King Rat (1965 film)
Encyclopedia
King Rat is a 1965 World War II
film
adapted from the James Clavell
novel King Rat
. The film was directed by Bryan Forbes
and starred George Segal
as Corporal King and James Fox
as Marlow, two World War II
prisoners of war
in a squalid camp near Singapore
. Among the supporting cast were John Mills
and Tom Courtenay
.
In the course of his activities, King recruits upper-class British officer Peter Marlowe (James Fox) to act as a translator. As they become better acquainted, Marlowe comes to like the man and appreciate his cunning. For his part, King respects Marlowe, but his attitude is otherwise ambiguous. When Marlowe accidentally injures his arm, King obtains expensive medicines to save the gangrenous
limb from amputation, but it is unclear whether he does so out of genuine friendship or because Marlowe is the only one who knows where the proceeds from King's latest and most profitable venture are hidden.
King has an entirely different relationship with the lower-class, seemingly-incorruptible British Provost
, Lieutenant Grey (Tom Courtenay). Grey has only contempt for the American and does his best to bring him down, with little success.
Meanwhile, Grey has another dilemma to deal with. When he accidentally discovers that the high-ranking officer in charge of the meager food rations has been siphoning off part of it, he rejects a bribe and zealously takes the matter to Colonel George Smedley-Taylor (John Mills). To his dismay however, Smedley-Taylor tells him that the corrupt officer and his assistant have been relieved of their duties, but orders him to forget all about it. Grey accuses him of being in on the scheme, but the tampered weight he presented to the colonel has been replaced, and he no longer has any proof of the misdeeds. Smedley-Taylor offers to promote him to captain; when a troubled Grey does not respond, Smedley-Taylor takes his silence as agreement.
Finally, one day, the camp commandant summons the senior British officers and notifies them that the Japanese have surrendered and that the war is over. Later, a single British paratrooper (Richard Dawson) walks up to the prison gates and disarms the guards.
After overcoming their shock and disbelief, the prisoners celebrate - all except King. He realizes he is no longer the unquestioned (if unofficial) ruler of the camp. He manages to squelch a premature attempt by resentful underling Sergeant Max (Patrick O'Neal) to reassert his rank and authority, but that only delays the inevitable. When Marlowe speaks to him before his departure back into the ranks of the U.S. Army, King ignores his overture of renewed friendship.
King's unit sleeve patch is that of the U.S. 34th Infantry Division, which fought the Germans in North Africa and Italy, not the Japanese.
for Cinematography
(Burnett Guffey) and Art Direction
(Robert Emmet Smith
and Frank Tuttle
).
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
adapted from the James Clavell
James Clavell
James Clavell, born Charles Edmund DuMaresq Clavell was an Australian-born, British novelist, screenwriter, director and World War II veteran and prisoner of war...
novel King Rat
King Rat (1962 novel)
King Rat is a 1962 novel by James Clavell. Set during World War II, Clavell's literary debut describes the struggle for survival of British, Australian and American prisoners of war in a Japanese camp in Singapore—a description informed by Clavell's own three-year experience as a prisoner in the...
. The film was directed by Bryan Forbes
Bryan Forbes
Bryan Forbes, CBE is an English film director, actor and writer.-Career:Bryan Forbes was born John Theobald Clarke on 22 July 1926 in Queen Mary's Hospital, Stratford, West Ham, Essex , and grew up at 43 Cranmer Road, Forest Gate, West Ham, Essex .Forbes trained as an actor at the Royal Academy of...
and starred George Segal
George Segal
George Segal is an American film, stage and television actor.-Early life:George Segal, Jr. was born in 1934 Great Neck, Long Island, New York, the son of Fannie Blanche and George Segal, Sr. He was educated at George School, a private Quaker preparatory boarding school near Newtown, Bucks County,...
