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
Surprisingly, the 'demons' in the castle were rather authentic and creepy in a very contemporary sense (check them out), as well as the marching dragon men guards on the bridge, and the make up of the evil witch alter-ego of the princess (complete with way ahead of their time Micheal Jackson Thriller giant yellow demon contact lenses) all of which came off with an eerie modern vibe.
I absolutely love how there were so many unique creatures always lurking about, like the Star Wars cantina scene or a Power Rangers episode. Kudos to the relentless onslaught of evil magical spells and fantastic beasts that were constantly thrown at the heroes until the end credits rolled. If modern screenplays/films of this genre were made with such attention to monsters and battles and true fantasy action versus all the other crapola thrown in to attract non fantasy fans... we'd be in good shape... and maybe even be privy to a simple great fantasy flick that is packaged in an actual 90 minute movie (remember those?)
A non stop eclectic mixture of characters from every conceivable fantasy realm and fairyland mythos intertwine in this flick for a most interesting watch indeed. Also, plenty of fun over the top dialogue about witches and demons and dragons and little people, plus more cheesy stop animation and I Dream of Jeannie dissapearing acts than you can shake your plastic Viking sword at.
A real treat that had previously escaped me, as well as an obvious pre-cursor to the pinnacle godfather of stop motion sword and sorcery movies... Clash of the Titans... all hail.
As a fun bonus, watch for the strange (real?) almost handicapped limp of the evil wizard Pendragon, as well as what appears to be some flaws in the colorization proccess during the demon vs. ship scene.
Sure you could rip this movie to shreds and pick it a part at will, but why? Its older than your mamma and a lot more fun. So grab a beer, gather the kiddies, and sit back and enjoy... and just keep thinking to yourself how this thing screams modern REMAKE!!!
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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