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A drunk previous WWI pilot (Tom Selleck) and his underling (Jack Weston) are hired by a young heiress (Bess Armstrong) who must encounter her dad before her contender (Robert Morley) takes over the inheritance . They will face dangerous bandits (Brian Blessed) , numerous adventures and risks .

This exciting story gets an agreeable look and feeling to vintage adventures , exotic places , dastardly nasties and daring getaways than ever before . Packs action enough with explosion galore , especial aerial effects with impressive images of flight and dogfighting , comedy , tongue usefully in in its check , all that make it a cinematic roller coater ride . It's made like a classic's 30s-style adventure reminiscent of early serials and in the wake of ¨Raiders of the last ark¨ . Tom Selleck is a hard-drinking former air ace , he's a dashing and intrepid pilot , Bess Armstrong is perfectly cast as feisty heiress looking for his father , she's continuously irritated with the smooth talker and alcoholic adventurer . Both of whom play a special love story in a screwball-romance style . Besides , displaying spectacular images of Selleck and Armstrong gliding over extraordinary landscapes with musical background by John Barry , perhaps copied by Sidney Pollack in ¨Out of Africa¨ with the couple Redford and Meryl Streep , flying in similar plane and soundtrack . Regular cinematography by Ronnie Taylor filmed in Yugoslavia and England, the colors are worn-out , it's necessary an urgent remastering . The film was lavishly produced by Fred Weintraub and Raymond Chow , producers of ¨Operation Dragon¨ starred by Bruce Lee . This was 27th highest grossing film of 1983 at the American box-office . The picture was frequently considered by the film-going public as being a rip-off to Raiders of the lost ark (1981) when in fact the movie had been in development since the late 1970s , formerly the famous Spielberg adventure.

The film was well handled and professionally directed by Brian G Hutton, however was a flop and failed to give cash . Hutton started his career with little and prestigious films , such as ¨Wild seed¨ and ¨The Pad¨. There after , he veered off into big budgeted and all-star movies, proving which he could handle big scale production , as ¨Where the eagles dare¨, one of the best from Alistair McLean , furthermore with ¨Kelly's heroes¨ added humor to the warlike action . His next picture was ¨High road to China¨ marked a partial return with panache to his previous form but faltered at the Box-office , in spite of being quite amusing and with occasional touch of directorial skill, for that reason is a must for adventure buffs .

With tongue firmly in cheek Tom Selleck, Bess Armstrong and the rest of the cast give us a spoof of all those old action/adventure flicks from the 30s and 40s. The film is set in Kuomintang China which has always been a good source for these films, a fluid political situation, a weak central government and a lot of warlords in business for themselves.

Industrialist Wilford Brimley has gone to Asia and vanished, but that hasn't stopped his daughter from spending his money like it had no end. But the end might be coming as his partner Robert Morley wants him declared legally dead and by terms of their partnership he gets control of the company and daughter Bess Armstrong is out in the cold. She might have to do like others do and actually go to work.

Heaven forfend so she hires former air ace Tom Selleck who comes with two World War I era biplanes and a mechanic played by Jack Weston. This partnership takes her to Afghanistan, Nepal, and finally the westernmost province of China Sinkiang in search of Brimley.

Along the way all the old clichés concerning these films is employed and of course chemistry cannot be denied. Selleck and Armstrong become an item and Selleck finds some use for his former aviation combat skills.

By the way I loved and I'm sure you'll love Brimley's explanation as to why Armstrong will be well taken care of despite efforts to the contrary.

Those efforts are being directed by Robert Morley who I can never resist seeing in any film. There's also a nice performance by Brian Blessed as an Afghan warlord.

Tom Selleck's fans should love High Road To China.

It's been 3 years since socialite Eve Tozer (Bess Armstrong) heard from her wealthy father Bradley Tozer (Wilford Brimley). His business partner in London is trying to declare him dead. She has only 12 days before the partner steals the family business and the entire fortune. Her only option is hiring drunken war hero Patrick O'Malley (Tom Selleck) and his mechanic Struts (Jack Weston). Under fire from pursuing gunmen, they fly two biplanes from Turkey to Afghanistan and eventually China where Bradley is leading villagers in a battle against a local ruthless warlord.

