The Man Who Would Be King
Reviews
John Chard
From the upper echelon of boys own adventures comes - The Man Who Would Be King! Two ex-servicemen are lolling around colonial India, it's just the start of a journey that will see them in Kafiristan. Here the mountain dwellers believe the rouge white fellows to be Gods, and thus things are about to get very interesting indeed. Written by master writer Rudyard Kipling, directed by behemoth John Huston and starring British legends Sean Connery & Michael Caine, there really isn't any way this film could have failed - sure enough the picture exudes a classy structure that is coupled with deftly smart writing. The Man Who Would Be King was a project that John Huston had coveted for many a year (decade), as far back as the 40s he was looking to adapt the Kipling short with Humphrey Bogart & Clark Gable in the leads. Some time after it was mooted that he fancied Peter O'Toole & Richard Burton to play Messrs Dravot & Carnehan. Fast forward to 1975 and the eventual pairing of Caine & Connery now looks like a masterstroke of casting, and it really is impossible to imagine anyone else in the roles of the amoral scavenger duo of the piece. in short, the wait for the film was indeed worth it. That the film is known as an adventure genre staple is a given, but it should be noted that in amongst the delightful fusion of fantasy and swashbuckling values, there lies wonderful characterisation, cheeky sly glances at the power crazy, imperialism, greed, and it pulses a political beat. A highly entertaining picture that stands up really well ever more today in this new millennium age. I mean it's got Caine & Connery playing rapscallions for Gods sake! Enough said there me thinks! 8/10
Filipe Manuel Neto
**A magnificent adventure film that adapts to the cinema a short story by Rudyard Kipling about greed, and the price that can be paid for it.** Born in India, Rudyard Kipling is one of the most distinguished British writers of the late 19th century, and perhaps one of the most prolific. Seeing a list of his written work is an exercise in patience, and if we think that he wrote it all in sunlight or gas and using a dip pen, without computers or electric light to see better, it is truly remarkable. Coming from an aristocratic family closely linked to colonial life, he had a conservative upbringing and his youth is indelibly linked to India, which he always portrayed as something idyllic. Still in India, he had a Portuguese Catholic nanny, with whom he prayed. Already in adult life, he traveled and got to know well the United States and the East. But Kipling was a man of his time, and that time was the height of British rule in India, the time of the British Empire. And he, according to the education and values he received, always believed in the civilizing value of the colonial mission of the European peoples – and particularly of the United Kingdom, his homeland, which he always defended without caring about the consequences of the use of force. A profound jingoist, he paid for it years later: in World War I, he lost a son in combat and was particularly active in collaborating with the Red Cross and comforting the wounded. And curiously, he was perhaps one of the first to see the danger that came with the rise of Hitler and Mussolini. This film, inspired by one of the author's most controversial stories, tells us about the ambition and greed of two British soldiers who decide to take advantage of the naivety of an isolated population in a desolate area of today's Pakistan. They decide to go there, knowing that there were many tribal wars, and become kings of those people. With free access to whatever riches they could get their hands on, they hoped to return to England rich. This short story is a critique against the ambition of some Englishmen and the unfair way in which the locals were robbed of their values. I am sure that Kipling knew and condemned such excesses. And the movie is faithful to his tale. John Huston did an excellent job on this film, which stands out among his filmography as one of the director's best works. In addition to being able to give us the epic, beautiful and fearsome aroma of the region where everything takes place, he manages to extract the best from a very strong cast, led by three titanic actors: Michael Caine, Christopher Plummer and Sean Connery. If we have high regard for each one's talent and journey, it is truly unmissable to see them together. Even though they are two greedy adventurers, Caine and Connery's work manages to make us like their characters, particularly Connery, whose character makes an extraordinary dramatic arc: he really starts to care about those people. The film has excellent cinematography, with bold colors and plenty of lighting, but what is truly remarkable is the choice of filming locations, which center around Morocco. The rugged beauty of the mountains is magnetic, and the omnipresent sense of danger, even in the most peaceful of situations, locks us into the canvas. Maurice Jarre wrote the soundtrack, which may well be among the composer's best.
