[To the Editor of THE SPECTATOR.] SIR,—I think it is
quite time for someone to take up the cudgels from patriotic motives, so I gladly join forces with Mr. Shelvankar in condemning the film The Lives of a Bengal Lancer, though our reasons are poles apart.
My complaint is that it seriously pretends to glorify our frontier forces, whereas it only succeeds in making them utterly ridiculous in the eyes of intelligent people. At the same time I am inclined to agree with him that Mohammed Ali is deserving of sympathy, for if ever victims deserved what they asked for, it was these three Hollywooden Lancers.
If patriotic flag-wagging must become a commercial proposition, then for Heaven's sake let our own people take it on. The sight of American actors trying to tell the world all about British officers is enough to make the gods weep. Let us pray that they won't start on our Navy next !
The world will learn a number of curious facts from this film ; amongst others, that it is possible for a colonel not to know that his own son has been posted to his regiment and to insult the former regiment of a brother officer ; that subal- terns talk to their colonel with pipes in their mouths and invite each other to have a " drahp o' scahtch." That officers of this regiment deliberately desert in order to rescue a friend who has been captured by the guest of an " Aymeer " and taken across the " frahnteer." The film must be given due credit for the fine Californian scenery and photography, but even these do not excuse the torrents of praise by means of which the critics are deluding the public into thinking they see the real thing.
By describing as " a compliment to England " and " excellent propaganda for the British Raj " a travesty of frontier life, which has made successful capital out of the title (and nothing else) of a deservedly popular book, is not doing good service either to England or India.—I am, Sir, TEIGNMOUTH. Mount Elton, Clevedon, Somerset.
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