It's a rather simplistic 'road' movie. It's an action adventure following the successful footsteps of Raiders of the Lost Ark. The characters are simply drawn. Certainly, Selleck has a bit of Indy in him. The romantic chemistry is also drawn from that road map. I do like the flying although action is not always there. At least, that's what I remember most before watching it again recently. Of course, it's inferior to Raiders but it still works.

While true that this movie isn't Academy Award material, it is very enjoyable and touchingly romantic. The scenery is breathtaking at times and the film flows well. It starts in a party atmosphere and becomes a romantic adventure story. It is a good cross between a "Chick Flick" and an adventure story. I have flown open cockpit biplanes and perhaps that makes the film even more enduring for me.

There is plenty of flying and small war skirmishes are smattered in with the search for a rich brat's father. She (Bess Armstrong as Eve Tozer) must find the father and get him to a British court before the deadline or she will lose all of her money. If the partner, Bentik, can have Bradley Tozer (Wilford Brimley) declared as dead in a British court then he gets the whole company; thus relieving Eve Tozer of the heaps of her fathers money. And it is about money that this girl lives for, or so it seems. She enlists the help of a derelict and decrepit old WW1 ace, Tom Selleck, who has the only two available airplanes to get her to her father in time. Assassins are employed by Bradley Tozers partner to keep him from being found adding more tension to the already danger filled trail.

While the romance angle is as predictable as it is in just about any film, the story does flow well and the scenery also helps to keep ones interest. Rent this one and settle down for some fun. I would rate this film as three out of four stars.

It's actually so sad to think they don't make movies like this anymore. 'High Road to China' is an enjoyable action adventure comedy in the vein of 'Raiders of the Lost Ark', blending these genres to perfection. The premise is simple, without complicated issues or shocking twists - which seem to be the norm nowadays.

I always find films before CGI to be better film making. Given the fact that actors were shot on location as opposed to a studio with almost everything being added in post-production, I also found the acting to be more natural and realistic.

Romance between the lead characters is predictable and inevitable, but in this instance the chemistry between Patrick O'Malley (Tom Selleck) and Eve (Bess Amtrong) was so endearing (and even funny) that I was hoping for it, and enjoyed it.

The film offers a good dose of humor, action and adventure in equal proportions, and the climatic finale is action-packed and simply put fantastic! I really enjoyed this!

Would I watch it again? Hell, yeah!

I was surprised that this was a 1983 movie because it looks 20 years older - the very classical 1960's style. The plot seemingly collected all cliches of the adventure genre, starting from the very beginning - a young daughter of a rich man hires a drinking war (WWI) hero to find her father in exotic lands, through all dangers they meet (from a cruel barbarian who wants to get the girl to evil German ace) and all the conflicts between themselves. to the final kiss right before the credits in the very end (thanks to the authors. nothing worse than that, no sex scenes which I totally absolutely hate). Still, the girl is not a typical rich spoiled doll, she is brave and she is a good pilot herself - this is probably the most original point in the film. But, while being very classical or trite, whatever term you prefer, the film is really nice, especially for antique aviation fans like me. It's not humorous enough to be a comedy, but not too serious, let alone tragic, as well.

"High Road to China," is a film that is challenging to a 21st century movie reviewer. The troubling issues arise when deciding how to contextualize the film and story devices. Essentially this is an adventure comedy done with very dated sensibilities. As an example of technical skill and cinematography, HRtC meets and occasionally exceeds all of the conventions of early 80's film making. However, the character types and cultural representations are somewhat crude and naïve by current standards.

