the thief of bagdad comes to los angeles

Douglas Fairbanks might have been Hollywood's most impossibly beautiful male star of all time, or at least that's the impression you get watching his film The Thief of Bagdad from 1924. A new print screens tonight at the Academy -- I explain why this 85-year-old movie still matters:

At a time when big-budget blockbusters are only getting more juvenile, The Thief of Bagdad stands apart as a wonderfully grownup adventure film: sweet of spirit, fleet of foot, and so delightfully quaint that for younger viewers its old-fashioned romantic sweep and wide-eyed joy will feel positively revelatory.

The rest of my appreciation is here.