IMDb RATING
6.6/10
1.3K
YOUR RATING
A jewel thief and a con artist are rivals in the theft of a valuable gem as the Japanese army invades China.A jewel thief and a con artist are rivals in the theft of a valuable gem as the Japanese army invades China.A jewel thief and a con artist are rivals in the theft of a valuable gem as the Japanese army invades China.
Eduardo Ciannelli
- Hotel Manager
- (as Edward Ciannelli)
Philip Ahn
- Japanese Officer
- (uncredited)
Philson Ahn
- Japanese Radio Man
- (uncredited)
Ernie Alexander
- Sailor
- (uncredited)
Harry Allen
- Soldier in Saloon
- (uncredited)
Jimmy Aubrey
- Soldier in Saloon
- (uncredited)
Rama Bai
- Restaurant Patron
- (uncredited)
William A. Boardway
- Officer
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAt the beginning of the movie, a friend of Gerald Meldrick is making an imitation of the Star of Asia. The film doesn't say what kind of gem it is, but there is a real Star of Asia. It's a 330-carat star sapphire. It is in the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. The deep blue gem was mined in Burma (modern Myanmar) and is said to have belonged to the Maharajah of Jodhpur at one time. An even larger blue sapphire is the Star of India. The 563-carat gem is one of the largest of its kind in the world. It has a colorful history that includes being heisted in 1964 from the American Museum of Natural History in New York. The unusual stone, with stars on both sides, was recovered the following year. It was mined in Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon) around the year 1600, but much of its past before the 20th century is clouded.
- GoofsThe Japanese soldiers shown are wearing German Stahlhelm helmets; however, they are wearing them backwards. Evidently the producers could not find any standard issue Japanese helmets and used the reversed German helmets. The Japanese did use this helmet, as they were superior to other helmets of the time, when they could get them from the beaten Chinese troops who had been issued these at the beginning of the war.
- Quotes
Gerald Meldrick: Easy now, we're not caught yet.
Anya Von Duren: No, we're not, are we?
[They embrace and kiss]
Gerald Meldrick: I'm a liar... I'm caught alright.
Anya Von Duren: So am I.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Clark Gable: Tall, Dark and Handsome (1996)
- SoundtracksOn the Road to Mandalay
(uncredited)
Music by Oley Speaks
Lyrics by Rudyard Kipling
Played several times as part of the score
Featured review
Say it isn't so
This picture is likely to make the viewer yearn to know what went on behind the scenes during its making. The impression one gets is that about halfway through the filming (or writing of the scenario, or both) someone decided that what they had so far wasn't working, but that there was already too much invested to discard it. So from a conventional international jewel thieves romance/suspense/comedy (better than some of its type, not as good as others), the film shifts gears abruptly and becomes a wartime adventure, with our hero and heroine trapped by the battles raging around them. Having once put in some time in the military (before being asked to leave), the Gable character needs do nothing more than don a tailor-made uniform to pass as an authentic member of the corps, his presence unquestioned by any of his colleagues, his authority unchallenged by anyone to whom he issues orders. Needless to say, he becomes a war hero, awarded the highest honors despite there presumably being no record of his existence.
Wait a minute.....weren't we talking about jewel thieves? Yes, and so was the picture, no more than fifteen minutes earlier.
Don't despair - before the final credits, the two stories are reconciled about as clumsily as the rest of the picture is put together.
Could it be that this 1941 product was deemed too lightweight and frivolous for an audience whose nation was being drawn into a world war, and that the studio bosses decided to make it more contemporary? If so, they should have taken their losses on what was already written and/or filmed, because the incongruous story they released is an embarrassment.
Wait a minute.....weren't we talking about jewel thieves? Yes, and so was the picture, no more than fifteen minutes earlier.
Don't despair - before the final credits, the two stories are reconciled about as clumsily as the rest of the picture is put together.
Could it be that this 1941 product was deemed too lightweight and frivolous for an audience whose nation was being drawn into a world war, and that the studio bosses decided to make it more contemporary? If so, they should have taken their losses on what was already written and/or filmed, because the incongruous story they released is an embarrassment.
helpful•2517
- jaykay-10
- Oct 11, 2001
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $1,380,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 32 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content