Gunga Din

Rudyard Kipling's poem was first adapted for director George Stevens' lavishly budgeted, 1939 RKO production featuring Cary Grant, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., and Victor McLaglen as three rough and tumble British soldiers garrisoned in India, whose lives ultimately depend on the final reel actions of the faithful Indian water boy Gunga Din (Sam Jaffe). While the storyline strayed a good distance from Kipling's poem, focusing on the threat of a band of fanatic thugs reorganizing in a remote cavern, Gunga Din (which was remade in 1951 as Soldiers Three, and served as inspiration for Steven Spielberg's 1984 Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom) remains a stirring action-adventure flick, nicely leavened with just the right amount of comedy and tragedy, and backed by an outstanding Alfred Newman score. Boasting a fine transfer, DVD extras here include a characteristically informative commentary track by film historian Rudy Behlmer, a new 11-minute "making-of" featurette, and a vintage Porky Pig cartoon. Highly recommended. (R. Pitman)