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The Man Who Would Be King (film)
Encyclopedia
The Man Who Would Be King is a 1975 film adapted from the Rudyard Kipling
short story of the same title
. It was adapted and directed by John Huston
and starred Sean Connery
, Michael Caine
, Saeed Jaffrey
, and Christopher Plummer
as Kipling (giving a name to the short story's anonymous narrator).
The film follows two rogue ex-non-commissioned officer
s of the British Raj
who set off from late 19th century British India in search of adventure and end up as kings of Kafiristan
. Kipling is believed to have been inspired by the travels of American
adventurer Josiah Harlan
during the period of the Great Game between Imperial Russia and the British Empire
and James Brooke
, an Englishman who became the "white Raja
" of Sarawak
in Borneo
. Like much of his writing, Kipling's original story takes a nuanced view of imperialism
; in Huston's telling, both East and West have their faults and virtues.
) is approached by a ragged, seemingly crazed derelict, who reveals himself to be his old acquaintance Peachy Carnehan (Michael Caine
). Peachy tells Kipling the story of how he and his comrade-in-arms Danny Dravot (Sean Connery
) travelled to remote Kafiristan (in modern-day Afghanistan
), became gods, and ultimately lost everything.
A few years earlier, the pair of rogues had met Kipling at his office. After signing a contract pledging mutual loyalty and forswearing drink and women until they achieved their grandiose aims, Peachy and Danny set off on an epic overland journey north beyond the Khyber Pass
, "travelling by night and avoiding villages", fighting off bandits, blizzards and avalanches, into the unknown land of Kafiristan (literally "Land of the non-Muslims
").
They chance upon a Gurkha
soldier who goes by the name Billy Fish (Saeed Jaffrey
), the sole survivor of a mapping expedition several years before. Billy speaks English as well as the local tongue, and it is he, acting as translator and interpreter of the customs and manners, who smooths the path of Peachy and Danny as they begin their rise, first offering their services as military advisors, trainers, and war leaders to the chief of a much-raided village.
Peachy and Danny muster a force to attack the villagers' most-hated enemy. In their first battle, the natives decide that Danny must be a god when he is unharmed after being struck in the chest by an arrow. In fact, the arrow was stopped by a bandolier
hidden beneath his clothing. As victory follows victory, the defeated are recruited to join the swelling army.
Finally, there is no one left to stand in their way, and they are summoned to the holy city of Sikandergul. There, the head holy man sets up a re-enactment of the arrow incident,in order to determine whether he is a man or a god by seeing if he bleeds or not.
When Danny flinches, the monks grab him and rip open his shirt, only to be stopped however, by Danny's Masonic Jewel (given to him for luck by fellow Mason
Kipling). By coincidence, the symbol on the Jewel matches that of "Sikander" (Alexander the Great), who had passed through many centuries ago and promised to return. The holy men are convinced Danny is the reincarnation of Sikander. They hail him as king and lead the two men down to storerooms heaped with treasure that belonged to Sikander, which now belong to Danny.
As the months pass, Peachy is anxious to leave with the treasure before winter closes the passes (and before the natives learn
the truth). Danny is against it however and develops delusions of grandeur
. First he suggests that Peachy bow to him like the others. Then he begins making plans to turn the land into a modern country, to the extent that he envisages eventually meeting Queen Victoria
"as an equal". Disgusted, Peachy decides to take as much booty as he can carry on a small mule train, with his old friend's blessing.
Meanwhile, Danny decides to take a wife after seeing the beautiful Roxanne (played by Caine's wife Shakira
), despite Peachy's strong warnings. Roxanne, having a superstitious fear that she will be struck dead if she consorts with a god, tries frantically to escape, biting Danny during the wedding ceremony. The bite draws blood, and when everyone sees it, they realise Danny is human after all.
The angry natives pursue him and Peachy. Billy tries to buy time by courageously charging the mob singlehandedly with a Khukuri, but the pair are soon captured. Danny is forced to walk to the middle of a rope bridge over a deep gorge; he apologises to Peachy before the ropes are cut. Peachy is crucified between two pine trees, but is cut down the next day when he survives the ordeal. Eventually, he makes his way back to India, though his mind has become unhinged by his sufferings. As Peachy finishes his story, he presents Kipling with Danny's head, still wearing its crown, thereby proving the tale is true.
