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Sorry, this movie sucks

Absolutely the worst movie.

It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

Songs: "But Beautiful" (Crosby); "You Don't Have To Know the Language" (Crosby, Andrews Sisters); "Experience" (Lamour); "Apalachicola, Fla" (Crosby, Hope); "Cavaquinho" (Wiere Brothers) -- all by Johnny Burke (lyrics) and James Van Heusen (music), who wrote another song, "For What?" for the Andrews Sisters, but this was deleted; "Brazil" (orchestral) by Ary Barroso (music), Bob Russell (lyrics). Music director: Robert Emmett Dolan. Music associate: Troy Sanders. Vocal arrangements: Joseph J. Lilley. Dances staged by Bernard Pearce and Billy Daniels. Executive producers: Bing Crosby, Bob Hope.Copyright 25 August 1947 by Bing Crosby Enterprises, Inc., and Hope Enterprises, Inc. Released through Paramount. New York opening at the Paramount: 18 February 1948. U.S. release: 25 December 1947. U.K. release: 29 March 1948. Australian release: 6 May 1948. 9,144 feet. 101 minutes.SYNOPSIS: After a wonderfully stimulating special effects cross- country montage sequence in which our ever-helpful crooner identifies himself firstly as Frank Sinatra, than as Gene Autry, Bing and Bob sing and dance their way through "Apalachicola, Fla", after which they burn down a whole carnival. And this is just for openers. Fleeing from the vengeance of the carnival owner, they stow away on board a luxury passenger ship bound for Rio where they meet and rescue a beautiful heiress who is being craftily mesmerized by her evil aunt. The aunt's two goons hunt the boys down, but... NOTES: Fifth of the seven Road pictures. With a domestic rentals gross of $4.5 million, this was the number one box-office attraction in the U.S. and Canada in 1948. Although the movie did not do quite so spectacularly in Britain and Australia, it was certainly Paramount's top-grossing picture of the year in both countries. Despite its box office success, the film received only one Oscar nomination, and that was for Robert Emmett Dolan in the Scoring of a Musical category. He lost to Alfred Newman's Mother Wore Tights.Best Actor, Bing Crosby - Photoplay Gold Medal Award. COMMENT: Wonderful fun. "The Road to Rio" is an almost perfect musical comedy, wittily scripted, ingratiatingly played, sensitively directed and lavishly produced. The songs are great too. So are the clever dances. The bantering between Bing and Bob was never better and here they are joined by a really out-of-the-drawer support cast led by the spider lady herself, Gale Sondergaard. If you were compiling an anthology of memorable moments in film comedy, this film contains so many classic scenes you'd be forced to give the whole idea away and just use this movie instead. OTHER VIEWS: Even though it's full of "in" jokes, topical allusions and now-forgotten references, The Road to Rio is just as mightily entertaining today as it was to audiences in 1948. Partly due to the fact that Hope delivers his darts with such casual grace and marvelously off-handed timing, patrons not in the know won't realize he's being funny; and partly the fact that the film now has a tremendous boost in nostalgia appeal. It would be hard to better this cast line-up. Not only are the players at their peak, but the script's situations are still wonderfully, crazily funny. And the four main songs are tunefully witty standards that are still hummed today. As a satire on the movie chase thriller, complete with cross-cutting to the last-minute rescue party that here actually arrives on the scene too late, "The Road to Rio" is still an absolute delight. Bing and Bob put their own money into this one, spent it with admirably free hands, and happily received handsome dividends. Good on you, boys! - JHR writing as George Addison.

After accidentally setting a circus on fire in Louisiana, two Vaudville performers named "Scat Sweeney" (Bing Crosby) and "Hot Lips Barton" (Bob Hope) secretly board a passenger liner headed for Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. That night Scat meets a young woman in distress by the name of "Lucia Maria de Andrade" (Dorothy Lamour) and while attempting to console her divulges that he and Hot Lips Barton are stowaways. To his chagrin Lucia informs the captain of the ship which further compounds their misfortune. Fortunately, they manage to sneak off the ship and just happen to meet Lucia again who continues to display a split personality. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that I thought this was a delightful comedy which, in my opinion, was clearly one of the better "Road Movies" produced. I especially liked the chemistry between the three aforementioned actors and the addition of both the Andrews Sisters and the Wiere Brothers along with Jerry Colonna who appeared at the very end. In short, those who have enjoyed the previous "Road Movies" should appreciate this one as well. Above average

...And now they've got a spider woman as their foe, none other than Gale Sobdergaard, delightfully playing an amalgamation of all her dark ladies. She's the surrogate aunt of wealthy Dorothy Lamour, utilizing a rare Indian gem to manipulate Lamour to get her hands on Lamour's fortune. While this plot could happen anywhere, Rio does add atmosphere to the plot, complete with inside jokes and a few guest stars, including the Andrew Sisters duetting with Bing. However, the musical highlight is the sing "Experience" which has a hysterical sight gag. There were two more "Road" movies ahead, but thus was the last classic in the series.

Since the very first Road To.. Picture back in 1940, each subsequent entry in the series seemed to build on its wacky and manic content, with each becoming slightly more off the wall and crazy as the last.However when the fifth entry was released in 1947, for some reason things were toned down a tad, making the Road to Rio, although still funny and enjoyable appear to lack the quirkiness and zany antics of what had gone before.The banter and wise cracks between our two heroes is as good as ever, and the musical numbers up to par as well, but in spite of this, I always have a problem associating this film with any other in the series. It seems out on it's own; out on a limb.Maybe it's because unlike its predecessors, the gang are not lost in the untamed wild of somewhere or other, perhaps its the lack of talking animals, or perhaps it has more to do with the fact that this story actually has a plot; a real story you can follow instead of the more customary and formulaic half-hearted story onto which a few gags and songs had been pinned.Still the film is enjoyable and very funny, with The Andrew Sisters, Bing's other frequent stalwarts from radio and record, joining in on the fun for 'You Don't Have to Know the Language' and a delightful comic turn from The Weire Brothers as three local boys trying to pass themselves off as red blooded Americans, despite only knowing three slang terms in English which had been taught to them by Hope and Crosby just minutes before.As I said you will enjoy this entry very much but you will probably find this movie more akin to a Bob Hope 'My Favorite Blonde/Brunette' kind of comedy than anything so far seen in the 'Road To...' franchise