Gunga din, a betrayer of his own people! The thugges wer fighting against british raiders, nothing else, Gunga Din deserved to be shot.

This was ridiculously bad. For about half the film, there's no story, we're merely thrown scenes at. Then, it's some of the most stereotypical material you could think of on screen. It's some of the gratuitous, predictable, terribly obvious and unsubtle on screen material, with long bits of dialog in-between, endless battle action, and just more of the same boring filler up to the very end.The exaggeration factor is at an almost paroxysm here, and the whole film suspectly reeks of post-colonial guilt and apology, and yet, at the same time, the indigenous Indians are portrayed in the most derogatory fashion, and there's an overwhelming sense of English pride and more globally a heroic superiority of the West, something extremely prevalent in the films of the time.Pretty, pretty terrible.

What all the critics of this movie today fail to understand the Wright brothers didn't make a Stealth Fighter or a Boeing 747. Steve Jobs' first computer wasn't an iPhone 6 Plus. Bill Gates didn't start out by making Windows 8 (thank God!). Teenagers today look at the original King Kong and call it stupid and amateurish. But when it came out, audiences were in awe. When Al Jolson first sang in the Jazz Singer, people couldn't believe that there could ever be such a thing as a talking picture. And, when Captain James T. Kirk, in 1966, first used his communicator, no one ever thought that such a thing was possible—a box that you hold in your hands that works like a telephone without wires. Today, "communicators" even come with built-in cameras, a built in televisions, miniature computers and pinball machines, not to mention the entire wall of maps from AAA, along with a little person inside to talk to if you get lonely.Gunga Din (pronounced Gunga Deen) is a story of camaraderie, not war. Cary Grant and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. were huge box office draws back then (yes, boys and girls, even bigger than Leonardo DiCaprio) and people went to their movies to see them. Back then, people didn't go to the cinema to be educated, to watch Lincoln or Silkwood. They didn't want the reality of Transformers. They wanted to get away from reality. They got all the reality they needed from the newsreels that came after the cartoons. They were about to enter World War II. More than half of the men would be shipped overseas to fight Hitler and many would never return.Gunga Din was a fun picture. It didn't matter if was sent in India or Brazil. As with the Treasure of the Sierra Madre, it was about the lives of the main stars and how they interacted with each other. Watching it, I could only feel saddened by the thought that everyone involved in that film is now dead. Joan Fontaine was the last survivor. Cary Grant was simply stand out. He always was. I mourn the loss of all of them, even the bad guys. And I thank them for the legacy they left, which became a stepping stone for future film makers and actors to build upon.

Gunga Din is produced and directed by George Stevens and co-adapted to screenplay by Ben Hecht, Charles MacArthur, Joel Sayre and Fred Guiol. It's loosely inspired by the Rudyard Kipling poem of the same name. It stars Cary Grant, Victor McLaglen, Douglas Fairbanks Junior, Eduardo Ciannelli, Sam Jaffe and Joan Fontaine. Music is by Alfred Newman and cinematography by Joseph H. August.1939 was a golden year for cinema, a raft of classic movies were produced, many of which still hold up today. Unfairly suffering under scrutiny for its colonialist attitudes and embracement of war is Gunga Din, RKO Pictures' magnificent action adventure. Political Correctness in this day and age has led some to be sniffy towards Stevens' movie, it seems that to understand the period from when the film was made is a stretch too far. Balderdash say I. Really in this instance no charges should stand or be considered for this is a movie that should be heralded and treasured for the template it is. This was after all an anti-dote to the Great Depression that was drawing to a close, and with WWII kicking off, the likes of Gunga Din were medicine for the wounded millions.For the love of Kali: Kill, Kill, Kill.Undeniably it's preposterous and over the top, that's kind of the point really. It's a live action cartoon for the adults to enjoy whilst the kiddies get swept up in the gusto of it all. You don't have to condone anything by feeling uplifted as Gunga Din plays on themes such as loyalty, bravado and friendship, to go in deep with a good ole battle of good against evil, where fists fly and gunshots fill the air. Where hundreds of horses hooves pace in time with your heart. It's a spiffying adventure yarn deftly constructed by Stevens and his team. There's much light hearted interplay between our three stoic heroes, and the fist fight scenes have a charming silent movie feel to them, further enhancing the joviality that pulses throughout. And yes, there is sentiment, even a bit of cornball thrown in for good measure, but it lands in the cinema lover's heart and helps it beat happily.You Lazarushian-leather Gunga Din!Cast are having a great time, especially Grant who revels in playing knuckles and delivering songs about British Roast Beef! Newman's score is a neat blend of heroic bluster and exotic reflections, and the California locations, notably Alabama Pine, are expertly used by Stevens and August, the latter of which was nominated for an Academy Award for his efforts. Production design is eye catching, with the Indian temples standing out, while the final battle showcases Stevens' strengths in composition and action construction. Its influence should not be understated either, you can trace a line from this to Indiana Jones, and even beyond to the big box office coffer fillers like National Treasure and The Mummy et al. Gunga Din, an ode to good time cinema from a golden age, bravo! 9/10