Huston had planned to make the film since the 1950s, originally with Humphrey Bogart
and Clark Gable
, then Burt Lancaster
and Kirk Douglas
, and then Robert Redford
and Paul Newman
— Newman suggested British actors Connery and Caine. The film was shot at Pinewood Studios
and at locations in France
, Morocco
and the USA.
Saeed Jaffrey is an ethnic Indian
, not a Gurkha
.
The film has almost no speaking parts for women, and except for the part of Roxanne (who barely speaks at all), there are no other named female roles.
." Roger Ebert
wrote, "It's been a long time since there's been an escapist entertainment quite this unabashed and thrilling and fun."
scored the film and invited classical Indian musicians to participate in the recording sessions with a traditional European symphony orchestra, blending the musical styles for the melodies, based around the hymn "The Minstrel Boy
", (although the lyrics are those of Reginald Heber's "The Son of God Goes Forth to War
"), which figures in the plot. Connery and Caine sang for the LP and CD of the film music.
.
, from the uniform to the Kukri
knife. His battle cry when he charges the mob at the end, "Ayo Gurkhali!" ("The Gurkhas are here!"), is in fact the ancient war-cry that is still in use. However, Billy translates English into Hindi while ostensibly speaking to the natives of Kafiristan, who then answer him in their native tongue. The actors and extras who represent the natives, including the high priest and his messenger, answer actually in Moroccan. In many scenes, the 'Kafiristanis' are dressed in Moroccan garments.
there was an episode titled "The Man Who Would be King". Its status as one of the greatest underrated films of all time is discussed at length on Greg Proops's
podcast, The Smartest Man in the World, on the episode entitled Pages.
Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English poet, short-story writer, and novelist chiefly remembered for his celebration of British imperialism, tales and poems of British soldiers in India, and his tales for children. Kipling received the 1907 Nobel Prize for Literature...
short story of the same title
The Man Who Would Be King
For the 1975 film based on this story, see The Man Who Would Be King "The Man Who Would Be King" is a short story by Rudyard Kipling. It is about two British adventurers in British India who become kings of Kafiristan, a remote part of Afghanistan...
. It was adapted and directed by John Huston
John Huston
John Marcellus Huston was an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He wrote most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered classics: The Maltese Falcon , The Treasure of the Sierra Madre , Key Largo , The Asphalt Jungle , The African Queen , Moulin Rouge...
and starred Sean Connery
Sean Connery
Sir Thomas Sean Connery , better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards and three Golden Globes Sir Thomas Sean Connery (born 25 August 1930), better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy...
, Michael Caine
Michael Caine
Sir Michael Caine, CBE is an English actor. He won Academy Awards for best supporting actor in both Hannah and Her Sisters and The Cider House Rules ....
, Saeed Jaffrey
Saeed Jaffrey
Saeed Jaffrey OBE is an Indian-born British actor, who has done numerous British movies. He was born in Malerkotla, Punjab...
, and Christopher Plummer
Christopher Plummer
Arthur Christopher Orne Plummer, CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. He made his film debut in 1957's Stage Struck, and notable early film performances include Night of the Generals, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Man Who Would Be King.In a career that spans over five...
as Kipling (giving a name to the short story's anonymous narrator).
The film follows two rogue ex-non-commissioned officer
Non-commissioned officer
A non-commissioned officer , called a sub-officer in some countries, is a military officer who has not been given a commission...
s of the British Raj
British Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
who set off from late 19th century British India in search of adventure and end up as kings of Kafiristan
Kafiristan
Kāfiristān or Kāfirstān was a historic name of Nurestan , a province in the Hindu Kush region of Afghanistan and Pakistan, prior to 1896. This historic region lies on, and mainly comprises, basins of the rivers Alingar, Pech , Landai Sin, and Kunar, and the intervening mountain ranges...
. Kipling is believed to have been inspired by the travels of American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
adventurer Josiah Harlan
Josiah Harlan
Josiah Harlan, Prince of Ghor was an American adventurer, best known for travelling to Afghanistan and Punjab with the intention of making himself a king. While there, he became involved in local politics and factional military actions, eventually winning the title Prince of Ghor in perpetuity for...
during the period of the Great Game between Imperial Russia and the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
and James Brooke
James Brooke
James, Rajah of Sarawak, KCB was the first White Rajah of Sarawak. His father, Thomas Brooke, was an English Judge Court of Appeal at Bareilly, British India; his mother, Anna Maria, born in Hertfordshire, was the illegitimate daughter of Scottish peer Colonel William Stuart, 9th Lord Blantyre,...
