Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves
1971 • Toei Animation
- Format
- MOVIE
- Aired
- 1971
- Episodes
- 1
- Status
- Finished
- Studio
- Toei Animation
- Genres
- Action · Fantasy
A film produced for Toei's 20th anniversary. A boy who is the descendant of the leader of the theives who met a grisly fate in the 1001 Nights bands together with 38 cats and a mouse to get back his rightful treasure from Ali Baba XXXIII, the descendent of Ali Baba who now rules the kingdom with an iron fist. This is a reversal of the good guy/bad guy roles in the original story! (perhaps not surprising for being a film in which Hayao Miyazaki was involved) This film is one of the most rollicking and action-packed films made by Toei, and is in an outrageously cartoonish style breaking with the Toei mold. It has a spectacular lineup of animators including Yasuji Mori, Akira Daikubara, Hayao Miyazaki, Yoichi Kotabe and Reiko Okuyama. The original story about Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves itself is recounted at one point in the film in an unexpected and interesting way using shadow-puppets.
Synopsis from AniList
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Where it came from
Released in 1971, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves is a significant feature film produced by Toei Animation during a period of experimentation for the studio. The project was conceived as an ambitious blend of classic folklore and the evolving aesthetics of Japanese animation, aiming to capture the imagination of a broad family audience through vibrant, stylized storytelling. It reflects the studio’s efforts to adapt internationally recognized literature into the distinctive visual language that defined the golden age of Toei cinema.
The film’s design approach was deeply influenced by the artistic currents of the late 1960s and early 1970s, prioritizing fluid character movement and expressive, hand-drawn backgrounds. While the directorial and animation teams drew from the established sensibilities of middle-eastern motifs, they infused the work with a rhythmic pacing intended to heighten the sense of adventure. At the time of its release, the film was received as a charming addition to the studio's catalog, appreciated for its technical execution and its role in broadening the demographic appeal of theatrical anime.
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