Here’s one that has stumped me for over 10 years:
When seen: Early 1960s (color)
Genre: It was a Sinbad voyage or similar, much of the action occurred on ships
Locale: Like Sinbad, it was set in a vague middle-Eastern location
Plot: There’s a nefarious vizier or wizard who (as usual) wants to find something of great value (vague, I know)
Memorable Scene: The evil vizier or wizard creates an automaton or life-size doll in the shape of a beautiful woman, As I recall, she is dressed in a costume similar to that of a belly-dancer (overflowing halter, harem pants, bare midriff). The purpose of the automaton is to assassinate a king or emperor. It will do so by hugging the victim tightly. In order to test his creation, the vizier calls in some innocent guard and tells him, “Hey, this beautiful woman would like to meet you.” The guard is obviously pleased and walks right over, only to be embraced to death! He-heh! The entire time, the expression on the automaton’s face never changes.
I remember this one scene because it was quite terrifying to me at my age to see a beautiful “woman” killing some poor innocent guy. I have literally (in the proper sense) gone through the IMDB lists of fantasy movies for this period and can’t seem to identify it. As I recall, the production was typical of many 1960s fantasy movies. I don’t remember if there were any Harryhausen effects or much else about it.
Help! This drives me nuts!
This is from “The Thief of Baghdad”
http://www.imdb.com/find?q=thief%20of%20bagdad&s=tt&ref_=fn_al_tt_mr
I would guess either the 1940 or 1961 versions.
It is the 1940 version. It isn’t in the remake. That’s a great movie. It is in color so you could think it is later.
Thanks, Will. This was actually on my list to check out, but being in color did suggest to me that it wouldn’t be a 1940 film. I will update once I confirm.
No, Will. This isn’t the one I was thinking of. I see the Kali automaton, but that’s not the one I meant. Maybe the 1961 remake substituted a beautiful woman for the same purpose? That would better fit the timeframe for when I saw it.
In fairness, I’ve got to say that I just FFed through the movie. I’ll watch it in real time later today.
I found this (from over a decade ago). Now the poster here wasn’t the original OP, so I can’t post the entire thread, where the answer was the 1961 THIEF OF BAGDAD (which definitely doesn’t have a killer woman doll). So let’s take just three posts. Their query never was solved.
1. I’m wondering if its a movie I saw in the early sixties. Was their a beautiful life size mechanical doll that could crush a man to death if it hugged him?
2. That sounds a lot like The Thief of Bagdad (1940) 🙂
It certainly is in glorious Technicolor.
The beautiful mechanical doll didn’t actually crush him, it hugged him (and tickled him) with its many arms and then stabbed him. The end result was the same, he still died.
3. Thief of Baghdad is a better film than the one I’m thinking of. In my memory, the beautiful mechanical girl was in a standing box opened perhaps by her “dollmaker” She was wearing an “I Dream of Genie” type outfit.
I found it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4rSPK6Y544
Obviously, a low budget rip-off of the 1940 THIEF OF BAGDAD. It is also an Italian movie like the 1961 THIEF and it came out the same year.
The entire movie, THE WONDERS OF ALADDIN, appears to be on YouTube in ten or eleven parts in English. Where that particular scene is I don’t know, but I saw tthe girl motionless in the beginning of Part 6. She doesn’t appear in the rest of that part.
Thanks, Mr. Unknown! I will be checking both of these.
Captain Sinbad?? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAJ3Ol79DXM
I have been wondering the same thing and cannot locate the film. Did you ever find the scene? Which movie?