Fluchtweg unbekannt

It was great to see another little remembered Gable film made before he went off to war. When he was paired with Rosalind Russell in "China Seas", they met in Hong Hong and traveled by ship to Singapore. Here, they meet in Bombay and travel by ship to Hong Kong, under quite different circumstances, as fugitive jewel thieves. In general form, this film reminds me of the later "The Big Steal", a chase thriller-screwball romantic comedy combo in an exotic locale, involving a man and woman, unknown to each other, looking for the same thing. Toward the end, it turns into a forerunner of "The Great Imposter", with Gable successfully fooling the British Hong Kong garrison into believing he is a British officer, who happens to be passing through. This gets him into more hot water than he bargained for, as the Japanese invade Hong Kong(as they actually did less than a year later!). Peter Lorre doesn't fool anyone as the supposedly Chinese captain of the ship taking the thieves to Hong Kong. This is mostly Gable's film. Sometimes, I wondered if I was looking at a deglamourized Heddy Lamarr instead of Rosalind Russell. All in all, an entertaining, if silly, romp, with Gable still looking in peak form and seeming to enjoy himself.

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.

Clark Gable and Rosalind Russell team up in "They Met in Bombay," a 1941 film also starring Peter Lorre. The two are both thieves, both with their eye on a valuable necklace, when they meet - she posing as aristocracy, he posing as a detective. They end up on the lam and in love.

The fun part of this film takes place later on when Gable, trying to come up with an escape plan for the two of them, gets a uniform and poses as a soldier.

Unfortunately, a situation arises and a superior officer grabs him off the street for special duty. He's then in a very difficult position indeed.

It's fun to watch the two stars together. MGM didn't always know what to do with Russell's strong beauty - in "Trouble for Two" she is extremely Garboesque - here, her hairstyle and makeup are pure Hedy Lamar. Either way, she looks great and gives a nice performance as a woman in love in spite of herself.

Gable is charming and plays it dead serious, which makes his war duties even more bizarre, as he's totally believable. Peter Lorre is on hand for a touch of the sinister.

The script could have been stronger to support these two stars and a good story. Nevertheless, it's good, breezy entertainment.

This film is rather formulaic. Clark plays an international con man thief who falls in love with a female version of himself (Ms. Russell). While this certainly doesn't break any new ground and is a very predictable by-the-numbers MGM production, you are still left with a movie that is great fun but won't change your life. I, for one, love films like this. That's because I like the formula--as did the rest of America at the time. That's because despite its short-comings the film was dripping with quality. Both actors are at the top of their game, the writing and dialog is snappy fun and the direction is on target. All-in-all, a lot of fun and sure to please fans of this genre.

Gable and Rosalind Russell play a couple of jewel thieves who meet in ..... well, guess where, and keep running into each other thereafter.

It's a fairly formulaic film carried on the charms of the leads; director Clarence Brown can't overcome the MGM gloss to provide the screwball details that the first half of the film really needs, although Peter Lorre as a shady and unctuous tramp steamer captain is a lot of fun.

I have the feeling Miss Russell replaced Myrna Loy at some stage in the production and the first couple of reels show damage. Clarence Brown directs the comedy bits for everyone but the two leads, a telling indictment of his opinion of their chops. Even worse, William H. Daniel's high-lit camerawork makes Miss Russell look a trifle jowly.