Customer Reviews

Road to Hong Kong [VHS]

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The Bob Hope/Bing Crosby/Dorothy Lamour "Road" pictures were the most successful film series until someone named James Bond came along. The Road To Hong Kong was a belated final entry - a nice idea but one executed on a miserly budget when the stars were somewhat past their peak. The script roughly follows the dependable formula of the earlier films and, while not as funny or as charming as the classic Road To Morocco, still provides a fair amount of amusement. It is certainly not the overcooked turkey that some people claim.

Cheaply filmed in England in black and white on cardboard sets and with special effects of rocket ships that would have made Ed Wood proud, the film relies a lot on the audience's affection for Hope and Crosby. The interplay and patter of their double act, so finely tuned over the years, is still a major attraction. Poor Dorothy Lamour is reduced to a guest star spot while the female lead is given to Joan Collins looking amazingly fresh and extremely sexy. One of the main embarrassments of the film is the love scenes between a visibly aging Crosby and the svelte young Collins. But, apart from that, she works quite well with the old troupers. And Robert Morley has a fun turn as a Dr No-type villain.

For me, though, the real star is Bob Hope in his trademark role as a professional coward with delusions of being a great lover. Whether tossing off a succession of quips or performing slapstick (with the aid of an obvious double) he breathes more life into the film than it possibly deserves. One of Hope's best scenes is with a pre-international stardom Peter Sellers who plays an eccentric Indian doctor. It is both fascinating and funny to witness this encounter between comic geniuses from different generations.

Yes, yes, yes...I know the film is creaky and looks older than it actually is. But it is also a lot of fun and has its heart in the right place. It's certainly no worse than any of the British "Carry On" films which have somehow been elevated to cult status. To paraphrase another fun film of that era - Hope and Crosby may have been past their prime, but what they had left over was more than most film comics started out with.

I know that many people consider this the worst of the Road movies, but I would consider it my favorite. While dissapointed in not having Dorothy in there more than just a cameo appearance, I think the rest of the movie makes up for it! The banana feeding scene was the best! (Hope and Crosby being tested in place of the monkeys on the spaceship) This movie also had some other good cameo appearances.

Road to Hong Kong was the last Hope - Crosby Road film. Dorothy Lamour only makes an appearance in this film. Joan Collins is the love interest in the film - a beautiful spy for the top secret spy group The First Echelon.

Harry and Chester are a couple of con artists. When Chester loses his memory in an accident, they are sent to a Tibetan Lamasery. En route Chester is accidentally slipped a rocket fuel formula. While at the Lamasery, they find out about a rare herb that increases memory capacity. The boys know this will make a great mentalist act for vaudeville and still it. They steal a bottle and return home. As a test, Chester memorizes the formula. This sets the remainder of the film. The First Echelon wants their formula and will do anything to get it.

This being the final Road film, lots of guest stars including Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, David Niven and an early performance by Peter Sellers.

This is the most polished of the Road films. Written by Norman Panama and Melvin Frank, who have collaborated on a number of his films including their Oscar nominated Bob Hope film The Facts of Life and Frank's best solo film, A Touch of Class. Just sit back and enjoy.

DVD EXTRAS: None

This is the last Road movie made by Hope and Crosby. Both were around 60 and Crosby in particular looks stricken by the sophomoric playacting and the effort of simulating attraction to Joan Collins. Hope tries to jolly him through their scenes together and manages to scare up a laugh or two, especially in the pre-credit sequence. But it's only during Dorothy Lamour's too-brief guest appearance that the old magic returns. At 47, she looks younger than ten years earlier in "Bali," but she was too old for Hope and Crosby -- one of the sadder examples of male movie star vanity and a sour note to end a great series on. If you're smart, you'll get off the Road at "Rio."

Definetly not the best of the Road pictures but mildly entertaining and worth having to complete the Road collection.
Both Crosby and Hope are noticably older and really don't have the magic with Joan Collins like they did with Dorothy Lamour and the jokes are trying to be funny instead of just being funny.

This is a fine presentation and packaging of the seventh (and weakest) of the Crosby-Hope "Road" series. True fans will want this for their collection, and I agree that Hong Kong is not as bad as it is often portrayed. In the era of Austin Powers, this film actually picks up some points for kitch; it was arguably the first spoof of the '60s spy thriller.

But there is one very unfortunate flaw in this DVD version. Even though this is the first release of this movie in widescreen, this DVD is not optimized for widescreen televisions. So if you have a wdiescreen TV this movie will appear letterboxed on all four sides, the frame of the picture will not fill out your widescreen from left to right. This is an infuriating lapse on the part of MGM.

This 1962 release of "Road To Hong Kong" marked the last appearance and "Road" picture the two legendary entertainers would ever make.While this film may not be as sharp as some of their original efforts of the 40s,it is still a quite enjoyable jaunt and worth seeing.

This United Artists film was shot in England at the famed Shepperton Studios.Melvin Frank,who was to become involved a short four years later in one of my favourite comedies "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum",produced it.Toronto born Robert Farnon who conducted the Canadian Band of the AEF during WW2,does the honours in the music department;along with composers Van Heusen and Cahn.

