Macao (1952)

Film Noir In The Far East

- More or less fleeing to Macao, China, Nick Cochran (Robert Mitchum) and Julie Benson (Jane Russell) are trying for a fresh start. Unfortunately for the two of them, things do not quite work out as planned when they enter into Macao's multi-national underworld.

With all the problems RKO's travelogue film noir Macao (1952) went through - including director Nicholas Ray coming in to finish the film after Josef von Sternberg was fired, Gloria Grahame being forced to do the film against her will, and Robert Mitchum having to re-write the script during filming so it made sense - one would think the film would have ended up disjointed and sloppy. However, Macao is actually a really good film with an entertaining story, great dialogue, a very stylish look within the film's Asian setting and very fun repartee between Robert Mitchum and Jane Russell (in their second film together). Mitchum delivers a cool, funny, and even sometimes intense performance as always and Jane Russell, aside from being out of this world beautiful, is great in her role as well - charming as can be in her strong and sassy character while getting a chance to show off her great voice....

Overall, with a great blending of humor, drama, and a light dose of film noir, Macao is very fun and exciting – a sit back and enjoy the ride type of film.


CBC Rating: 8/10