Road to Bali (1952)

Directed by Hal Walker. Starring Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Dorothy Lamour, Murvyn Vye, Ralph Moody, Peter Coe, Leon Askin.

Bland entry in the Road to… series finds Hope & Crosby fleeing trouble Down Under and ending up in Bali as deep sea divers looking for treasure at the behest of island princess Lamour. More misses than hits, the silly pic should provide comfortable vibes for fans of the stars, but the novelty factor is almost entirely relegated to the film stock (it’s the only one of these pictures to be shot in color). At least one of the jokes doubles as sage advice: “He’s gonna sing, folks…now’s the time to go out and get the popcorn.” One sight gag involving a chimp named Sandy is likely to inspire nightmares. Even the token cameos, of which there are several, fall flat. It would be ten years before the seventh (and final) film in the series, The Road to Hong Kong.

47/100