The Man Who Would Be King is one of the great adventure films of the 1970’s and beyond, with Sean Connery and Michael Caine as two ex-sergeants of the British Army who set their fortunes on India in the 1880s, and is a treat for audiences due to the skilled hands and perseverance of legendary director John Huston. When Rudyard Kipling (Christopher Plummer) encounters his old acquaintance Peachy Carnehan (Michael Caine) at the film’s outset, Peachy recounts his exploits trying to loot the wealth in India with his con-man comrade Danny Dravot (Sean Connery), which ultimately takes them to Kafiristan, a country not explored by Europeans since Alexander the Great. Upon their arrival, Dravot is mistaken for a god and lavished with riches, but ignores Carnehan’s plea to take the money and leave before things take a darker turn with the locals – which it inevitably does. Part Hope and Crosby road movie as Dravot and Carnehan navigate the cultural differences to their advantage, with plot bones that Monty Python would embrace, it’s hard to imagine any other actors other than Connery and Caine in these roles after Huston’s 20-year casting search.
“It’s a wonderfully full and satisfying movie, with superb performances by Connery and Caine.” – Pauline Kael, The New Yorker
“John Huston’s The Man Who Would Be King is swashbuckling adventure, pure and simple, from the hand of a master. It’s unabashed and thrilling and fun.” – Roger Ebert
“The triumph of the movie isn’t just Huston’s realization of a longtime dream to bring the Kipling story to the screen but the way he both honors classical movie tradition and brings it forward into a new era.” – Charles Taylor, Salon
