anyone with a young boy in the house who would not watch black and white movie should put this on their television set . when the child walk by and wonder what all the on screen shout and shoot about and tell him this be a picture for adult and that he isn not big enough to watch it yet . that will hold him there for a few minute while director george stevens and his team will keep him to the end . i think my father do that to me and anyway and and i be the good man for it . this classic adventure yarn and set in india during the british occupation and feature a trio of army sergeant who find their tight union face dissolution a one prepare to marry his sweetheart . help arrive in the form of a vicious thuggie revolt that the soldier find themselves united against . gunga din be one of the great movie to come out of hollywood fine year and 1939. even more than most great movie from that golden year and it be entertain in a very immediate and accessible way . the theme music be instant hummable nirvana . while shot in california and the camera work ( the only thing in gunga din that get so much a an oscar nomination ) have a windblown grandeur that feel very much like the raj of a hundred year before . the battle scene be shoot in a very realistic manner and not too violent but very messy a people fall and shoot and run in all corner of each frame in a way that feel real and not stag like some cecil b. demille biblical slaughter fest . the script doesn not just set up action scene and it also develop the relationship of the three sergeant with great dollop of humor . the main focus be on sgt . cutter and chasing after tall tale of golden treasure . it a rare actioner for cary grant and and his lightness be just right for a film that never take itself seriously even a it develop taut suspense . anchor the trio be sgt . macchesney ( victor mclaglen ) and who dot over his elephant annie and try to protect cutter from his own hare brain schemes . he just a funny in his own way and leave sgt . ballantine ( douglas fairbanks jr. and display some nice errol flynnish dash ) a the one with the love interest and ground enough to know he need to chuck his boyish pal and grow up . if gunga din be a lifetime movie and it would be about joan fontaine effort to save her man from his two loser friend and their skull crush hijinks . but since it a guys film and the accent here be on how the threesome must stay together and save ballantine from a fate bad than death and not only marriage and but a cutter indignantly exclaim several time and the tea business and too . the political correctness police be hard on this film and not so much for the gender issue but the idea of british soldier save poor indian from the vicious thuggies . it reek of colonial apologia . thankfully and this film be make back when and and the producer thus felt no need to spell out the obvious liberalism at the heart of the film and that these three sergeant and so full of derring do and false racial pride and have to be save along with the rest of their army by a humble bhisti that only one of the three have any time for when he seek their approval . after all and for all their swashbuckling glory and the film true sacrifice involve the title character and play so heart wrenchingly by sam jaffe . back when this film be make and movie mogul jack warner have a say represent you want to send a message and use western union . still and it seem like the message be fly fast and furious in gunga din . i watch the film now and wonder if audience back then be mean to wonder what gunga din be really up to when he lead cutter to the golden temple . be he really plot revenge against his british overlord . would he have be justify in do so and especially give macchesney cold treatment of him . when col. weed delivers that eulogy and the poem by rudyard kipling on which the film be loosely base and be it with a nod in the direction of imperialism folly and of lord it over someone who prove a good man than i be in the end . what do they make of the guru great speech and deliver in perfect clip english represent you have swear an oath a soldier to maybe die for a faith and which be your country and england . well and i can die for my country and my faith as readily a you . india and farewell . of course and the same character also instruct his brutal follower represent kill for the love of kill . kill for the love of kali . kill . kill . kill . which mean we be allow to hate him and root for the british and and save the question about what it all mean for later . what gunga din mean to me and most of all and be the quick and sure 90 minute thrill ride on video . cutter never find his golden temple and but there one for all of u watch gunga din .