The film opens with a song and dance routine of "It's Teamwork" on a vaudeville-like stage with a scenery back drop listing of all their past Road movies.The story starts in Hong Kong where a desperate Joan Collins, who works for an unspecified foreign power(" the third echelon"),is talking to American security people who are baffled hearing Amercian voices in a space ship going to the Moon(an obvious nod to the then heated space race between the U.S. and Russia).The story then desolves into events which led to that moment.We find Chester and Harry with yet another get-rich scheme in Calcutta,India with a flying device.Chester of course gets roped into flying it with disastrous results.He ends up in the hospital with no memory.A doctor played by Peter Sellers(who does a nice comedic turn) recommends he go to a monstary in Northern India to regain his memory.At the airport they bump into agent Joan Collins who mistakes Chester for another agent and gives him secret papers by mistake.The boys get to the monstary where Chester regains his mind with an unknown substance in a bottle,which they take with them(Watch for a cameo by David Niven).

Back in Hong Kong they discover the secret papers which they burn,but not before Chester memorizes the contents.Collins gets the two to come to Hong Kong and the secret underground facilities of her boss to give them the formula.Unable to get his recognitive powers back they put the boys on a rocket which is going to the moon and back,instead of two chimps that were scheduled to go.During the flight the gag scene from Chaplin's "Modern Times" is redone,where machines that are supposed to feed them automatically go haywire.Of course the food is bananas and milk.

When they return to Earth Collins learns that they boys are to be dissected after they have revealed the forumla.Having taken a liking to them both she helps them to escape.At this point we are regaled by a brief walk on by the boys old pal Jerry Colona.77 1/2 minutes into the picture we finally see Dorothy Lamour,dressed in her trademark sarong.When the boys beg her to help them Chester says"Hey,you can't forget all those pictures we did together",and she responds with"Neither can anyone else,that's why I'm working over here!".She incorporates them into her stage show with some funny moments and about seven minutes or so later Dorothy is gone from the film.

Chester and Harry return to the underground facilites in an attempt to stop them,now with the aid of the American security forces.They end up on the rocket with Collins and land on the planet "Plutonia"(?) from whence they can never return.They of course vie for Collins' attention while doing their closing"It's Teamwork" number,when suddenly Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra appear,for a brief moment.The picture ends with Harry getting the girl(as usual) and Chester floating up and away.

It's quite the "plot" to be sure but the story isn't the main thing here,it is Hope and Crosby;and neither disappoint.The usual bantering and one liners that made these pictures especially dear to their fans years before are here in abundance in this one too.It had been about 10 years since their last "Road" film but both Crosby and Hope jumped back into their characters like they had never been away from them;a testament to the pros both these talented men were.

Like all Road pictures before,there is no lack of music in this one either.As stated they did an opening and closing song and dance routine,about 35 minutes into the film they sing "Road to Hong Kong",at about the 60 minute mark Bing sings a nice number to Joan called"Let's not be Sensible" and finally when Lamour makes her entrance we even get a song from her.None of them intrusive and all flow nicely in and out of each scene.

Technically this film has been transferred quite well and is generally clean and crisp black and white,in its' original widescreen 1:66:1 ratio.Other than the original theatrical trailer this DVD has no other special features,so it is pretty much a plain Jane kind of release.

In conclusion I do recommend this film for all fans of the "Road" franchise.Crosby and Hope are still on their marks and their famous zingers are still to be found in abundance throughout.Lamour makes her appearance(but late and too short)and there are cameos by many famous stars to boot.All and all a pleasant diversion and not a bad ending to a wonderful franchise that starred two of the most talented men in showbusiness,Bob Hope and Bing Crosby.

Released in 1962, "The Road to Hong Kong" was the final cinematic journey for Bob Hope, Bing Crosby and (all too briefly) Dorothy Lamour. Cheaply filmed in England with Bob and Bing past their prime, this uneven escapade proved no match for the previous entries. Hilarity does occasionally ensue, but replacing Dorothy with Joan Collins was a big mistake. In a memorable four-minute cameo, Peter Sellers steals the show as an eccentric Indian doctor. Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen contribute the film's best song, "Teamwork."

In some measure, and regardless of subject matter, every motion picture is a product of its time. The character of contemporary society creeps

in to script and inform the action on screen, shaping visual and verbal language. Possibly overlooked by viewers of the "Road" pictures is the fact that each, in a reel and a real sense, was a parody of itself, and in turn, of the preceding films. They were a gentle jab at an industry prone to take itself too seriously. Revelling in their ability to glib and adlib their way from start to finish, Crosby and Hope always put on

a real-time performance, a passing glimpse at what they and their world were at that moment. Amid the gems of repartee, some unseemly slurs at

misunderstood and maligned members of society emerge. Not funny.

For what it's worth, there is one scene in "The Road to Hong Kong" that exhibits that classic comedic timing that left audiences rolling in the aisles. A rollicking ride into space, strapped into seats designed for chimpanzees. Use your imagination. Crosby and Hope did.

Jim O'Dell

I have been looking for this since the mid-60s when I first saw it on tv. And, yes, my family watched and laughed with me at the ridiculously funny scenes! Gotta love those Road Shows, and this may be my favorite!