Before Weta Workshop, before Industrial Light and Magic, one of the biggest names in movie special effects was Ray Harryhausen, and The 7th Voyage of Sinbad is among his best work.
We open with Sinbad (Kerwin Mathews) and his crew doing what they do best - sailing across the sea. Accompanying them on their voyage to Baghdad is Princess Parisa of Chandra (Kathryn Grant) and her fussy maid. Parisa's impending marriage to Sinbad is part of a peace deal between Baghdad and Chandra, which have been at war for some time, but it's more than a mere political alliance - our happy couple is very much in love with each other. The ship is dangerously low on supplies, but Sinbad's extensive experience as a sailor helps them find land - the island of Colossa. At first, all is well as they round up plenty of food and water to take back to the ship. Suddenly, they happen upon Sokurah (Torin Thatcher), a magician who possesses a magic lamp, on the run from a monstrous cyclops. As Sinbad and his crew protect Sokurah from the cyclops, Sokurah summons the genie of the lamp (Richard Eyer) to protect them (the genie can't use its power to destroy, but it can protect). They all make it back to the ship, but during the escape, Sokurah loses the lamp and the cyclops makes off with it to add to its treasure hoard. Sokurah offers Sinbad a fortune in gems to return to the island and retrieve the lamp, but Sinbad refuses to risk the lives of his men on such a venture.