Jungle Book 1942

Overview

Jungle Book is a 1942 American action-adventure film produced by the Korda brothers. Directed by Zoltán Korda, the film is a Technicolor production loosely adapted from the 1894 story collection by Rudyard Kipling. The screenplay was written by Laurence Stallings, with cinematography by Lee Garmes and W. Howard Greene and music composed by Miklós Rózsa. The cast includes Sabu as Mowgli, Joseph Calleia as Buldeo, John Qualen as the barber, Frank Puglia as the pundit, Rosemary De Camp as Mowgli’s mother, Messua, and Patricia O'Rourke as Mahala. The story follows Mowgli, who was lost in the jungle as a toddler and subsequently raised by wolves. Years later, he happens upon his human village and reconnects with its inhabitants, including his widowed mother. While attempting to integrate into human society, he continues to maintain a relationship with the jungle, leading to various adventures involving a jewelled secret city guarded by the jungle's fiercest denizens. The film was released in the United States on April 3, 1942, and has a runtime of one hour and forty-six minutes.