CinemaSerf
"Danny" (Sean Connery) and "Peachy" (Michael Caine) are a pair of chancers at the height of the Raj in British India, who decide that they need to go make their fortune. Thanks to a little help from Rudyard Kipling (Christopher Plummer), they learn of the land of Kafiristan up on the Hindu Kush where the map makers have yet to arrive. Using all of their wits and guile, the pair head north and eventually find themselves training an army of agrarian villagers with the help of the translator "Billy the Fish" (Saeed Jaffrey). Pretty soon they have themselves a reputation, and that only becomes more revered when "Danny" is struck by an arrow in the heart! Except, it gets nowhere near his body. Never let the truth get in the way of a good story, though, and so he pretends it's a symbol of his immortality which the local populace lap up. Now they win battles just by showing up, and he starts believing in his own publicity. When he encounters the beautiful "Roxanne" (Shakira Caine) he goes into full Alexander the Great mode but you know what they say about pride... This is a great looking drama that, though filmed in Morocco, looks every inch the part as the marauding tribesmen play polo with a head in bag, the priests throng through the countryside of warring communities and there's a strongly entertaining and mischievous chemistry afoot between a Connery and Caine who are clearly enjoying themselves. It's top quality boys-own stuff with adventures galore and also a bit of a message about greed (in all of it's forms) and friendship. It hits the ground running and a bit like Errol Flynn's "Kim" (1950) showcases the adaptability of Kipling's stories of derring-do perfectly. Good fun, this.
Movie Recommendation
Beyond Citizen Kane1993-09-01Beyond Citizen Kane (1993) is a British documentary film directed by Simon Hartog, produced by John Ellis, and broadcast on Channel 4. It details the dominant position of the Rede Globo media group in the Brazilian society, discussing the group's influence, power, and political connections. Globo's president and founder Roberto Marinho came in for particular criticism, being compared with fictional newspaper tycoon Charles Foster Kane, created by Orson Welles for the 1941 film Citizen Kane. According to the documentary, Marinho's media group engages in the same Kane wholesale manipulation of news to influence the public opinion.More...
City of Ghosts2002-09-10A con man who is on the run from law enforcement in the U.S. travels to Cambodia to collect his share in an insurance scam but discovers more than he bargained for.More...
The Hooligan Factory2014-06-13Danny wants something more. Expelled from school and living in his grandfathers flat, he longs to live up to the image of his estranged father Danny SeniorMore...
The Magus1968-12-10A teacher on a Greek island becomes involved in bizarre mind-games with the island's magus (magician) and a beautiful young woman.More...
Kim1950-12-07During the British Raj, the orphan of a British soldier poses as a Hindu and is torn between his loyalty to a Buddhist mystic and aiding the English secret service.More...
The Last Valley1971-01-28People in a small German village in the last valley to remain untouched by the devastating Thirty Years' War try to exist in peace with a group of soldiers occupying the valley.More...
I Served the King of England2007-01-11Prague, Czechoslovakia, during the inter-war period. Jan Dítě, a young and clever waiter who wants to become a millionaire, comes to the conclusion that to achieve his ambitious goal he must be diligent, listen and observe as much as he can, be always discreet and use what he learns to his own advantage; but the turbulent tides of history will continually stand in his way.More...
Maigret Sees Red1963-09-18Gangsters from the United States try to kill a key government witness whose testimony could help land an influential mobster in jail. It's up to detective Maigret to deal with the FBI and a series of underworld figures to save the life of the witness...More...
Gambit1966-12-16Harry Dean is a career burglar set on stealing a piece of priceless art from the world's wealthiest man, Mr. Shahbandar. With the help of exotic showgirl Nicole Chang, he concocts the perfect scheme for how the robbery should go and lays it out point by point. However, when the team tries to execute the plan, perfection and reality don't quite match up, and Harry's vision begins to unravel in this twisty tale of a heist gone wrong.More...
