Thief is a technical fantasy, directed by, among others, Michael Powell, produced by Alexander Korda, with his brother Zoltan directing some bits. Add a score by Miklos Rozsa, and you've got some heavy-duty romantic film-making.
It starts in old Baghdad, where we meet a blind beggar, John Justin, and his dog. He is taken to a harem where he tells his tale. Once he was the Sultan, but his vizier, Jaffar (Conrad Veidt) convinced him to go among his subjects in disguise - then had him imprisoned. In the dungeon he meets a little thief, named Abu - played by Sabu.
They escape and have adventures, including Justin falling in love with princess June Duprez. But Veidt wants the princess for himself, and manages to catch Justin and Sabu. A mighty sorcerer, he strikes Justin blind and turns Sabu into a dog. But the princess falls into a deep sleep that can only be broken by Justin. And Justin and Sabu can only be returned to their former selves if the princess embraces Veidt - which she does.
Things would be pretty dire, but Sabu finds a jinn - Rex Ingram. And after many more adventures, all is set right.
This movie is great fun, with colorful sets full of colorful extras. You see the Powell touch with technicolor, mattes and sets, plus some early greenscreen work, like when the giant Rex Ingram is trying to step on Sabu. A great spectacle.
The Green Pastures, is a smaller scale production, although the scope is pretty big. It has an all-black cast, and stars Ingram in several roles. He starts as a Preacher, who is teaching Sunday school. When one of the kids asks what God looks like, he says he imagines that he looks like a wise old preacher he knew as a child. Then we are taken to the Green Pastures, in Heaven, where the angels are having a picnic and fish fry. When De Lawd shows up, it is Ingram again.
And so we go through the stories from the Bible: a little Adam (Ingram again) and Eve, a little Noah (Eddie Anderson!) and the Ark, some Moses and Aaron, and finally, just a hint at the New Testament to come. These stories are updated to rural 30's southern US - with the evil people of the earth represented by pistol-packing gangsters and ukulele-playing party girls. (I'm a uke player myself, so I love this scene the most of all.) They are also trimmed down a lot - so we get Moses and the trick staff, but only one of the plagues, no Red Sea stroll, and Moses' death outside the Promised Land. That last probably resonated with black audiences then.
All of this is backed up by the sweetest gospel choir. So you might find this movie racist at worst, condescending at best, but I'd be surprised if you don't find it entertaining. The acting is fine, the characters sweet and the uplift is real.
But I'd say Ingram's jinn is more fun.
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