, an Englishman who became the "white Raja
Raja
Raja is an Indian term for a monarch, or princely ruler of the Kshatriya varna...
" of Sarawak
Sarawak
Sarawak is one of two Malaysian states on the island of Borneo. Known as Bumi Kenyalang , Sarawak is situated on the north-west of the island. It is the largest state in Malaysia followed by Sabah, the second largest state located to the North- East.The administrative capital is Kuching, which...
in Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
. Like much of his writing, Kipling's original story takes a nuanced view of imperialism
Imperialism
Imperialism, as defined by Dictionary of Human Geography, is "the creation and/or maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural, and territorial relationships, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination." The imperialism of the last 500 years,...
; in Huston's telling, both East and West have their faults and virtues.
Plot
While working as a correspondent at the offices of the Northern Star newspaper, Kipling (Christopher PlummerChristopher Plummer
Arthur Christopher Orne Plummer, CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. He made his film debut in 1957's Stage Struck, and notable early film performances include Night of the Generals, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Man Who Would Be King.In a career that spans over five...
) is approached by a ragged, seemingly crazed derelict, who reveals himself to be his old acquaintance Peachy Carnehan (Michael Caine
Michael Caine
Sir Michael Caine, CBE is an English actor. He won Academy Awards for best supporting actor in both Hannah and Her Sisters and The Cider House Rules ....
). Peachy tells Kipling the story of how he and his comrade-in-arms Danny Dravot (Sean Connery
Sean Connery
Sir Thomas Sean Connery , better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards and three Golden Globes Sir Thomas Sean Connery (born 25 August 1930), better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy...
) travelled to remote Kafiristan (in modern-day Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
), became gods, and ultimately lost everything.
A few years earlier, the pair of rogues had met Kipling at his office. After signing a contract pledging mutual loyalty and forswearing drink and women until they achieved their grandiose aims, Peachy and Danny set off on an epic overland journey north beyond the Khyber Pass
Khyber Pass
The Khyber Pass, is a mountain pass linking Pakistan and Afghanistan.The Pass was an integral part of the ancient Silk Road. It is mentioned in the Bible as the "Pesh Habor," and it is one of the oldest known passes in the world....
, "travelling by night and avoiding villages", fighting off bandits, blizzards and avalanches, into the unknown land of Kafiristan (literally "Land of the non-Muslims
Kafir
Kafir is an Arabic term used in a Islamic doctrinal sense, usually translated as "unbeliever" or "disbeliever"...
").
They chance upon a Gurkha
Gurkha
Gurkha are people from Nepal who take their name from the Gorkha District. Gurkhas are best known for their history in the Indian Army's Gorkha regiments, the British Army's Brigade of Gurkhas and the Nepalese Army. Gurkha units are closely associated with the kukri, a forward-curving Nepalese knife...
soldier who goes by the name Billy Fish (Saeed Jaffrey
Saeed Jaffrey
Saeed Jaffrey OBE is an Indian-born British actor, who has done numerous British movies. He was born in Malerkotla, Punjab...
), the sole survivor of a mapping expedition several years before. Billy speaks English as well as the local tongue, and it is he, acting as translator and interpreter of the customs and manners, who smooths the path of Peachy and Danny as they begin their rise, first offering their services as military advisors, trainers, and war leaders to the chief of a much-raided village.
Peachy and Danny muster a force to attack the villagers' most-hated enemy. In their first battle, the natives decide that Danny must be a god when he is unharmed after being struck in the chest by an arrow. In fact, the arrow was stopped by a bandolier
Bandolier
A bandolier or a bandoleer is a pocketed belt for holding ammunition. It was usually slung over the chest. In its original form, it was common issue to soldiers from the 16th to 18th centuries. This was very useful for quickly reloading a musket....
hidden beneath his clothing. As victory follows victory, the defeated are recruited to join the swelling army.
Finally, there is no one left to stand in their way, and they are summoned to the holy city of Sikandergul. There, the head holy man sets up a re-enactment of the arrow incident,in order to determine whether he is a man or a god by seeing if he bleeds or not.
