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IMDbPro

Gunga Din

  • 19391939
  • ApprovedApproved
  • 1h 57m
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
12K
YOUR RATING
Gunga Din (1939)
Trailer for Gunga Din
Play trailer2:12
1 Video
99+ Photos
AdventureComedyWar
In 19th century India, three British soldiers and a native waterbearer must stop a secret mass revival of the murderous Thuggee cult before it can rampage across the land.In 19th century India, three British soldiers and a native waterbearer must stop a secret mass revival of the murderous Thuggee cult before it can rampage across the land.In 19th century India, three British soldiers and a native waterbearer must stop a secret mass revival of the murderous Thuggee cult before it can rampage across the land.
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
12K
YOUR RATING
    • George Stevens
  • Writers
    • Joel Sayre(screenplay)
    • Fred Guiol(screenplay)
    • Ben Hecht(story)
  • Stars
    • Cary Grant
    • Joan Fontaine
    • Victor McLaglen
    • George Stevens
  • Writers
    • Joel Sayre(screenplay)
    • Fred Guiol(screenplay)
    • Ben Hecht(story)
  • Stars
    • Cary Grant
    • Joan Fontaine
    • Victor McLaglen
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 125User reviews
    • 52Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards

    Videos1

    Gunga Din
    Trailer 2:12
    Watch Gunga Din

    Photos134

    Joan Fontaine and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. in Gunga Din (1939)
    Cary Grant and Sam Jaffe in Gunga Din (1939)
    Douglas Fairbanks Jr. in Gunga Din (1939)
    Joan Fontaine, Cary Grant, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., and Victor McLaglen in Gunga Din (1939)
    Victor McLaglen in Gunga Din (1939)
    Joan Fontaine, Cary Grant, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., and Ann Evers in Gunga Din (1939)
    Cary Grant in Gunga Din (1939)
    Gunga Din (1939)
    Cary Grant and Sam Jaffe in Gunga Din (1939)
    Victor McLaglen in Gunga Din (1939)
    Montagu Love and Reginald Sheffield in Gunga Din (1939)
    Reginald Sheffield in Gunga Din (1939)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Cary Grant
    Cary Grant
    • Sergeant Archibald Cutter
    Joan Fontaine
    Joan Fontaine
    • Emmy
    Victor McLaglen
    Victor McLaglen
    • Sergeant MacChesney
    Douglas Fairbanks Jr.
    Douglas Fairbanks Jr.
    • Sergeant Thomas Ballantine
    Sam Jaffe
    Sam Jaffe
    • Gunga Din
    Eduardo Ciannelli
    Eduardo Ciannelli
    • Guru
    Montagu Love
    Montagu Love
    • Colonel Weed
    Robert Coote
    Robert Coote
    • Sergeant Higginbotham
    Abner Biberman
    Abner Biberman
    • Chota
    Lumsden Hare
    Lumsden Hare
    • Major Mitchell
    John Alban
      Charles Bennett
      Charles Bennett
      • Telegraph Operator
      • (uncredited)
      Gene Coogan
      Gene Coogan
      • Lancer
      • (uncredited)
      Joe De La Cruz
        Jimmy Dime
        Jimmy Dime
        • Thug
        • (uncredited)
        Ray Dixon
          George Du Count
          • Pandu Lal
          • (uncredited)
          Ann Evers
          Ann Evers
          • Girl at Party
          • (uncredited)
            • George Stevens
          • Writers
            • Joel Sayre(screenplay)
            • Fred Guiol(screenplay)
            • Ben Hecht(story)
          • All cast & crew
          • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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          Storyline

          Edit

          Did you know

          Edit
          • Trivia
            Upon release, a campaign was launched by the Indian magazine "Filmindia" against what it called misrepresentation of Indian characters in the film and the displaying of insensitivity towards Hindu customs. Following riots in India and Malaya, the film was withdrawn by the censors.
          • Goofs
            Ballantine and MacChesney are bound and gagged when the last Thuggee is about to behead them after Gunga Din sounds the alarm. Cutter shoots the Thuggee and Ballantine and MacChesney are unbound as they rush to Cutter's side.
          • Quotes

            Sgt. Archibald Cutter: You're mad!

            Guru: Mad? Mad. Hannibal was mad, Caesar was mad, and Napoleon surely was the maddest of the lot. Ever since time began, they've called mad all the great soldiers in this world. Mad? We shall see what wisdom lies within my madness. For this is but the spring that precedes the flood. From here we roll on. From village to town. From town to mighty city. Ever mounting, ever widening, until at last my wave engulfs all India!

          • Crazy credits
            The credits appear on a gong. Standing next to the gong is a Hindu man, and every time he strikes the gong, the credits change.
          • Alternate versions
            German theatrical version was cut by approx. 12 minutes. This version was later shown on TV but never released on any home media format. Only in 2018 the film was released on DVD, with approx. 4 minutes restored.
          • Connections
            Featured in Look Back in Anger (1959)
          • Soundtracks
            God Save the King!
            (1744) (uncredited)

            Written by Henry Carey

            Incorporated into the music score

          User reviews125

          Review
          Review
          Featured review
          A Classic Bit of Hollywood
          I have seen "Gunga Din" several times. It is not a strict re-telling of the Kipling work but a studio era take on it. It is jingoistic and hokey but it is an entertaining and uplifting film.

          Those that bemoan the "un-PC" tone of the film need to look at it in context. The underlying theme of the piece is that these British soldiers come to hold a member of a group of people they had (until that time) regarded as savages, in higher regard than most of their compatriots. The ideas of universal human qualities and nobility are driven home in a very emotional, if a little ham-fisted way. Considering the racial atmosphere in America at the time, this was not exactly a statement without some daring.

          To condemn this film or the original story for racism is to miss the point entirely. That was the time and for its time, the messages here are incredibly progressive. Besides, even if the film were racist, only a fool discards a classic piece of art because he or she disagrees with the content of the message. Pretty much all critics and film historians list Griffith's "Birth of a Nation" somewhere in the top 3 films of all time, regardless of the fact that the heroes of the picture are the KKK. The message was wrong but the film transformed the whole of film-making forever. Do we discard that too? Do we burn all copies of Joseph Conrad's novella "Heart of Darkness" because some perceive the narrator to be a bigot? To do so would be robbing generations of a classic example of well crafted storytelling at its best. Such behavior is ignorance in its basest form.

          But, you know, that's just what I think.
          helpful•15
          5
          • crankyerma
          • Aug 2, 2004

          Details

          Edit
          • Release date
            • February 17, 1939 (United States)
            • United States
            • English
          • Also known as
          • Filming locations
            • Indian Springs Road, Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, California, USA
          • Production company
            • RKO Radio Pictures
          • See more company credits at IMDbPro

          Box office

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          See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

          Technical specs

          Edit
          • 1 hour 57 minutes
            • Black and White

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