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DVD Road to Utopia
I feel sorry for people who can't appreciate Hope and Crosby "road" pictures. This is the fourth in the series, and has the boys masquerading as the killers Sperry and McGurk, from whom they've stolen the map to a gold mine, but which really belongs to Dorothy Lamour, but which... and you know it really doesn't matter anyway. The point is they've got this thin plot on which to hang a series of hit-and-miss jokes, coming fast enough to make it just all right and a certain amount of time to see who gets Dorothy Lamour, while maintaining their fierce and friendly and wisecracking rivalry. They're in the Klondike this time around, which doesn't stop the film from working in a glimpse of Dorothy in her sarong. Along the way, animals talk, including the humorist Robert Benchley, whose thoroughly dispensable introduction and running commentary I wouldn't dispense with for anything. This is arguably the goofiest of the road pictures. My favorite joke is when Bob is bested in fishing with Bing. Bob remarks, "My worm must have B.O." Bing comes back with "Couldn't B.U." You may not care where you're going, just as long as you're with them. Put it there, pal, put it there. --Jim Gay
Surrealism, songs, slapstick- a fantastically funny flick!
Classic 1946 comedy "Road to Utopia", the 4th in the "Road" series, starring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope and Dorothy Lamour. After their Morocco jaunt in 1942, Crosby, Hope and Lamour spent four years making their separate successes, before rejoining to go back in time on an anachronistic Alaskan adventure in "Road to Utopia", a film that was nominated for a "Best Original Screenplay" Oscar and which is even crazier than its predecessor, with a talking fish taking over from Morocco's comical camel, the addition of narrator Robert Benchley and an ending so outrageous it's a wonder they managed to sneak it past the censor! The Johnny Burke-Jimmy Van Huesen score includes "Put it There, Pal", "Good Time Charlie" and "Personality". Surrealism, songs, slapstick- a fantastically funny flick and an essential for fans of Hope, Crosby, Lamour or crazy comedy in general. An American classic!
Who'd Be Selling Fish At This Hour?
This is hardly an original insight, but anyone who dismisses Bob Hope as the tiresome, unfunny comic from those dreadful 1960s 'comedies' he appeared in is missing out on a real national treasure - his films up to around 1952 are hysterically funny, and his ROAD entries with cohorts Crosby and Lamour are among the best of 'em. Hope, along with the brilliant Preston Sturges, had restored Paramount to the comedy throne they'd occupied in the early 30s; from the lavish budget and attention to period detail throughout UTOPIA, it's obvious that the studio was not ungrateful. For my money, ROAD TO UTOPIA is the funniest film he ever made (though there are half-a-dozen others close on its heels). As in all ROAD movies, the engine powering the vehicle was the lightning-quick banter between the two leads; Crosby smooth as snake-oil, Hope perpetually suspicious and cowardly. And with excellent reason - no straight man ever victimized a foil the way Bing routinely does to Bob. ROAD movies always threaded their satires of B-movie plots (this one spoofing Robert W Service-style frozen-North melodrama) with plenty of topical humor, much of it capitalizing on the fans' awareness of the stars' personal foibles (Crosby's rivalry with Sinatra, his investments in thoroughbreds, Hope's disastrous box-office returns in LET'S FACE IT), and there's a goodly amount of what's now referred to as 'breaking the fourth wall' (they talk directly to the audience at varying points). What elevates UTOPIA just over the others is the sky-high breezy confidence of everyone involved this go-around. The cast and crew, coming off ROAD TO MOROCCO, were on a roll and knew it, and they ride that momentum for all it's worth (Hope's constant kibitzing is particularly hilarious). Der Bingle gets to groan a couple of subpar songs (as opposed to MOROCCO's highlights - 'Ho Hum' and 'Moonlight Becomes You' - this outing's 'It's Anybody's Spring' and 'Welcome To My Dream' are instantly forgettable) but the team's 'Put It There, Pal' is infectious fun and Miss Lamour's 'Personality' is sexy and sprightly. A further note on Lamour - she's luxuriously beautiful here, an ice-cream sundae with curves (why she's never ranked with the decade's top screen sirens is unfathomable: she's every bit the looker that Lake, Grable, Hayworth & Sheridan were, and a better singer besides). My apologies for not quoting any of the zingers from the script, but there are just too many of them to play favorites with. ROAD TO UTOPIA is well worth the effort it'll take you to track down; get cracking.
