"This Arabian Nights tale was a record-breakingly successful stage musical and it may be that nostalgic memories of the stage production were responsible for the rather lukewarm reviews it received on its release. Today, it impresses by the extent to which it has been reconceived for the camera" (John Gillett, National Film Theatre, London). The cast is led by George Robey as Ali Baba, with Fritz Kortner as the villainous Abu Hasan, posing as the mandarin he has killed until he is foiled by the slave girl Anna May Wong. The whole wonderful fantasy is played out on lavish sets by German designer Erno Metzner. Gainsborough studios, went to great and well-publicized lengths to make this recreation of Persia visually "authentic," though nothing else about the film is, or wants to be. Music by Frederick Norton with additional lyrics by Sidney Gilliat are another plus in this happy exercise in make-believe.