Essentially, this is a film version of a 1950's style boys adventure novel. HRtC contains the requisite action, foreign locales, dashing characters, and subdued romance. The story is straightforward and focuses more on thrills than on breaking new ground or developing characters. With such a story, the film does require the use of stock characterization and a higher degree of stereotyping. The stereotyping is the single aspect of the film that leads to the most problems. To begin, the main protagonists are quite likable but noticeably hollow. Selleck would have made for a dashing pilot had the script given him more personal exposition and less snide quips. Armstrong plays the plucky dilettante to a tee. Again, her character is never given any dialogue to develop the character beyond a caricature. The second issue regarding stereotyping is the depiction of various Asian cultures. In maintaining a faster pace, any attempt at humanizing the tribal cultures is neglected. The Arabs are misogynistic tyrants. The Nepalese are doe-eyed mystics. The rural Chinese are barely functional in-fighters. While these caricatures do hearken back to pulp adventure novels, current audiences may cringe at such simplistic and imperialistic representations. The effect of these less than stellar characterizations is a film populated by hollow facades rather than relatable human beings.

Even with its faults, HRtC is a very enjoyable film. As mentioned above, the story is simplistic yet engrossing. The action sequences are well done and have a wonderful early 20th century flavor. The cinematography is, at times, breathtakingly beautiful. The score is poignant and expertly coupled with the mood of the scenes. Essentially, this is a highly accomplished film on a technical level that falters in the gross stereotyping and mawkish dialogue. To be sure, HRtC is great entertainment; it is just great mindless entertainment.

On a personal note, I really like this film. The fact that HRtC is a clear Indiana Jones copy in no way detracts from this movie. Steeping myself in high flying adventure from by-gone days is pure nostalgic bliss. I see this film as having great potential as a family film. The movie provides great entertainment and an opportunity to open up discussion on film and cultural representation. I will probably recommend this film to my father, so that we may relive past days and mull over just how correct Said was in "Orientalism." 6.5 of 10 stars.

I am sure that I saw this movie when it was first released to theaters, and I remember liking it. I put it in my Netflix DVD queue on a whim and upon watching it again I wonder what I saw in it before. The storyline has promise, but the production values are poor, and the acting and direction are abysmal. Bess Armstrong and Tom Selleck spend most of their time onscreen yelling at each other stridently, as if trying to outdo each other in a "high, whiny voice" contest, and Wilford Brimley's "Bradley Tozer" comes across as more caricature than character. It's hard to believe that this film was directed by the man who directed "Kelly's Heroes".

The best thing about "High Road to China" is that it does not try to change the world by making a social statement. It does not try to do anything but be an escape for moviegoers. Is it a perfect film? No. But this is one of my favorite films because it does just that - it allows me to escape. This much under-appreciated movie tells an excellent story: a rich brat living in the Roaring 20's hires a flying ace to find her father in a remote part of China. From a cinemagraphic point-of-view, it is a very good-looking film. Bess Armstrong never looked better on screen. And although her character of Eve Tozer is not always believable, I liked her as the rich brat who thinks everything has its price. I was never a Tom Selleck fan, but as Patrick O'Malley, he makes the perfect flying daredevil - a hard drinker who has trouble showing that he has a heart. The late Jack Weston, who was one of the better character actors of our modern times, is perfectly cast as the sidekick mechanic Struts. And the late Robert Morley provides good comic relief in the midst of being the heavy.

The movie simply looks good with its gorgeous locations and colors. The flying sequences - especially the dogfight between O'Malley and the German ace (complete with references to the famous Red Baron) is first-rate, and the battle scenes are shot very well. The pace of the film is not always even, but one sequence after another has our protagonists in some dire predicament. And it is fun watching them try and get out of each one. It should have done better at the box office, for the film is still a favorite of cable movie channels and people who discover it on video for the first time. I would recommend this film to anyone, because it is simply a little gem and a wonderful film for movie buffs who wish to escape.

I say that because most of the movie was filmed there and it looked like it was there, not in the countries it was supposed to be in, which did not look good.