This Utopia is a road to laughs!!
My teenaged son loves classic movies, and he's a huge fan of all the Bob Hope/Bing Crosby "Road" pictures. This is his favorite one, and I can see why. There's a chuckle a minute on this "Road to Utopia," as well as some enjoyable songs by Crosby, Hope and Dorothy Lamour.
...I would agree that there are some memorable one liners in this "Road" picture, but you really have to see and hear them in context.
This is a good one, just for laughs. Corny, but fun!
The second Road movie from Paramount Pictures finds barnstorming con artists Chuck Reardon (Bing Crosby) and Hubert "Fearless" Frazier (Bob Hope) at liberty after their act goes haywire. (In these movies, Crosby generally lures the suckers into the tent, while Hope is always stuck getting shot out of the cannon.) A phony map to a diamond mine brings our boys into the middle of Africa, which means there's a good chance they'll end up sitting in a cauldron while natives perform a cannibal dance around them. These stereotypes would be offensive if the movie wasn't actively parodying the kind of jungle movie popular in 1941 (just as Road to Morocco would satirize the Arabian nights picture). Dorothy Lamour is along for the ride, of course, and her scene in a tight clinch with... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Bing Crosby - Bob Hope - Dorothy Lamour Director(s): Victor Schertzinger DVD Release Date: Released the 01 April 2003 THIS TITLE IS CURRENTLY NOT AVAILABLE. If you would like to purchase this title, we recommend that you occasionally check this page to see if it has become available.
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Here's the first trip in what would become one of Paramount Pictures' most profitable film series of the '40s. When this comedy was released in 1940, Bing Crosby and Bob Hope had separately achieved stardom, though Crosby was an established power and Hope still a hot comedian new to movies. In fact, Hope is billed third in Road to Singapore, below Der Bingle and Dorothy Lamour. The script establishes what would be a constant in the Road series: a ramshackle plot, a handful of songs, and plenty of irreverent banter between the two boys. Crosby plays Josh Mallon, scion of a wealthy family, who prefers the vagabond life to his stuffy family; his pal Ace Lannigan (Hope) is only too happy to escape. They end up sharing a waterfront shack in Singapore and vying for the affections... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Bing Crosby - Dorothy Lamour - Bob Hope Director(s): Victor Schertzinger DVD Release Date: Released the 05 March 2002 This item is currently not available.
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Road to Morocco, number three in the series of breezy comedies teaming Bing Crosby and Bob Hope, may be the funniest of the bunch. Bing and Bob find themselves Morocco-bound ("like Webster's dictionary"), caught in an elaborately faked-up world of harems, palm trees, and other Arabian Nights bric-a-brac. Naturally, Dorothy Lamour is also there, as she was the customary target of male rivalry in the Road scenarios. There is something so loose and ingratiating about the patter between Hope and Crosby that it doesn't ultimately matter if half the jokes don't land; these guys had their own comfortable rhythm, fueled by cheerful one-upmanship. Their sense of spontaneity broke the fourth wall between movie and audience in a way only the Marx Brothers had really accomplished before, and... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Bing Crosby - Bob Hope - Dorothy Lamour Director(s): David Butler DVD Release Date: Released the 01 April 2003 THIS TITLE IS CURRENTLY NOT AVAILABLE. If you would like to purchase this title, we recommend that you occasionally check this page to see if it has become available.
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Every great film has a repeating line, and Road to Rio has that one. It's always been one of my favorites - if not THE favorite - of the road pictures, but maybe the lustre has worn off. Still, "I hate you. I loathe you. I despise you" is a long-time family joke, and this film, if it grabs you at the right moment, is a gem. The musical numbers, as usual, are terrific, and there are so many throw-away lines and sight gags that this "road" is one that should be traveled. More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Bing Crosby - Bob Hope - Dorothy Lamour Director(s): Norman Z. McLeod DVD Release Date: Released the 21 November 2000 Usually ships in 24 hours
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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... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Bing Crosby - Bob Hope Director(s): Norman Panama DVD Release Date: Released the 03 December 2002 Usually ships in 24 hours
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