Road to Rio (1947)
Directed by Norman Z. McLeod

Film Review

The fifth entry in the popular Road to... series serves up the by now familiar concoction of wisecracks, farcical escapades and lightweight musical numbers draped over the flimsiest of plots.  Assisted by the ever lovely Dorothy Lamour, Bing Crosby and Bob Hope prove themselves the equal of any comedy double act of the time and show no sign of becoming bored with a highly successful formula.  True, some of the gags are milked to the point where you wonder if Bing and Bob are planning to open a national dairy, but most of the comedy routines hit their mark.

Road to Rio's main attraction is Crosby's one and only musical number with the Andrews Sisters, a toe-tapping ditty titled You Don't Have To Know The Language.  Comedy support is provided by the Wiere Brothers, a talented trio from Germany who appeared in a number of films of this era, having toured Europe in the 1930s.  They provide the film with its funniest running gag ('You're telling me!', 'Get in the groove Jackson', 'This is murder') which, having been milked to death, has a brilliant pay-off.  Road to Rio may not be Bing and Bob's finest hour but it is an enjoyable romp and a more than adequate blues buster.

Film Synopsis

In their attempt to find work and avoid girl trouble, musicians Scat Sweeney and Hot Lips Barton end up rambling all over the United States, before they finally hit lucky and secure gainful employment with a circus in Louisiana.  Scat has omitted to tell his buddy beforehand that he would be performing a high wire act, so things go exactly as you might expect.  With another disaster under their belts, the two musicians take flight and stow aboard a cruise ship bound for Rio de Janeiro.  Here, they meet up with Lucia, a wealthy heiress who is under the control of her wicked guardian, Catherine Vail.  By hypnotising Lucia, Vail intends to force her into marrying her brother.   Against their better judgement, Scat and Hot Lips decide to come to Lucia's help, by finding the papers that will invalidate the marriage.  Unfortunately, they haven't yet realised just how determined Ms Vail is to achieve her aims...