaurs of the Movies (1990)
- SoundtracksThe Irish Washerwoman
(uncredited)
Traditional
There's quite a back story to this United Artists feature film. It's loosely based on the traditional tale "Jack the Giant Killer" and features the use of stop motion animation. The mere mention of stop motion automatically brings to mind the great name of Ray Harryhausen. In 1958 director Nathan Juran had helmed The 7th Voyage of Sinbad with both Matthews and Thatcher starring as the good and evil characters respectively. A big success for Columbia, Harryhausen had offered it to UA producer Edward Small who turned it down, much to his regret. So here, four years later, he gathered the same crew for what essentially is a retread of the plot of Sinbad's seventh in the hope of replicating said success. Harryhausen, however, said no, perhaps understandably, so his creatures were created for "Jack" by Project Unlimited under the watchful eye of one time Harryhausen understudy Jim Danforth. While the other effects, filmed in "Fantascope" come courtesy of Howard A. Anderson and Augie Lohman.
Columbia sued Small on the grounds of plot similarity, thus holding up the release of the film in the UK for several years (it wasn't banned as some people seem to think). Once released the film was panned by the critics and many parents were outraged that the film was too violent and scary for youngsters. Small would take this personally and intending to make something of the movie, had it re-dubbed and made into a musical. The result of which is just garbage. Thankfully the film was finally restored to its original glory on DVD and found a whole new generation of fantasy adventure fans with a bent for the lost art of stop motion animation. Kerwin Matthews passed away in 2007, a handsome swashbuckling actor, Jack The Giant Killer was his last foray into the fantasy adventure genre. It's at least comforting to know that he got to see this little treasure of a film finally get accepted by an audience.
The film itself delivers everything one expects of the genre. The creatures are effective, even if the jerkiness shows that it's not Harryhausen at the helm; tho this is off set by a wonderful sequence as electricity cloaked witch demons attack Jack's ship. There's a dashing hero, a pretty princess, a vile and chilling evil doer, hell there's even the little imp of the lamp (Don Beddoe) for some limerick shenanigans. From its delightful story book opening to its final battle between hero and villain, Jack The Giant Killer is a rich and playful fantasy. 7/10
- hitchcockthelegend
- Jun 12, 2010
- Permalink
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Der Herrscher von Cornwall
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $3,000,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 34 minutes