The Man Who Would Be King (1975)

Director:

John Huston

Writers:

John Huston (screenplay) and
Gladys Hill (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

17 December 1975 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure

Tagline:

Adventure in all its glory!

Plot:

Two British soldiers in India decide to resign from the Army and set themselves up as deities in Kafiristan--a land where no white man has set foot since Alexander.

Plot Keywords:

India | King | Soldier | Treasure | Friendship

Awards:

Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 4 nominations

Cast

Sean Connery	...	Daniel Dravot
Michael Caine	...	Peachy Carnehan
Christopher Plummer	...	Rudyard Kipling
Saeed Jaffrey	...	Billy Fish
Doghmi Larbi	...	Ootah
Jack May	...	District Commissioner
Karroom Ben Bouih	...	Kafu Selim
Mohammad Shamsi	...	Babu
Albert Moses	...	Ghulam
Paul Antrim	...	Mulvaney
Graham Acres	...	Officer
The Blue Dancers of Goulamine	...	Dancers
Shakira Caine	...	Roxanne

Also Known As:

Rudyard Kipling's The Man Who Would Be King (UK) (complete title) (USA) (complete title)

Runtime:

129 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo

Certification:

UK:A (original rating) (cut) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Iceland:12 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | USA:PG | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Atlas Mountains, Morocco

Company:

Allied Artists Pictures

Trivia:

The scene where Danny meets Roxanne is shot at the kasbah of Ait Benhaddou, just north of the southern Moroccan city of Ouarzazate. This site was used in Gladiator as the North-African arena where Maximus first fights. Ouarzazate is known as "Morocco's Hollywood" since many international productions - such as Kingdom of Heaven and The Hills Have Eyes - were shot in the area.

Goofs:

Factual errors: When Peachy and Danny travel with the caravan into the Khyber Pass, all of the camels are African (Arabian) dromedaries, rather than Asian (Bactrian) beasts, which would have been used on the Central Asian trade routes. This however is due to the fact (as acknowledged in end-credits) that the film was shot at location in Morocco (in westernmost Africa) not in Pakistan/Afghanistan where these events supposed to have taken place.

Quotes:

Peachy Carnehan: I've come back. Give me a drink, Brother Kipling. Don't you know me?
Rudyard Kipling: No. I don't know you. Who are you? What can I do for you?
Peachy Carnehan: I told you; give me a drink. It was all settled right here in this office. Remember? Danny and Me signed a contract, and you witnessed it. You stood over there. I stood there, and Daniel stood here. Remember?
Rudyard Kipling: Carnehan!
Peachy Carnehan: Peachy Toliver Carnehan.
Peachy Carnehan: Of course.
Peachy Carnehan: Keep looking at me. It helps to keep my soul from flying off.
Rudyard Kipling: Carnehan.
Peachy Carnehan: The same - and not the same, who sat besides you in the first class carriage, on the train to Marwar Junction, three summers and a thousand years ago.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Stargate SG-1: Need (#2.5)" (1998)

Unforgettable.

The greatest "buddy film" of all time. What makes this so? First off, casting two real life friends, Sean Connery and Michael Caine. Second, all other "buddy films" are simply comedies. And while the Man Who Would Be King has some laughs in it, and Connery and Caine bounce off of each other almost as good as Abbott and Costello, the story itself is a drama. And what a drama it is. Two English soldiers set out to be the rulers of a country, but can anyone who was a grunt one day, and a king the next, become a King without getting an inflated ego? The answer is no and that becomes the ultimate test for these two friends. Terrific performances by Caine, Connery and even Christopher Plummer, who gives a brief, but good performance as Rudyard Kipling, the man who wrote the short story this film was based on. This film features perhaps the greatest ending to a movie ever made. You will never forget it, and you will wish that you had a friendship as strong as these two individuals.