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The Man Who Would Be King (1975)

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Average Rating: 8.6/10
Reviews Counted: 23
Fresh: 22 | Rotten: 1

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Average Rating: N/A
Critic Reviews: 4
Fresh: 3 | Rotten: 1

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Movie Info

The Man Who Would Be King opens with author Rudyard Kipling (Christopher Plummer) working in his study. His solitude is broken by the arrival of a tattered, half-mad derelict, who is soon revealed to be his old acquaintance Peachy Carnahan (Michael Caine). As Kipling listens in rapt fascination, Peachy relates the incredible adventures of himself and his partner-in-chicanery Daniel Dravot (Sean Connery). Con men Carnahan and Dravot have masterminded all sorts of underhanded money-making schemes,

PG, 2 hr. 9 min.

Action & Adventure

Directed By: John Huston

Written By: John Huston, Gladys Hill

In Theaters: Jan 1, 1975 Wide

On DVD: Nov 18, 1997

Cast

Sean Connery
Daniel Dravot
Michael Caine
Peachy Carnehan
Christopher Plummer
Rudyard Kipling
Saeed Jaffrey
Billy Fish
Shakira Caine
Roxanne
Paul Antrim
Mulvaney
Karroum Ben Bouih
Kafu Selim
Doghmi Larbi
Ootah
Jack May
District Commissioner
Albert Moses
Ghulam
Yvonne Ocampo
Dancer
Mohammed Shamsi
Babu
John Foreman

Critic Reviews for The Man Who Would Be King

All Critics (23) | Top Critics (4) | Fresh (23) | Rotten (1) | DVD (7)

John Huston has been wanting to make this movie for more than 20 years. It was worth the wait.

April 20, 2010 Full Review Source: TIME Magazine

| Comment

Jay Cocks

TIME Magazine

Top Critic

A too-broad comedy, mostly due to the poor performance of Michael Caine.

October 22, 2008 Full Review Source: Variety

| Comments (7)

Variety Staff

Variety

Top Critic

It's a tall tale, a legend, of steadfastness, courage, camaraderie, gallantry and greed, though not necessarily in that order.

May 9, 2005 Full Review Source: New York Times

| Comment

Vincent Canby

New York Times

Top Critic

It's been a long time since there's been an escapist entertainment quite this unabashed and thrilling and fun.

October 23, 2004 Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times

| Comment

Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Top Critic

... one of the most rousing adventures of the 1970s.

June 11, 2011 Full Review Source: MSN.com

| Comment

Sean Axmaker

MSN.com

Kipling's exhilarating and disconcerting tale of high adventure... [Blu-ray]

June 6, 2011 Full Review Source: Groucho Reviews

| Comment

Peter Canavese

Groucho Reviews Source: Groucho Reviews

In addition to the lighthearted rapport of the leads, Huston's direction keeps the narrative moving forward at a lively pace. (Blu-ray Book edition)

May 27, 2011 Full Review Source: Movie Metropolis

| Comment

John J. Puccio

Movie Metropolis

...humor, romance, danger, pageantry, Freemasonry, and much derring-do...a good rousing adventure tale.

May 27, 2011 Full Review Source: Movie Metropolis

| Comment

John J. Puccio

Movie Metropolis

A delightful and memorable film.

April 20, 2010 Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide

| Comment

TV Guide's Movie Guide

The film is supposed to be fun -- despite its ending -- and even that is an interesting departure from the �ber-serious tone of most epics of the time.

June 17, 2009 Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

| Comment

Ken Hanke

Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Top notch Kipling tale with Huston at helm supported by great Connery and Caine performances.

October 19, 2006 Comment

Steve Crum

Dispatch-Tribune Newspapers

A must for every 10-year-old boy.

September 24, 2006 Comment (1)

Cole Smithey

ColeSmithey.com

Connery and Caine (both excellent) become classic Huston overreachers, and echoes of The Treasure of the Sierra Madre and Moby Dick permeate the mythic yarn.

June 24, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out

| Comment

Derek Adams

Time Out

They don't make adventure movies like this anymore. Connery and Caine have rarely been better.

August 29, 2005 Comment

Rob Vaux

Flipside Movie Emporium

A robust and rousing screen version of one of the greatest adventure stories ever written

January 18, 2004 Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice

| Comment

Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat

Spirituality and Practice

One of the finest British films of the 1970s.

May 24, 2003 Full Review Source: Film4

| Comment

Film4

Caine and Connery are terrific in this rousing adaptation of the Kipling story.

April 9, 2003 Comment

Dan Lybarger

Nitrate Online

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Audience Reviews for The Man Who Would Be King

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The Man Who Would Be King tells the story of two men out to seek their fortunes as they go into a small village and build themselves up as people of importance in order to start their own nation. This is a film that I had been hearing about for a long time from various people that it was just a fantastic movie and one

February 21, 2012

Tim Salmons

Super Reviewer

Good old fashioned adventure film after a lesser known Rudyard Kipling story. Two British soldiers decide to create an empire on their own by traveling from India into the wild Afghan mountains, soon finding traces of Alexander the great. There is plenty to see here, two excellent leading men with Connery and Caine,

October 7, 2007