If you watch "Elephant Boy", I strongly recommend you use the closed captions along with the movie. This is because it's Sabu's first movie and his command of English isn't great and his accent quite thick. With the captions, this shouldn't be a major problem.
The story is based on a Kipling tale and is set in India. Toomai (Sabu) is the son of a mahoot--an elephant driver. And, Toomai looks to follow in his family's footsteps and become a mahoot just like his many ancestors. When a white hunter arrives, Toomai's father and his elephant join in the expedition...and Toomai, though only about 12, is allowed to come along with them. This film is about the many things that occur during this hunt...things that force Toomai to grow up very quickly.
While this is a decent film, it also is a product of its times. Paternalistic, presenting the British control of India is rather idealized terms as well as a few natives who are just Brits in dark makeup! My attitude is DON'T toss the film in the trash bin but just learn from it and understand its shortcomings. Sure, it's not exactly realistic but also represents Sabu's first film...a film which would end up changing his life radically.
So is this a great film? No. At times, it seems rather plotless and meandering. There also were a few scenes which shocked me, as you could NEVER make scenes like it today...such as the elephant walking around the baby!! Worth seeing and better than a typical jungle picture of the day--with animals from all parts of the globe stuck haphazardly into the film because they films were made on the cheap. "Elephant Boy" is no cheapo jungle flick and only offers a few ill-placed bits of stock film (such as occasionally showing African instead of Asian elephants).
The story is based on a Kipling tale and is set in India. Toomai (Sabu) is the son of a mahoot--an elephant driver. And, Toomai looks to follow in his family's footsteps and become a mahoot just like his many ancestors. When a white hunter arrives, Toomai's father and his elephant join in the expedition...and Toomai, though only about 12, is allowed to come along with them. This film is about the many things that occur during this hunt...things that force Toomai to grow up very quickly.
While this is a decent film, it also is a product of its times. Paternalistic, presenting the British control of India is rather idealized terms as well as a few natives who are just Brits in dark makeup! My attitude is DON'T toss the film in the trash bin but just learn from it and understand its shortcomings. Sure, it's not exactly realistic but also represents Sabu's first film...a film which would end up changing his life radically.
So is this a great film? No. At times, it seems rather plotless and meandering. There also were a few scenes which shocked me, as you could NEVER make scenes like it today...such as the elephant walking around the baby!! Worth seeing and better than a typical jungle picture of the day--with animals from all parts of the globe stuck haphazardly into the film because they films were made on the cheap. "Elephant Boy" is no cheapo jungle flick and only offers a few ill-placed bits of stock film (such as occasionally showing African instead of Asian elephants).