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The Long Ships

Play trailer Poster for The Long Ships 1964 2h 5m Adventure Play Trailer Watchlist
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54% Tomatometer 13 Reviews 39% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
Moorish ruler El Mansuh (Sidney Poitier) is determined to locate a massive bell made of gold known as the "Mother of Voices." Viking explorer Rolfe (Richard Widmark) also becomes intent on finding the mythical treasure, and sails with his crew from Scandinavia to Africa to track it down. Reluctantly working together, El Mansuh and Rolfe, along with their men, embark on a quest for the prized object, but only one leader will be able to claim the bell as his own -- if it even exists at all.
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The Long Ships

Critics Reviews

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Variety Staff Variety 04/23/2011
Any attempt to put this into the epic class falls down because of a hodge-podge of a storyline, a mixture of styles and insufficient development of characterization. Go to Full Review TIME Magazine 04/23/2011
Has impossible acting, a preposterous script, some eminently seeworthy ship reconstructions, and more enjoyable bloody foolishness than many an epic costing three times as much. Go to Full Review Trevor Johnston Time Out 06/24/2006
Awful international Technirama hodge-podge, adapted from a novel by Frank G Bengtsson, in which the Vikings wrestle with the Moors to lay hands on the legendary Golden Bell of St James (rather an anti-climax when it finally appears). Go to Full Review Judith Crist New York Herald Tribune 08/15/2022
I choose to think all this was intentional, a straight-faced spoof of all the stuff and nonsense that mythologies are made of -- so straight-faced that it can afford the occasional wisecrack, the here-we-go-again ending. Go to Full Review TV Guide 04/23/2011
The press books announced "Sidney Poitier in his first non-Negro role!" Poitier put it most elegantly: "To say it was disastrous is a compliment." Go to Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews 03/31/2009
C
Treats history as if it were a tale fit for a romper room. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Andrew Y 05/14/2024 Not very good in any regards. The acting is laughable, the script and costumes dire so I can’t think of a single thing to recommend it - except for the execution system ‘the iron mare’ which deserved to see more actors sliding down together with their careers……….. See more Steve D 07/20/2023 Complete and total cheese. See more 10/17/2019 I've seen this movie as a boy in the 60s and liked it very much at the time. But now I'll have to give it a try to see it as an adult. See more 08/05/2017 Loved this film since I was a young child. Now 51 1/2 believe this was the fore runner to today's action films. Yes it's cheesy but so entertaining! See more 09/07/2014 Some parts of this Saturday matinee offering are rather dubious now, like the flagrant racism and sexist overtones in which women are treated like cattle. Vikings speak with American accents, too, instead of European ones. See more 08/25/2013 This adventure flick is in terrible taste. The viking "heroes" are just a bunch of thieves and rapists. This has very little to do with the original novel and if I were the author, I would be furious with this bastardised adaptation. See more Read all reviews
The Long Ships

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Cast & Crew

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Jack Cardiff

Director

Richard Widmark

Rolfe

Sidney Poitier

Aly Mansuh

Rosanna Schiaffino

Aminah

Russ Tamblyn

Orm

Oscar Homolka

Krok

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The Long Ships

The Long Ships (1964) The Long Ships (1964) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Moorish ruler El Mansuh (Sidney Poitier) is determined to locate a massive bell made of gold known as the "Mother of Voices." Viking explorer Rolfe (Richard Widmark) also becomes intent on finding the mythical treasure, and sails with his crew from Scandinavia to Africa to track it down. Reluctantly working together, El Mansuh and Rolfe, along with their men, embark on a quest for the prized object, but only one leader will be able to claim the bell as his own -- if it even exists at all.
Director
Jack Cardiff
Producer
Irving Allen
Screenwriter
Beverley Cross, Berkely Mather
Genre
Adventure
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Oct 26, 2010
Runtime
2h 5m
Sound Mix
Stereo
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