Call Me Bwana (1963)
There's no sense in us belaboring the political incorrectness, misogyny and general un-wokeness of this tired, tiresome Bob Hope gag-a-thon....a movie he would've been better off doing with his 'The Road to..." partner Bing Crosby.
It was '63 folks, so it was what it was. JFK was in the third year of his charismatic presidency and a modest little British spy movie called 'Dr.No' had just arrived on American shores.
Which brings us 'Call Me Bwana', the only non-Bond film produced by Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Salztman, made practically back-to-back with 'Dr. No' and using almost the same technical and creative personnel. (Among them, writer Johanna Harwood, titles designer Maurice Binder, camerman Ted Moore, set designer Syd Cain, composer Monty Norman, editor Peter Hunt and special effects master John Stears)
(So no wonder there's a huge plug for the movie in 'From Russia With Love' - Sean Connery nails an assassin escaping from a building whose wall is painted with an enormous image of 'Bwana' bombshell Anita Ekberg.....)
And now to the movie, of which there's little to discuss. In a semi-Bond opening, a U.S. moon probe rocket holding invaluable lunar data crash lands in the African jungles. To retrieve it, the military and CIA call upon veteran safari adventurer Matt Merriewether (Bob Hope).
What they don't know (but we already do)...in true Hope fashion, Matt's a phony and dedicated devout coward. The closest he ever got to Africa was living in his New York apartment decorated with props from Tarzan movies. ("The only wild animal I want to see is the cigarette girl at the Stork Club")
Of course, the authorities compel Hope to trek on over to Africa, accompanied by a trusty CIA spy-girl (Edie Adams). Also infiltrating the group are two Russian spies (Brit comic actor Lionel Jeffries and the Va-Va-Voom Ekberg) along with their two thuggish minions (Percy Herbert, Al Mulock).
Hope launches his expected barrage of one liners all the way through the film, one or two of which actually snag some laughs. The safari itself, other than inserted stock footage, never really leaves the obvious confines of Broccoli & Saltzman's home base of Pinewood studios (albeit duly decorated with jungle foliage.)
The oddest moment, which could've been funny if only used as a brief toss-off - in mid-Safari, Hope stumbles upon an African Country Club to play a round of golf with the legendary Arnold Palmer. The sequence drags on and on and the already slowly paced film comes to dead halt as it caters to Hope's great passion for golf.
Hope's movie career sputtered on with similar exhausted unfunny efforts, finally gasping to a close with 1972's 'Cancel My Reservation'. But none of these less than worthy cinematic efforts put a dent in his reputation as America's most renowned, iconic and beloved comedian. Just the sight of him turning up as a cameo in TV shows and films ("Spies Like Us") could put a comforting smile on audience faces.
Fervent Hope fans might tolerate this and Bond fanatics might check it out as a strange companion piece to 'Dr. No'. But everyone else will probably find it a cringe too far ....particularly Hope's leering at Anita Ekberg's superstructure and the depiction of ooga-booga native tribes left over from corniest of safari movie cliches.
1 & 1/2 stars (*1/2).
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