Arabian Nights

One could think of a TV series, especially one intended for young audiences, that its quality will not match that of a movie for the big screen. That is false for Arabian Nights. Starting with a solid and well-balanced plot, good acting, superb photography and truly inspired music, plus beautiful filming locations, fantastic dressings, special effects and some touches of humor on an epic drama, all you get is top quality entertainment for all the family.

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.

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!

Arabian Night also belongs to one of the fantasy-movies which you can also put in the table with Sinbad and the 10th Kingdom. Arabian Nights is a very interesting and nice movie to watch because it takes you to a world of fantasy and mystic, in which the stories told by an Arabian woman, form actually the movie. So we will find the famous stories about Ali Baba and Aladdin and his wonderlamp. The other day i bought this movie and i don't regret it. I think that a 8 out of 10 is a qualification Arabian nights deserves because i enjoyed it 3 hours long. Don't think too much and let yourself lead back to the old legends of the Middle East, you won't regret it.

Lush and colourful mini-series based on the classic "1001 Nights". The framework works nicely; the harried sultan, initially all sweat and paranoia, set on the path to redemption by his new wife Scheherezade (Mili Avital, who is just exquisite), who must maintain his interest by telling him stories or be executed. It left me wanting more, so by that measure at least the film is a success. Cameos and star turns abound in this enormous production and refreshingly for a Hallmark miniseries, the slant is more English than American. The humour and dialogue can be just a bit twee at times (one almost expects Hugh Grant to peep around the curtain at any moment) but like Turkish delight, this film is sweet but not sickening