Road to Bali
About Road to Bali
George Cochran (Bing Crosby) and Harold Gridley (Bob Hope), song-and-dance men in Melbourne, run from marriage proposals and sign on as divers for a prince. On an island toward Bali they compete for Princess Lala (Dorothy Lamour), who is half Scottish. A dive brings up jewels the prince claims. After a shipwreck, Lala decides her people's rules let her marry both of them, until a volcano breaks that plan. She chooses George. Harold pulls Jane Russell out of a basket; she rejects him, and he is left trying to keep the end title off the screen.
Cast & crew
More about Road to Bali
Hal Walker directed the sixth Road picture, and the only one shot in Technicolor. Frank Butler, Hal Kanter, and William Morrow wrote the screenplay from a story by Butler and Harry Tugend. Daniel Dare and Tugend produced. Paramount released it on 19 November 1952. It is also the first of the series with surprise cameos.
Themes
Making
Paramount finally made a Road film in color. The cameos, starting with this entry, are players walking in from other Paramount pictures rather than characters in the plot.
Reviews
Bosley Crowther, in The New York Times on 30 January 1953, wrote that he spent part of the day at the Astor 'falling out of a seat' and called Road to Bali 'a whoopingly hilarious film, full of pure crazy situations and deliciously discourteous gags.'
Audiences
U.S. and Canadian rentals were reported at $3,000,000.
Look
George Barnes shot the film in Technicolor, the first Road picture in that process.
Technique
The only Road picture photographed in Technicolor.
Music
Joseph J. Lilley is credited with the music. Jimmy Van Heusen and Johnny Burke wrote the songs, sung by Crosby, Hope, and Lamour.
Notes
- Cameos include Bob Crosby, Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin, a clip of Humphrey Bogart from The African Queen, and Jane Russell as herself from Son of Paleface.
- Murvyn Vye plays Prince Ken Arok. Leon Askin plays King Ramayana.
- French admissions were counted at 43,450.
- Songs by Jimmy Van Heusen and Johnny Burke include 'Chicago Style,' 'Moonflowers,' 'To See You Is to Love You,' 'The Merry-Go-Run-Around,' and 'The Road to Bali.'
- George Barnes photographed it. Archie Marshek edited.
Scenes
- The dive brings up a chest of jewels the prince says are his.
- Harold produces Jane Russell from a basket and she turns him down.
- He tries to stop the words 'The End' from coming on.
