Movie Review: the Man Who Would Be King

Michael Caine has maintained, according to wikipedia.org, that if any film of his is remembered after his death, it would be The Man Who Would Be King because it is the sort of film that everyone says, even when the film came out, "No-one makes pictures like this anymore."

What I kept thinking as I viewed this film was this, "How did they even make this film in the first place?"

Overview:

The Man Who Would Be King (1975, PG) is a film directed by John Huston that is based on a short story written in 1888 by Rudyard Kipling. The film stars Sean Connery as Daniel Dravot, Michael Caine as Peachy Carnehan, and Christopher Plummer as Rudyard Kipling. A thread of the plot revolves around Freemasonry which plays a large role in Dravot's success as he becomes the King of Kafiristan, a remote part of Afghanistan.

The plot:

We are drawn into the story in the opening scenes when a ragged derelict, Peachy Carnehan (Caine), pays a visit to Kipling in order to tell him a tale of the adventures that have taken place since he and his friend Daniel Dravot (Connery) first met Kipling.

Carnehan and Dravot are non-commissioned officers of the British Raj who depart from British India in the late 1800's in an adventurous attempt to travel to Kafiristan for fame and fortune. They found both, as well as tragedy. Along the way there is astonishing scenery, droll humor, danger, cultures so diverse that it is hard to describe them, and an ever-increasing drive on the part of Dravot to fully encompass the role of King.

The two friends meet up with Billy Fish (Saeed Jaffrey) who is the sole survivor of a mapping expedition. Billy can speak both English and the local tongue, so he acts as the go-between as Carnehan and Dravot come into contact (and war) with war leaders from various villages.

It is during one of these skirmishes that an event occurs that causes the war leaders to think that Dravot is a god, and later he is determined by them to be "Son of Sikander," Sikander being Alexander the Great.

The plot thickens when Dravot assumes the role of King, and determines that he wants to stay in Kafiristan, while Carnehan has decided that he wants to leave, taking with him some of the gold and jewels which have been given to Dravot when he became King.

I won't divulge the ending of the story, as the events are too exciting to know about in advance.

In conclusion:

This is an intriguing story, and the difficulties in filming it must have been immense. There are multitudes of people speaking in different languages, treks through mountains, wars - you name it! John Huston, who passed away in 1987, must have had to really put all of his creative talents to work when he directed this film.

I can't help but recommend this movie, The Man Who Wanted To Be King - two thumbs up from me!

For more articles by this writer, click here.

Other movie reviews by R.C. Johnson: The Princess Bride; The Mission; Top Gun; Crocodile Dundee; Maid to Order; Beaches; The Indian in the Cupboard; O Brother, Where Art Thou?; Witness; The Gods Must Be Crazy; Flywheel, Facing the Giants and Fireproof.

Sources for updates on the director and stars of the film:
wikipedia.org (film)
wikipedia.org (Sean Connery who played Dravot)
wikipedia.org (Michael Caine who played Carnehan)
wikipedia.org (Christopher Plummer who played Kipling)
wikipedia.org (John Huston, director)
wikipedia.org (Shakira Caine, who played Roxanne. Shakira married Michael Caine in 1973)