as Corporal King and James Fox
James Fox
James Fox, OBE is an English actor.-Early life:James Fox was born in London, England to theatrical agent Robin Fox and actress Angela Worthington. He is the brother of actor Edward Fox and film producer Robert Fox. The actress Emilia Fox is his niece and the actor Laurence Fox is his son. His...
as Marlow, two World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
prisoners of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
in a squalid camp near Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
. Among the supporting cast were John Mills
John Mills
Sir John Mills CBE , born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills, was an English actor who made more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades.-Life and career:...
and Tom Courtenay
Tom Courtenay
Sir Thomas Daniel "Tom" Courtenay is an English actor who came to prominence in the early 1960s with a succession of films including The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner , Billy Liar , and Dr. Zhivago . Since the mid-1960s he has been known primarily for his work in the theatre...
.
Plot
Corporal King is an anomaly in the Japanese prison camp; not only is he one of only a handful of Americans amongst the mainly British and Australian inmates, he is actually thriving through his conniving and black market enterprises while others (nearly all of higher rank) struggle to survive the sickness and starvation, while retaining as much of their civilized nature as they can.In the course of his activities, King recruits upper-class British officer Peter Marlowe (James Fox) to act as a translator. As they become better acquainted, Marlowe comes to like the man and appreciate his cunning. For his part, King respects Marlowe, but his attitude is otherwise ambiguous. When Marlowe accidentally injures his arm, King obtains expensive medicines to save the gangrenous
Gangrene
Gangrene is a serious and potentially life-threatening condition that arises when a considerable mass of body tissue dies . This may occur after an injury or infection, or in people suffering from any chronic health problem affecting blood circulation. The primary cause of gangrene is reduced blood...
limb from amputation, but it is unclear whether he does so out of genuine friendship or because Marlowe is the only one who knows where the proceeds from King's latest and most profitable venture are hidden.
King has an entirely different relationship with the lower-class, seemingly-incorruptible British Provost
Provost (military police)
Provosts are military police whose duties are policing solely within the Armed Forces, as opposed to Gendarmerie duties in the civilian population. However, many countries use their gendarmerie for provost duties....
, Lieutenant Grey (Tom Courtenay). Grey has only contempt for the American and does his best to bring him down, with little success.
Meanwhile, Grey has another dilemma to deal with. When he accidentally discovers that the high-ranking officer in charge of the meager food rations has been siphoning off part of it, he rejects a bribe and zealously takes the matter to Colonel George Smedley-Taylor (John Mills). To his dismay however, Smedley-Taylor tells him that the corrupt officer and his assistant have been relieved of their duties, but orders him to forget all about it. Grey accuses him of being in on the scheme, but the tampered weight he presented to the colonel has been replaced, and he no longer has any proof of the misdeeds. Smedley-Taylor offers to promote him to captain; when a troubled Grey does not respond, Smedley-Taylor takes his silence as agreement.
Finally, one day, the camp commandant summons the senior British officers and notifies them that the Japanese have surrendered and that the war is over. Later, a single British paratrooper (Richard Dawson) walks up to the prison gates and disarms the guards.
After overcoming their shock and disbelief, the prisoners celebrate - all except King. He realizes he is no longer the unquestioned (if unofficial) ruler of the camp. He manages to squelch a premature attempt by resentful underling Sergeant Max (Patrick O'Neal) to reassert his rank and authority, but that only delays the inevitable. When Marlowe speaks to him before his departure back into the ranks of the U.S. Army, King ignores his overture of renewed friendship.
King's unit sleeve patch is that of the U.S. 34th Infantry Division, which fought the Germans in North Africa and Italy, not the Japanese.