Bulworth1998-05-15A suicidally disillusioned liberal politician puts a contract out on himself and takes the opportunity to be bluntly honest with his voters by affecting the rhythms and speech of hip-hop music and culture.More...
The Thin Man1934-05-25A husband and wife detective team takes on the search for a missing inventor and almost get killed for their efforts.More...
Time and Tide2000-10-19A streetwise young man becomes a bodyguard to score quick cash. He befriends a disillusioned mercenary determined to begin life anew. They find themselves working together to foil an assassination attempt, but their partnership can't last.More...
Dick Johnson Is Dead2020-01-23With this inventive portrait, director Kirsten Johnson seeks a way to keep her 86-year-old father alive forever. Utilizing moviemaking magic and her family’s dark humor, she celebrates Dr. Dick Johnson’s last years by staging fantasies of death and beyond. Together, dad and daughter confront the great inevitability awaiting us all.More...
Ghostwatch1992-10-31For Halloween 1992, the BBC decides to broadcast an investigation into the supernatural, hosted by TV chat-show legend Michael Parkinson. Parky (assisted by Mike Smith, Sarah Greene & Craig Charles) and a camera crew attempt to discover the truth behind the most haunted house in Britain. This ground-breaking live television experiment does not go as planned, however.More...
Robin and Marian1976-03-11Robin Hood, aging none too gracefully, returns exhausted from the Crusades to woo and win Maid Marian one last time.More...
The Chase1966-02-18The escape of Bubber Reeves from prison affects the inhabitants of a small Southern town.More...
Living in Oblivion1995-07-21Low-budget independent filmmaker Nick Reve tries to keep everything together as his production is plagued with an insecure actress, a megalomaniac star, a pretentious beret-wearing director of photography, and lousy catering.More...
Omar Killed Me2011-06-21In the summer of 1991 an elderly woman Ghislaine Marchal is found murdered in the basement of her home with the message "Omar M'a Tuer" (Omar has kill me) written beside in her own blood. Despite a lack of forensic or DNA evidence, her Moroccan gardener Omar Raddad is found guilty and sentenced to 18 years in a French prison. Shocked by the case, and convinced of his innocence, journalist Pierre-Emmanuel Vaugrenard moves to Nice to investigate, and uncover the truth...More...
The Flight of the Phoenix1965-12-15A cargo aircraft crashes in a sandstorm in the Sahara with less than a dozen men on board. One of the passengers is an airplane designer who comes up with the idea of ripping off the undamaged wing and using it as the basis for a replacement aircraft they need to build before their food and water run out.More...
Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie Part I: Beginnings2012-10-05Madoka Kaname, an ordinary middle-schooler, along with her best friend Sayaka Miki, are offered the chance to have any wish they want granted by the mysterious Kyubey, and become magical girls and fight witches. However, fellow magical girl Homura Akemi seems intent on stopping Madoka from becoming a magical girl at any cost. Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie Part I: Beginnings is a retelling of the first half of the TV anime series.More...
Similar Movies
Abscond
2019-12-09Two young thieves on the run reach a crossroads in their journey.Mothra
1961-07-30Shipwreck survivors found on the presumably uninhabited Infant Island leads to a scientific expedition that discovers a surviving native population along with the Shobijin, tiny twin fairy priestesses of the island's mythical deity called Mothra. After the fairies are kidnapped by an exploitative businessman named Clark Nelson, Mothra sets out to rescue them.Beloved
1998-10-16After Paul D. finds his old slave friend Sethe in Ohio and moves in with her and her daughter Denver, a strange girl comes along by the name of "Beloved". Sethe and Denver take her in and then strange things start to happen...El Hombre Búfalo
2020-08-28After a threat, a journalist stops publishing. His search for justice leads him to meet his destiny and a mythological being who takes care of the abandoned childhood.Kesari
2019-03-21In 1897, an army of 21 Sikhs battles 10,000 Afghans to prevent the Saragarhi Fort from being taken down.Zombies of Mora Tau
1957-03-01A fortune hunter leads a search for diamonds guarded by undead sailors off the coast of Africa.Gulliver's Travels
2010-12-23Travel writer Lemuel Gulliver takes an assignment in Bermuda, but ends up on the island of Liliput, where he towers over its tiny citizens.Monte Carlo or Bust!
