100
TV Guide Magazine
A delightful and memorable film.
The Man Who Would Be King
Critic Rating
(read reviews)User Rating
- United Kingdom,
- United States
- 1975
- · 129m
Director
John Huston
Cast
Sean Connery,
Michael Caine,
Christopher Plummer,
Saeed Jaffrey,
Doghmi Larbi,
Jack May
Genre
Adventure,
Drama
A swashbuckling adventure story about two British explorers who take over primitive Kafiristan as "godlike" rulers, meeting a tragic end through their desire for a native girl. Based on a short story by Rudyard Kipling, director John Huston fills the film with romance and fantasy and fun.
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What are critics saying?
100
Salon by Charles Taylor
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.
100
Chicago Sun-Times by Roger Ebert
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.
100
Chicago Tribune by Michael Wilmington
An adaptation of Rudyard Kipling's tale of the follies of adventure--beautifully directed and shot (by Oswald Morris) and perfectly cast. [11 July 2003, p.C5]
100
TV Guide Magazine by Staff (Not Credited)
A delightful and memorable film.
90
Time
A mellow, brassy, vigorous movie, rich in adventure and melancholy, The Man Who Would Be King represents the best work Huston has done in a decade.
90
The New Yorker by Pauline Kael
It's a wonderfully full and satisfying movie, with superb performances by Connery and Caine.
90
The New York Times by Vincent Canby
The movie, which was shot in Morocco, looks lovely and remote (how did we ever once settle for those black-and-white Hollywood hills?) and has just enough romantic nonsense in it to enchant the child in each of us.
90
Tampa Bay Times by Steve Persall
Superbly directed by John Huston and acted with extraordinary charisma by Caine and Sean Connery. [14 Mar 2002, p.19W]
90
Time by Jay Cocks
A mellow, brassy, vigorous movie, rich in adventure and melancholy, The Man Who Would Be King represents the best work Huston has done in a decade.
88
Philadelphia Inquirer by Desmond Ryan
The way that power and wealth corrupt the spirit is a recurring theme in Huston's work, and it is served up here in a hugely entertaining fashion. [17 Mar 1995, p.11]
88
USA Today by Robert S. Rothenberg
The 1975 film not only succeeds as a rollicking cinematic costume drama, but lends insights into the mindset of countries of the region such as Afghanistan and how their culture clashes with that of the West. [01 Mar 2003]
80
Time Out
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.
80
Empire by Ian Nathan
Huston revels in he opportunity for old-fashioned splendour, granting the film the sunset glow of Lawrence Of Arabia and the swashbuckling cadence worthy of the Errol Flynn days. It’s the artful mix of Kipling’s own writing, flights of fantasy with a political core.
50
Variety
Whether it was the intention of John Huston or not, the tale of action and adventure is a too-broad comedy, mostly due to the poor performance of Michael Caine.
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