The Man Who Would Be King

"Danny" (Sean Connery) and "Peachy" (Michael Caine) are a pair of chancers at the height of the Raj in British India, who decide that they need to go make their fortune. Thanks to a little help from Rudyard Kipling (Christopher Plummer), they learn of the land of Kafiristan up on the Hindu Kush where the map makers have yet to arrive. Using all of their wits and guile, the pair head north and eventually find themselves training an army of agrarian villagers with the help of the translator "Billy the Fish" (Saeed Jaffrey). Pretty soon they have themselves a reputation, and that only becomes more revered when "Danny" is struck by an arrow in the heart! Except, it gets nowhere near his body. Never let the truth get in the way of a good story, though, and so he pretends it's a symbol of his immortality which the local populace lap up. Now they win battles just by showing up, and he starts believing in his own publicity. When he encounters the beautiful "Roxanne" (Shakira Caine) he goes into full Alexander the Great mode but you know what they say about pride... This is a great looking drama that, though filmed in Morocco, looks every inch the part as the marauding tribesmen play polo with a head in bag, the priests throng through the countryside of warring communities and there's a strongly entertaining and mischievous chemistry afoot between a Connery and Caine who are clearly enjoying themselves. It's top quality boys-own stuff with adventures galore and also a bit of a message about greed (in all of it's forms) and friendship. It hits the ground running and a bit like Errol Flynn's "Kim" (1950) showcases the adaptability of Kipling's stories of derring-do perfectly. Good fun, this.