The story centers on Mowgli, a feral young man who is kidnapped by villagers who are cruel to the jungle animals as they attempt to steal a dead king's cursed treasure.

[3] In an Indian village, Buldeo, an elderly storyteller, is paid by a visiting British memsahib to tell a story of his youth.

When Mowgli and Mahala explore the jungle, they discover a hidden chamber in a ruined palace, containing fabulous wealth.

Warned by an aged cobra that the wealth brings death, they leave, but Mahala takes one coin as a memento.

His pride wounded, a half-crazed Buldeo tries to murder Mowgli and destroy the jungle by starting a forest fire.

Mowgli brings the local elephants including their leader Hathi who help free the captives and rescue the jungle animals from the fire.

The scene returns to the present day, with the elderly Buldeo admitting that the jungle defeated his youthful dreams and destroyed his reputation.

In 1940, the three Korda brothers left London for Hollywood, where two of their films that had begun production in the UK were completed: The Thief of Bagdad and That Hamilton Woman.

Bosley Crowther of The New York Times noted the filmmakers have "used a whole menagerie to get some remarkable effects, and a finer lot of sleek and lithe wild creatures has never been shown on a screen.

"[15] Variety similarly wrote: "Depending almost entirely on the pictorial grandeur and the production novelty, Korda has neglected any but a slight development of the human equation.

Players therefore have unimportant assignments, with the exception of Sabu, who swims and swings his way through the jungle with ease and grace.

"[17] A review in Time magazine felt the Korda brothers have produced "a laborious, sometimes silly tale, saved from disgrace only by some of the best Techni-colored animal photography extant.

"[18] Edwin Schallert of the Los Angeles Times praised the visuals and the animals, but cautioned: "To say that Jungle Book is as good in its narrative as The Thief is not easy.

[21][22] The extensive musical score by Miklós Rózsa caught the attention of RCA Victor, which proposed to make a recording of a suite with narration, comparable to Prokofiev's popular Peter and the Wolf.