1969-04-28Sequel to "Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines". This time an international car rally from England to Monte Carlo provides the comedic farce.Beauty and the Beast
1983-11-11When Mette and her father are left alone over the Christmas holidays, he starts feeling increasingly rejected and jealous, as his adolescent daughter starts looking for real beaus.The Aspern Papers
2019-01-11A young writer tries to obtain romance letters a poet sent to his mistress.Ett dockhem
1956-01-01August Strindberg's feedback to Henrik Ibsen's "Doll's House"--a short story from the collection "Giftas" (Getting married), about female emancipation and obsolete marriages.Small Town Saturday N...
2010-05-31Just days before Rhett (Chris Pine) is leaving for Nashville to pursue a lifelong dream of being a singer/songwriter, his girlfriend Samantha (Bre Blair) realizes that "his" future may not be "their" future. This news comes as a shock to Rhett, and he is faced with having to choose between following his dream and staying in his hometown in order to be with the woman he loves.Story of a Prostitute...
1965-02-27Volunteering as a "comfort woman" on the Manchurian front, where she is expected to service hundreds of soldiers, Harumi is commandeered by the brutal Lieutenant Narita but falls for the sensitive Mikami, Narita's direct subordinate. Seijun Suzuki's Story of a Prostitute is a tragic love story as well as a rule-bending take on a popular Taijiro Tamura novel, challenging military and fraternal codes of honor, as seen through Harumi's eyes.The Dead
1987-09-03After a convivial holiday dinner party, things begin to unravel when a husband and wife address some prickly issues concerning their marriage.Open Mic
2025-05-01A conversation Harper has with herself in her own head, interjected with the moments in which she is recalling. Some sort of event sent her into an existential state of mind, where she can't help but think about who she is, and how much control she really has over her life.Oscar and Lucinda
1997-12-31After a childhood of abuse by his evangelistic father, misfit Oscar Hopkins becomes an Anglican minister and develops a divine obsession with gambling. Lucinda Leplastrier is a rich Australian heiress shopping in London for materials for her newly acquired glass factory back home. Deciding to travel to Australia as a missionary, Oscar meets Lucinda aboard ship, and a mutual obsession blossoms. They make a wager that will alter each of their destinies.Dr. Syn, Alias the Sc...
1963-12-06English vicar Dr. Syn becomes a scarecrow on horseback by night to thwart King George III's taxmen.Tenchu!
1969-08-09A ronin desperately seeks a way out of financial straits; he allies with the Tosa clan under the ruthless leader Takechi, who quickly takes advantage.Impulse
1954-01-01An American realtor living in England is dissatisfied with what he believes to be his humdrum life. One weekend while his wife is out of town, he gives a ride to a woman he sees stranded on the road. One thing leads to another, and he soon finds himself enmeshed in a plot involving a diamond robbery, gangsters and murder.Day of the Mummy
2014-10-20Welcome to Egypt, land of the Pharaohs. A place steeped in history and legend; Gods and spiritual guides; untold wealth – and the bone-cracking, blood-spilling guardians of its riches. Jack Wells has arrived in Egypt in search of the famous diamond known as The Codex Stone. His journey leads him to the tomb of the cursed King Neferu, cursed not by name but by nature. With his centuries-old slumber disturbed by timeless human greed, the King rises from the dead with a blood-lust that cannot be quenched and a raging fury that will shred flesh from bone, bringing terrible and tormented death to all who dare witness the Day of the Mummy.