When Danny flinches, the monks grab him and rip open his shirt, only to be stopped however, by Danny's Masonic Jewel (given to him for luck by fellow Mason
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
Kipling). By coincidence, the symbol on the Jewel matches that of "Sikander" (Alexander the Great), who had passed through many centuries ago and promised to return. The holy men are convinced Danny is the reincarnation of Sikander. They hail him as king and lead the two men down to storerooms heaped with treasure that belonged to Sikander, which now belong to Danny.
As the months pass, Peachy is anxious to leave with the treasure before winter closes the passes (and before the natives learn
the truth). Danny is against it however and develops delusions of grandeur
Delusions of Grandeur
Delusions of Grandeur is an album by Fleming and John that was released in 1995.-Track listing:# "I'm Not Afraid" — 3:13# "Break The Circles" — 3:01# "Delusions Of Grandeur" — 3:45# "Love Songs" — 4:33# "Letters In My Head" — 3:56...
. First he suggests that Peachy bow to him like the others. Then he begins making plans to turn the land into a modern country, to the extent that he envisages eventually meeting Queen Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
"as an equal". Disgusted, Peachy decides to take as much booty as he can carry on a small mule train, with his old friend's blessing.
Meanwhile, Danny decides to take a wife after seeing the beautiful Roxanne (played by Caine's wife Shakira
Shakira Caine
Shakira Caine , is a Guyanese-British former fashion model and actress of Indian descent....
), despite Peachy's strong warnings. Roxanne, having a superstitious fear that she will be struck dead if she consorts with a god, tries frantically to escape, biting Danny during the wedding ceremony. The bite draws blood, and when everyone sees it, they realise Danny is human after all.
The angry natives pursue him and Peachy. Billy tries to buy time by courageously charging the mob singlehandedly with a Khukuri, but the pair are soon captured. Danny is forced to walk to the middle of a rope bridge over a deep gorge; he apologises to Peachy before the ropes are cut. Peachy is crucified between two pine trees, but is cut down the next day when he survives the ordeal. Eventually, he makes his way back to India, though his mind has become unhinged by his sufferings. As Peachy finishes his story, he presents Kipling with Danny's head, still wearing its crown, thereby proving the tale is true.
Cast
- Sean ConnerySean ConnerySir Thomas Sean Connery , better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards and three Golden Globes Sir Thomas Sean Connery (born 25 August 1930), better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy...
as Daniel DravotDaniel DravotDaniel Dravot is a fictional character in Rudyard Kipling's short story The Man Who Would Be King, subsequently made into a feature film in 1975. In the film, he is portrayed by Sean Connery.-In the short story:... - Michael CaineMichael CaineSir Michael Caine, CBE is an English actor. He won Academy Awards for best supporting actor in both Hannah and Her Sisters and The Cider House Rules ....
as Peachy Carnehan - Christopher PlummerChristopher PlummerArthur Christopher Orne Plummer, CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. He made his film debut in 1957's Stage Struck, and notable early film performances include Night of the Generals, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Man Who Would Be King.In a career that spans over five...
as Rudyard Kipling - Saeed JaffreySaeed JaffreySaeed Jaffrey OBE is an Indian-born British actor, who has done numerous British movies. He was born in Malerkotla, Punjab...
as Billy Fish - Doghmi Larbi as Ootah
- Jack MayJack MayJack May was an English actor. Born in Henley-on-Thames, he was educated at Forest School, Walthamstow and after war service with the Royal Indian Navy in India was offered a place at RADA, but he instead went to Merton College, Oxford...
as District Commissioner - Karroom Ben Bouih as Kafu Selim
- Mohammad Shamsi as Babu
- Albert MosesAlbert MosesAlbert Moses is a British-based actor born near Kandy, Sri Lanka. He had begun to act by the 1960s in India where he appeared in several films, then produced and directed his first. From India, he moved to Africa where he undertook work on documentaries...
as Ghulam - Paul Antrim as Mulvaney
- Graham Acres as Officer
- The Blue Dancers of Goulamine as Dancers
- Shakira CaineShakira CaineShakira Caine , is a Guyanese-British former fashion model and actress of Indian descent....
as Roxanne
Huston had planned to make the film since the 1950s, originally with Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey DeForest Bogart was an American actor. He is widely regarded as a cultural icon.The American Film Institute ranked Bogart as the greatest male star in the history of American cinema....
and Clark Gable
Clark Gable
William Clark Gable , known as Clark Gable, was an American film actor most famous for his role as Rhett Butler in the 1939 Civil War epic film Gone with the Wind, in which he starred with Vivien Leigh...
