A farmboy-turned-knight must protect a princess from the schemes of an evil wizard.A farmboy-turned-knight must protect a princess from the schemes of an evil wizard.A farmboy-turned-knight must protect a princess from the schemes of an evil wizard.
- Awards
- 1 nomination
- Nobleman
- (uncredited)
- Peasant Reacting to Giant
- (uncredited)
- Party Guest
- (uncredited)
- Celebration Guest
- (uncredited)
- Royal Court Member
- (uncredited)
- Nobleman
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThis was producer Edward Small's attempt to cash in on the huge success of The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958). He even hired the same director (Nathan Juran), hero (Kerwin Mathews) and villain (Torin Thatcher).
- GoofsWhen Pendragon attacks Jack as he enters the castle (55m50s), duplicate shots are used of the same teeth creating different knights instead of one different tooth per knight. There aren't enough teeth missing from the dragon statue to account for the 5 knights.
- Quotes
[first lines]
Narrator: The legend of Jack the Giant Killer was born over a thousand years ago in Cornwall, England near Land's End. There was a time when the Kingdom of Cornwall lived in fear and trembling of the Black Prince Pendragon - master of witches, giants and hobgoblins - who ravished the land. But at long last Herla, the Wizard drove Pendragon and his witches from the kingdom and exiled them beyond the reaches of the known world... Here on a misty isle, uncharted and unknown, Pendragon schemed and waited for the day when he could return to power in Cornwall. Then, after many years, the day came. It was a day of great rejoicing in Cornwall... and kings and princes bearing gifts came to celebrate in special occasion.
- Alternate versionsProducer Edward Small re-released this film as a musical. Songs were dubbed onto the soundtrack. Some of the footage was doctored to make it look like some of the original cast were singing rather than speaking their dialog.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Fantastic Dinosaurs of the Movies (1990)
- SoundtracksThe Irish Washerwoman
(uncredited)
Traditional
Even without special effects master Ray Harryhausen, the film is not bad in that department at all. For the juvenile viewers even today, they will have goosebumps over the witches, monsters, and giants that our intrepid hero Jack has to overcome.
I do like the fact that Kerwin Matthews, Torin Thatcher, and the rest of the cast play their roles with absolute sincerity. It would not have been appropriate to do it otherwise in a film meant for kids of all ages.
The plot is simple, evil prince Torin Thatcher has designs on young princess Judi Meredith and tries one scheme with a giant to capture her and spirit her away to his evil enchanted island. He and confederate Walter Burke are foiled by a brave peasant lad named Jack who slays the giant.
King Dayton Lummis makes Kerwin Matthews as Jack his daughter's protector and they have quite a few adventures before the happily ever after ending the fairy tale requires.
It's still a pretty good family film and a nice bit of nostalgia for folks like me who were kids when it did come out.
- bkoganbing
- May 19, 2007
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Der Herrscher von Cornwall
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $3,000,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 34 minutes