The Jungle Book (1967)

George Sanders: Shere Khan the Tiger

Photos 

Quotes 

• Shere Khan : Bravo, Bravo. An extraordinary performance. And thank you for detaining my victim.

  Flaps : D-don't mention it...

  [gulps] 

  Flaps : ...Your Highness.

  Shere Khan : [laughs]  Boo!

  [Vultures flee up to their tree] 

  Dizzy : Let's get out of here!

  Buzzie : Gimme room, gangway!

  [to Mowgli] 

  Buzzie : Run, friend, run!

  Mowgli : Run? Why should I run?

  Shere Khan : Why should you run? Is it possible that you don't know who I am?

  Mowgli : I know you alright. You're Shere Khan.

  Shere Khan : Precisely. And you should know that everyone runs from Shere Khan.

  Mowgli : You don't scare me. I won't run from anyone.

  Shere Khan : Ah, you have spirit for one so small. And such spirit is deserving of a sporting chance. Now, I'm going to close my eyes and count to ten. It makes the chase more interesting... for me. One...

  [Music gets tenser as Mowgli looks for something to defend himself with as Shere Khan continues counting] 

  Shere Khan : ...two...

  [Mowgli spots something and goes over to retrieve it] 

  Shere Khan : ...three...

  [as Mowgli picks up a stick, Shere Khan begins to suspect something] 

  Shere Khan : ...four...

  [Mowgli prepares to defend himself] 

  Shere Khan : You're trying my patience. Five, six, seven, eight, nine, TEN!

  [Shere Khan leaps at Mowgli with a loud roar, Mowgli loses all of his nerve at the sight of this fearsome creature] 

• [Kaa tries to hypnotize Shere Khan just as he did to Mowgli] 

  Kaa : [singing]  Trust in me...

  [Shere Khan bats him away with his free paw] 

  Shere Khan : I can't be bothered with that, I have no time for that nonsense.

  Kaa : Ssssssssome other time, perhaps?

  Shere Khan : [Scratches Kaa's nostril with his claw]  Perhaps. But at the moment I'm searching for a man-cub.

  Kaa : Man-cub? What man-cub?

  Shere Khan : The one who's lost. Now where do you suppose he could be?

  Kaa : Search me?

  [Kaa covers his mouth to stifle his gasp] 

  Shere Khan : That's an excellent idea. I'm sure you wouldn't mind showing me your coils, would you, Kaa?

  Kaa : Ccccccertainly not.

  [Shows his tail] 

  Kaa : Nothing here, and nothing in here.

  [Points into his mouth] 

  Kaa : [Mowgli snores up in the treetop and Shere Khan's ears prick up at the sound; Kaa snores noisly] 

  Kaa : It'ssssssss my ssssinuses.

  Shere Khan : Hm.

  [looks up at the treetop] 

  Shere Khan : Indeed. And now, how about the middle?

  Kaa : The middle? Oh, the middle.

  [Kaa unfurls part of his midsection, twirling Mowgli around in his sleep, and brings it down for Shere Khan to inspect, which he does] 

  Kaa : [laughs]  I-I-I assure you there's nothing in the middle.

  Shere Khan : Hmm, barely. Well, if you do so happen to see the man-cub, you will inform me first.

  [Scratches Kaa's chin] 

  Shere Khan : Understand?

  Kaa : [gulps]  I get the point. Cross my heart, hope to die.

  Shere Khan : In good show. And now I must continue my search for the helpless little lad.

  [Shere Khan wanders off, Kaa frowns] 

  Kaa : Oh, who does he think he's fooling. The helpless little lad... woooo he gives me the shhhhhhivers.

  [Kaa's shivering wakes up Mowgli] 

  Kaa : Picking on that poor, little, helpless boy. Oh yes... poor, little, helpless boy.

  [Mowgli pushes the rest of Kaa's coils off the branch he is on and sends him falling to the ground] 

• [as Kaa is about to eat Mowgli, Shere Khan pulls on his tail, which makes a doorbell sound] 

  Kaa : Ooh! Oh, now what? I'll be right down. Yes, yes, who is it?

  Shere Khan : It's me. Shere Khan. I'd like a word with you, if you don't mind.

  Kaa : Shere Khan, what a surprise.

  Shere Khan : Yes, isn't it. I just dropped by. Now forgive me if I've interrupted anything.

  Kaa : Oh no, no, nothing at all.

  Shere Khan : [brandishing his claws]  I thought perhaps that you were entertaining someone up there in your coils.

  Kaa : Coils? Someone? Oh no, I was just curling up for my siesta.

  Shere Khan : But you were singing to someone. Who is it, Kaa?

  [Shere Khan grabs Kaa's throat with his paw] 

  Kaa : Ah, um, oh no, I was just singing, uh, to myself.

  Shere Khan : Indeed.

  Kaa : Yes... yes, you see I have... trouble with my sinuses.

  Shere Khan : What a pity!

  Kaa : Oh, you have no idea. It's simply terrible. I can't eat, I can't sleep, so I ssssssing myself to sleep. You know, self-hypnosis. Let me show you how it works.

  [Kaa prepares to look in Shere Khan's eyes and try to hypnotize him] 

• [Shere Khan is calmly stalking a deer just as Colonel Hathi and the other elephants frighten off his would-be prey with their noise] 

  Elephants : Hut, two, three, four. Hut, two, three, four.

  Shere Khan : What beastly luck! Confound that ridiculous Colonel Hathi!

• [Shere Khan watches Colonel Hathi and the other elephants look for Mowgli while tearing down a bunch of trees] 

  Shere Khan : Element of surprise? Ho! I say. And now for my rendez-vous with the lost man-cub.