, then Burt Lancaster
Burt Lancaster
Burton Stephen "Burt" Lancaster was an American film actor noted for his athletic physique and distinctive smile...
and Kirk Douglas
Kirk Douglas
Kirk Douglas is an American stage and film actor, film producer and author. His popular films include Out of the Past , Champion , Ace in the Hole , The Bad and the Beautiful , Lust for Life , Paths of Glory , Gunfight at the O.K...
, and then Robert Redford
Robert Redford
Charles Robert Redford, Jr. , better known as Robert Redford, is an American actor, film director, producer, businessman, environmentalist, philanthropist, and founder of the Sundance Film Festival. He has received two Oscars: one in 1981 for directing Ordinary People, and one for Lifetime...
and Paul Newman
Paul Newman
Paul Leonard Newman was an American actor, film director, entrepreneur, humanitarian, professional racing driver and auto racing enthusiast...
— Newman suggested British actors Connery and Caine. The film was shot at Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios is a major British film studio situated in Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, approximately west of central London. The studios have played host to many productions over the years from huge blockbuster films to television shows to commercials to pop promos.The purchase of Shepperton...
and at locations in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
and the USA.
Saeed Jaffrey is an ethnic Indian
Indian people
Indian people or Indisians constitute the Asian nation and pan-ethnic group native to India, which forms the south of Asia, containing 17.31% of the world's population. The Indian nationality is in essence made up of regional nationalities, reflecting the rich and complex history of India...
, not a Gurkha
Gurkha
Gurkha are people from Nepal who take their name from the Gorkha District. Gurkhas are best known for their history in the Indian Army's Gorkha regiments, the British Army's Brigade of Gurkhas and the Nepalese Army. Gurkha units are closely associated with the kukri, a forward-curving Nepalese knife...
.
The film has almost no speaking parts for women, and except for the part of Roxanne (who barely speaks at all), there are no other named female roles.
Reception
In a retrospective review, the New York Times called it "Gloriously old-fashioned in its approach – right down to the characters' politically incorrect attitudes toward anyone who isn't one hundred per cent British – The Man Who Would Be King is pure entertainment in the grand tradition of Gunga DinGunga Din (film)
Gunga Din is a 1939 RKO adventure film directed by George Stevens, loosely based on the poem of the same name by Rudyard Kipling, combined with elements of his novel Soldiers Three...
." Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
wrote, "It's been a long time since there's been an escapist entertainment quite this unabashed and thrilling and fun."
Awards and nominations
The film was nominated for four Academy Awards:- Best Art DirectionAcademy Award for Best Art DirectionThe Academy Awards are the oldest awards ceremony for achievements in motion pictures. The Academy Award for Best Art Direction recognizes achievement in art direction on a film. The films below are listed with their production year, so the Oscar 2000 for best art direction went to a film from 1999...
- Alexander Trauner, Tony InglisTony InglisTony Inglis was an art director. He was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Art Direction for the film The Man Who Would Be King.-External links:...
, Peter JamesPeter James (set decorator)Peter James was an English set decorator. He was nominated for two Academy Awards in the category Best Art Direction.-Selected filmography:James was nominated for two Academy Awards for Best Art Direction:... - Best WritingAcademy Award for Writing Adapted ScreenplayThe Academy Award for Writing Adapted Screenplay is one of the Academy Awards, the most prominent film awards in the United States. It is awarded each year to the writer of a screenplay adapted from another source...
- John HustonJohn HustonJohn Marcellus Huston was an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He wrote most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered classics: The Maltese Falcon , The Treasure of the Sierra Madre , Key Largo , The Asphalt Jungle , The African Queen , Moulin Rouge...
, Gladys Hill - Best Costume DesignAcademy Award for Costume DesignThe Academy Award for Best Costume Design is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for achievement in film costume design....
- Edith HeadEdith HeadEdith Head was an American costume designer who won eight Academy Awards, more than any other woman.-Early life and career:... - Best EditingAcademy Award for Film EditingThe Academy Award for Film Editing is one of the annual awards of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Nominations for this award are closely correlated with the Academy Award for Best Picture. Since 1981, every film selected as Best Picture has also been nominated for the Film Editing...
