Arabian Nights

Wow. Somehow I had gone through the winter without seeing a trailer for "Arabian Nights," which was why I was all the more astounded when I caught it on tv that Sunday night. This is pure myth-and-magic candy, people, but unlike most effects-laden tv-series, it gets better. A lot better.

Okay, so it gets a little anachronistic at parts, but what really blew me away was the frame tale that held it all together. Scheherazade was played to an intelligent, beguiling perfection by Avital, and Scott was simply spectacular as the half-mad Schariar. These two had great chemistry, and their interactions made for some electric, yet subtle, scenes. Their characters -- and characterizations -- were great, better and more complex than what you normally get in this genre of telemovie-making.

It's a beautiful escapist fantasy with lead characters to root for. Music was on point, direction was well-stylized (though gimmicky and will probably be dated in a little while), performances top-notch without the actos taking themselves too seriously. If you want some classy, sexy, mystical entertainment, give "Arabian Nights" a try. You won't regret it.

Five years after killing his unfaithful wife, the Sultan of Baghdad Shahryar (Dougray Scott) goes haywire and believes every woman is treacherous. However he needs to get married again to keep his throne, and he decides to marry a woman from his harem and kills her on the next morning. The smart daughter of the Grand Vizier, Ja'Far (Jim Carter), Scheherazade (Mili Avital), was in love with Shahryar when they were children and decides to marry him. Scheherazade tells pieces of the stories of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, The Tale of the Poor Hunchback, Aladdin and the Magic Lamp, The Sultan and the Beggar and The Three Princes along the nights, stops the stories in cliffhanger to keep the interest of the Sultan and preventing her death. Meanwhile his brother Schahzenan (James Frain) plans an attack to the palace to overthrown Shahryar.

The miniseries "Arabian Nights" is one of the most delightful entertainment made for the whole family. The witty stories of the one thousand and one nights told by Scheherazade are wonderful and it is hard to point out the best one (maybe the funny "Aladdin and the Magic Lamp"). The DVD could be one of the best ever released but does not have any subtitles, what is a pity. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "As Mil e Uma Noites" ("The One Thousand and One Nights")

I want to take this opportunity to say "Arabian Nights" is perhaps one of the best made-for-TV movies I have ever seen! It is a wonderful mixture of fantasy, special effects and marvelous tongue-in-cheek comedy, and should be seen by anyone who has ever thought he/she already knew this classic story! My only regret is that it isn't a full-length motion picture, as the big screen would have absolutely come alive! Congratulations to its producers, director and stars!

This was a fabulous production. No movie can do justice to the entire story of "Arabian Nights", but this did an admirable job. The visual effects were stunning and the actors were well cast. The way the production moved back and forth between the stories and the storyteller's (and listener's) situation was very creative (reminded me of "The Neverending Story"). The humorous sections and modern jokes were unexpected, but fun and not overdone. My only complaint was that the end came too soon -- after 4 hours I still wanted more.

Some of these network special-effect tv movies have been rather cheesy in the past, but I was very impressed with Arabian Nights. Not only am I a Dougray Scott fan, but the story was done quite well. There's a point about halfway through when you wonder if the stories will come together and if the Sultana will survive after each story. But in the end, the stories all fall together and actually make sense to what is going on in each scene. Well done!