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| George Segal George Segal George Segal is an American film, stage and television actor.-Early life:George Segal, Jr. was born in 1934 Great Neck, Long Island, New York, the son of Fannie Blanche and George Segal, Sr. He was educated at George School, a private Quaker preparatory boarding school near Newtown, Bucks County,... |
Corporal King |
| Tom Courtenay Tom Courtenay Sir Thomas Daniel "Tom" Courtenay is an English actor who came to prominence in the early 1960s with a succession of films including The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner , Billy Liar , and Dr. Zhivago . Since the mid-1960s he has been known primarily for his work in the theatre... |
Lieutenant Robin Grey |
| James Fox James Fox James Fox, OBE is an English actor.-Early life:James Fox was born in London, England to theatrical agent Robin Fox and actress Angela Worthington. He is the brother of actor Edward Fox and film producer Robert Fox. The actress Emilia Fox is his niece and the actor Laurence Fox is his son. His... |
Peter Marlowe |
| Patrick O'Neal | Max |
| Denholm Elliott Denholm Elliott Denholm Mitchell Elliott, CBE was an English film, television and theatre actor with over 120 film and television credits... |
Lieutenant G.D. Larkin |
| James Donald James Donald James Donald was a Scottish actor. Tall and thin, he usually specialised in playing authority figures.Donald was born in Aberdeen, and made his first professional stage appearance sometime in the late-1930s, having been educated at Rossall School on Lancashire's Fylde coast... |
Doctor Kennedy |
| Todd Armstrong Todd Armstrong John "Todd" Armstrong , also known as Todd Anderson, was an American actor in ten films and several television series, probably best known for playing the titular role of Jason in the 1963 film Jason and the Argonauts... |
Tex |
| John Mills John Mills Sir John Mills CBE , born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills, was an English actor who made more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades.-Life and career:... |
Colonel George Smedley-Taylor |
| Gerald Sim Gerald Sim Gerald Grant Sim is an English actor who is perhaps best known for playing the Rector in To the Manor Born. He is the younger brother of actress Sheila Sim and brother-in-law of actor/director Lord Attenborough.- Career :... |
Lieutenant Colonel Jones |
| Leonard Rossiter Leonard Rossiter Leonard Rossiter was an English actor known for his roles as Rupert Rigsby, in the British comedy television series Rising Damp , and Reginald Iolanthe Perrin, in The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin... |
Major McCoy |
| Wright King | Major Brough |
| John Standing John Standing Sir John Ronald Leon Standing, 4th Baronet is an English actor.-Early life:Standing was born John Ronald Leon in London, the son of Kay Hammond , an actress, and Sir Ronald George Leon, a stockbroker... |
Captain Daven |
| Alan Webb Alan Webb (actor) -Biography and Career:Educated at Bramcote School, Scarborough, and RN Colleges Osborne and Dartmouth. He served in the Royal Navy.Webb's early days were spent performing with the Lena Ashwell Players , J. B. Fagan's Oxford Players , The Croydon Repertory Company , and the Old Vic-Sadler's Wells... |
Colonel Brant |
| John Ronane John Ronane John Ronane is a British actor.An Emmy nominee for his role in "War of Children" for CBS, he lost to Lord Olivier that year.... |
Captain Hawkins |
| Sammy Reese | Kurt |
| Richard Dawson | Captain Weaver |
Awards
It was nominated for Academy AwardsAcademy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
for Cinematography
Academy Award for Best Cinematography
The Academy Award for Best Cinematography is an Academy Award awarded each year to a cinematographer for work in one particular motion picture.-History:...
(Burnett Guffey) and Art Direction
Academy Award for Best Art Direction
The Academy Awards are the oldest awards ceremony for achievements in motion pictures. The Academy Award for Best Art Direction recognizes achievement in art direction on a film. The films below are listed with their production year, so the Oscar 2000 for best art direction went to a film from 1999...
(Robert Emmet Smith
Robert Emmet Smith
Robert Emmet Smith was an American art director. He was nominated for and Academy Award in the category Best Art Direction for the film King Rat.-External links:...
and Frank Tuttle
Frank Tuttle (set decorator)
Frank Tuttle was an American set decorator. He was nominated for three Academy Awards in the category Best Art Direction.-Selected filmography:Tuttle was nominated for three Academy Awards for Best Art Direction:...
).