- Russell LloydRussell Lloyd (film editor)Russell Lloyd was a British-born American film editor who amassed fifty credits on feature films. Lloyd had a notable collaboration with the director John Huston that extended over eleven films...
Music
Maurice JarreMaurice Jarre
Maurice-Alexis Jarre was a French composer and conductor.Although he composed several concert works, he is best known for his film scores, and is particularly known for his collaborations with film director David Lean. Jarre composed the scores to all of Lean's films since Lawrence of Arabia...
scored the film and invited classical Indian musicians to participate in the recording sessions with a traditional European symphony orchestra, blending the musical styles for the melodies, based around the hymn "The Minstrel Boy
The Minstrel Boy
"The Minstrel Boy" is an Irish patriotic song written by Thomas Moore who set it to the melody of The Moreen, an old Irish air. It is widely believed that Moore composed the song in remembrance of a number of his friends, whom he met while studying at Trinity College, Dublin and who had...
", (although the lyrics are those of Reginald Heber's "The Son of God Goes Forth to War
The Son of God Goes Forth to War
The Son of God Goes Forth to War is a hymn written in 1812 by Reginald Heber. It was used in the film version of The Man Who Would Be King, starring Sean Connery and Michael Caine, but was set to the tune of The Moreen/The Minstrel Boy and had reworked lyrics .The Son of God goes forth to war,a...
"), which figures in the plot. Connery and Caine sang for the LP and CD of the film music.
Comparison to the short story
The movie is largely faithful to the original story, except at the end which has the half-insane Carnehan leaving Dravot's head on Kipling's desk. In the original story, Carnehan takes Dravot's head with him; two days later, the unnamed narrator has Carnehan taken to an insane asylum, where he dies of sunstroke. No belongings are found with Carnehan. In the film, the character named "Billy Fish" is a Ghurka soldier, while in the story he is a Kafir chief, whose name is approximated as "Billy Fish" by Dravot and Carnehan. There are also variations in the use of masonic detail - for more information, see Daniel DravotDaniel Dravot
Daniel Dravot is a fictional character in Rudyard Kipling's short story The Man Who Would Be King, subsequently made into a feature film in 1975. In the film, he is portrayed by Sean Connery.-In the short story:...
.
Inaccuracies
Billy Fish is accurately depicted as a Gurkha rifleman of the British Indian ArmyBritish Indian Army
The British Indian Army, officially simply the Indian Army, was the principal army of the British Raj in India before the partition of India in 1947...
, from the uniform to the Kukri
Kukri
The kukri is a curved Nepalese Knife, similar to the machete, used as both a tool and as a weapon...
knife. His battle cry when he charges the mob at the end, "Ayo Gurkhali!" ("The Gurkhas are here!"), is in fact the ancient war-cry that is still in use. However, Billy translates English into Hindi while ostensibly speaking to the natives of Kafiristan, who then answer him in their native tongue. The actors and extras who represent the natives, including the high priest and his messenger, answer actually in Moroccan. In many scenes, the 'Kafiristanis' are dressed in Moroccan garments.
In popular culture
This story/movie was parodied in "The Beef who Would be King", an episode of the animated television series Galaxy High, as well as in SCTV's "The Man Who Would Be King of the Popes". The characters of Peachy and Dravot were parodied by Frost and Pegg on the DVD extras of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz in sections called The Man Who Would Be Shaun / Fuzz. In season 6 of the CW television series, SupernaturalSupernatural (TV series)
Supernatural is an American supernatural and horror television series created by Eric Kripke, which debuted on September 13, 2005 on The WB, and is now part of The CW's lineup. Starring Jared Padalecki as Sam Winchester and Jensen Ackles as Dean Winchester, the series follows the brothers as they...
there was an episode titled "The Man Who Would be King". Its status as one of the greatest underrated films of all time is discussed at length on Greg Proops's
Greg Proops
Gregory Everett "Greg" Proops is an American actor, stand-up comedian and television host. He is widely known for his work as an improvisational comedian on the UK and U.S. versions of Whose Line Is It Anyway?...
podcast, The Smartest Man in the World, on the episode entitled Pages.