The Wizard of Baghdad Reviews

Comedian Shawn, who made his first starring feature film appearance in WAKE ME WHEN IT'S OVER, is a bumbling genie who should have stayed bottled in this "Arabian Nights" spoof. Reprimanded by the genie king, Edmonson, for failing to fulfill a mission, Shawn is offered one final assignment; failure will result in his conversion to mere mortality (a fate not worse than death, but certainly culminating in it). In human form, but little wishing to sustain that condition, Shawn sets off, riding a singularly humorless talking horse. His assignment: to become the Wizard of Baghdad, in which guise he must fulfill a prophecy requiring the marriage of a princess, Baker, and a prince, Coe, who are to jointly rule the city-state upon the demise of the elderly incumbent. Van Dreelen is the sinister sultan who attempts to circumvent the prophecy. The many gags are mostly topical, so the film doesn't wear well. The wires suspending the magic carpets are all too apparent.