The original action hero Douglas Fairbanks plays the title character in this wonderful Oriental confection from the golden era of silent Hollywood. There’s spectacle and stunts at every turn, plus a sensuality that would soon disappear for decades thanks to the Hays Code.

Fairbanks’ thief is the archetypal loveable rogue, living by his wits and unconcerned for the morals of society or precepts of religion. As he frequently says, he ‘takes what he wants’ and one of the things he wants is the Princess (Julanne Johnston). He falls in love with her after spying her from a tree, but she is due to be wed to one of three suitors, including a dastardly Mongol warlord (Sôjin Kamiyama). After he’s discovered pretending to be a prince, our thief goes on a quest for a magical chest, fighting fire and monsters, which will allow him to marry his beloved.

The look of the film is spectacular, with massive sets big enough to fit elephants and camels plus a cast of thousands, and the craftsmanship on display is dazzling, with every surface carved or decorated with ornate script. Even more impressive than the sets are the costumes, which – even in black and white – burst forth from the screen. Obviously 90-year-old special effects don’t always quite hold up, but the imaginative trick photography and the augmented animals standing in for monsters have charms of their own.

You can see the blueprint for every swashbuckler and onscreen bandit for the next fifty years in Fairbanks’ performance. His grin and legs akimbo stance were replicated by Errol Flynn and Burt Lancaster, as well as a host of others.

Carl Davis’s score is exotic and thrilling, adding an extra dimension to the action. Based on Scheherazade by Rimsky Korsakov, it’s a perfect fit for this Arabian Nights fantasy.

There may be much here that feels like a museum piece, but this is a charming and wonderfully inventive tale. Fairbanks’ star quality shines from the screen and his athleticism – even at 40 years of age – is impressive. Raoul Walsh’s film is a brilliant example of the heights filmmaking reached before sound arrived; a treat for both cineastes and lovers of fantasy.