Omar Khayyam

1957
U
1h 41m

IMDb RATING

YOUR RATING

Debra Paget and Cornel Wilde in Omar Khayyam (1957)

During the 11th century, Persian poet Omar Khayyam's lover marries the Shah but the Shah, whose life is threatened by a sect of assassins, appoints Omar royal advisor.During the 11th century, Persian poet Omar Khayyam's lover marries the Shah but the Shah, whose life is threatened by a sect of assassins, appoints Omar royal advisor.During the 11th century, Persian poet Omar Khayyam's lover marries the Shah but the Shah, whose life is threatened by a sect of assassins, appoints Omar royal advisor.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

5.8/10

386

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Photos16

+ 8

More like this

5.5

6.4

6.2

5.7

6.0

A Thousand and One Nights

6.6

Tigress of Bengal

7.0

Son of Fury: The Story of Benjamin Blake

6.6

5.8

7.3

4.8

6.1

Storyline

Edit

Did you know

Edit

Trivia
This picture marked the last film-score credit for Victor Young, the accomplished Hollywood composer, recording artist and songwriter of melodic standards - "Street of Dreams", "Love Letters", "Stella by Starlight", "My Foolish Heart", "When I Fall in Love", "Around the World".

Goofs
As Omar leaves the council of the Grand Master.

Quotes
Omar Khayyam: They call you Chosen One... the Seventh Excellent Creature.Are you also to be appointed Caliph, interpreting the Will of God, Supreme Ruler above all earthly kings?
Hasani Sabah: If it were not so, I could not wear these robes nor hold this office.
Omar Khayyam: You have named me your Counsellor, but
[pause]
Omar Khayyam: I am happier with lesser matters, like this strip of vellum on which I have reduced the year to better reckoning. These figures will guide the lives of men when our mouths have been stopped with the dust of a thousand years, and the name Omar Khayyam is just as long forgotten. These figures, written on the skins of lambs, have more power than all your daggers and secret plans. Such men as you have arisen in every generation, from the dawn of mankind to our times, each with another form of the ancient conspiracy to rule this Earth. Millions of men have died to prove them wrong. What you are doing is not new, and will never be old. And when you have failed - as all those before you have failed and miserably died - it will happen again, and over again, as long as my calendar shall last.
[pause]
Omar Khayyam: But my calendar may not last an hour. Only sworn Assassins leave this rock.

Connections
Featured in Budd Boetticher: A Man Can Do That (2005)

Soundtracks
The Loves of Omar Khayyam
Music and Lyrics by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans

User reviews11

Review

Featured review

6/10

Cornel Coins the Rhymes, Rennie Starts the Rebellion

Omar Khayyam, medieval poet and scholar and quite the scientist as it turns out in this film, stars Cornel Wilde in the title role. Khayyam is a guy content to do his scholarly thing, but there's a whole lot of treachery going in Persia and it's coming from people close to him.

The legend of Omar Khayyam has him involved with two others, a rich merchant Hisreini who becomes leader of the assassin cult and Nizam who is prime minister to the Shah, played respectively by Michael Rennie and Sebastian Cabot. Rennie who is as always cultured and refined, is the 12th century Osama Bin-Laden of the piece. His is probably the best performance of the film.

By the way Omar Khayyam gives one an opportunity to see both the men who Cecil B. DeMille considered for the role of Joshua in The Ten Commandments in the same film. John Derek who is the crown prince played Joshua and Wilde was the one originally offered the part.

The film was done at Paramount which was a bit unusual itself because the Arabian knights type films were an in house staple of Universal Studios.

Probably Cornel got the part after Tyrone Power who was freelancing then turned it down. It was that way all Wilde's life, getting sloppy seconds from either Power or Errol Flynn.

The film is all right, but should have had Wilde doing a bit more swordplay. He was in real life a champion at fencing.