Gunga Din (1939)

Dir: George Stevens
Plot: Three British soldiers and their water-boy encounter intrigue and danger on the trail of mythical gold in imperial India.


It's been said a thousand times, but it bears repeating -1939 was a remarkable year in cinema. It might well be THE year in cinema, at least as far as Hollywood goes. Miracles were wrought in all genres across the board - Garbo laughed, Vivien Leigh's cut-glass vowels went all Southern belle on us, and Thomas Mitchell shrewdly hedged his Oscar bets by adopting various disguises in an apparent attempt to star in every nominated picture of the year (of course, it paid off - out of the 5 Oscar-nominated films he starred in that year, it was his turn in Stagecoach that brought him his personal glory).



Of course, being caught up in the midst of this mass stroke of genius, it's hardly a surprise that silent comedy and musicals director George Stevens was suddenly able to define the phrase 'rip-snorting colonial adventure' once and for all, and in a mere 117 minutes, with this absurdly enjoyable actioner taken from the Kipling poem of the same name. Three cheerily hellraising soldiers (Cary Grant, Victor McLaughlin and Doug Fairbanks Jr.) in imperial India find themselves facing a murderous horde of Thugee brigands after Grant is led away from camp in search of the golden temple discovered by loyal waterbearer Gunga Din.

It really is lightyears ahead of its time in pace, structure and even cliche (was the 'buddies trying to prevent their best friend's wedding' plot coined here?). Stevens handles the action marvellously and it remains as gripping and punchy over 70 years later, which is quite the achievement (grab some lesser action films of the period and see, if you don't believe me). The camerawork is brisk and slick, and the action rattles on gloriously without any of the awkward editing that tends to mar Classic films that tried to move too fast. The plot is pure Indiana Jones - cults, temples, wobbly bridges, ruthless natives etc - with some classic Kipling tropes thrown in, most notably the warning against blind greed and gold-lust, and it all gallops along at an exhilirating pace. For a 1930s movie, it is also quite noticeably brutal - Grant and Fairbanks Jr. are whipped at one point, and there is a rare instance on blood being shown on-screen, as well as the countless extras who bite the dust as our heroes fight for their lives by any means necessary. The final act is almost impossibly exciting; finishing on an unforgettable, textbook demonstration of an iconic ending.

Actor-wise, it's a great opportunity to check out Cary Grant before he fully moved into the suave Continental phase, as a cheeky Cockney troublemaker (with a suspiciously Brizzle twang to him). He also looks amazing in a rather less buttoned-down ensemble than what he are used to, all dusty khaki and ruffled hair... I'll be in my bunk. Seriously, he even gets his shirt off at one point - okay, he is being flogged by bandits, but you have to take what you can get with Golden Era nudity. Where was I? Ah, yes. McLaughlin is great support in full Ward Bond-mode as the hearty, bellowing veteran and Fairbanks completes the trio with a rather nice balance of looks and talent. And Sam Jaffe managers to conquer the innate silliness of a middle-aged Jew playing a youthful Indian and actually puts in a very touching performance, which is no mean feat. Which reminds me, you can amuse yourself by playing Spot the Indian with the supporting cast - I'll never understand why they mixed painted white people with actual Indians, as though to highlight how unconvincing their brownface was. That said, it did mean we get to see yet another of the many faces of Abner Biberman (I think this would be a good subject for a collage).

Anyway, a funny, thrilling and terrifically-orchestrated action-adventure which calmly and completely defined the genre before Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford were even zygotes.

9/10