Apparently this film was mooted before Raiders of The Lost Ark and other Adventure films of that nature, but production was late so it did not get completed until after that and others, and that's the problem, because all the good money went into Raiders and this can't have had much since it was made on the cheap, if it had gone into production earlier we might have had a different situation ? But that's the way the cookie crumbles sometimes.

What was then Yugoslavia seemed to be a popular destination for movie makers in this period as quite a few were made there, not without merit as the scenery is beautiful, however it does not look like Afghanistan, India, Nepal and China, in fact nothing like Nepal and China. So not a good base.

The acting was poor, Tom Selleck plays himself as the Airman Adventurer, he's Ok but not great, no acting required, Bess Armstrong looked the part but can't act, she plays a spoilt upper class English woman, but not very well, she sometimes breaks into her american accent, she's from Baltimore, Maryland. Jack Weston was the best, at least he can act but did not do much here, Wilford Brimley, another american playing an Englishman, is also a good actor, but not here, he does not even try to hide his accent. They can't have been offered enough money. The supporting cast and extras were ok to a point, we did actually get some Indians playing Indians and some Chinese playing Chinese, but several were westerners, including the Chinese Warlord who, despite being part Chinese but mostly Brazilian (born in Guyana) looked like he had too much make-up on. They had recruited a pretty good cast apart from the ones mentioned, there was also Robert Morley, Brian Blessed (a very dodgy looking Afghan), Michael Sheard, Lynda la Plante, Timothy Carlton, Dino Shafeek, Peter Llewellyn Williams, Ric Young and Robert Lee, all good support/character actors who were either underused or not putting much effort in.

The direction was not great, photography was ok but wrong scenery, the music average and many many mistakes, plot holes and missing dialogue, they must have done extensive editing. Like I said, made on the cheap and it looks it. I gave it a 5 because of the story which was good (until it was butchered in editing), the planes and for Tom Selleck who looked the part and I liked the character.

Perhaps this is a good project for a re-make (which is all the rage these days since no one will put money into an original idea), using the correct locations and with a Director who can get the most out of the scenery and the cast. I notice that most re-makes are of films that are already well rated, and the re-make is not up to the same standard, I think this is erroneous, if they do a re-make it should be of a poor film that had a great story, like this one, that way it should be better and be well received, what do you think ?

Given Tom Selleck, Bess Armstrong, Wilford Brimley, Robert Morley, Brian Blessed, and Jack Weston, and a bunch of excellent aerial action scenes, this is a terrific film. So what if there isn't a great message, or outstanding drama. For what this is... a comedy-adventure... it's great. Tom and Bess have always been extremely watchable to me, and they continue that tradition here. A solid 9.

Brian G. Hutton's "High Road To China" is a classic example of good old fashioned chemistry. Lost-generation flapper hires boozy WW-I flying ace to help find her father, lost somewhere in China, to avoid losing her inheritance. You just know that they will eventually get together, and plenty of facial expressions and body language promise an ending that eventually delivers. Some great scenery and flying scenes, and burly he-manning from Brian Blessed, keep you in stitches. If this had been filmed in black and white in the 40s, it would have been up there with Casablanca, et al. Lots of low-expectation fun.

Gorgeous cinematography and gorgeous Tom Selleck are the highlights of High Road to China, Selleck's recompense for missing out on Raiders of the Lost Ark. Alas the film doesn't make up for that loss.

Directed by Brian Hutton, the story concerns a drunken pilot, Patrick O'Malley, who is hired by heiress Eve Tozer (Bess Armstrong) to find her missing father. Her father's business partner Bentik (Robert Morley) is attempting to have her father, missing for years, declared dead so he can seize her assets.

O'Malley was a World War I ace pilot. He has two biplanes. At first he refuses to help, but takes her offer when he realizes she is an excellent pilot herself.

Eve's father was last seen in Asia. They encounter Suleman Khan (Brian Blessed), an Afghani warlord, who had her father, but he escaped. They travel to Nepal, but Bentik is on their trail.

This is a mildly pleasant, old-fashioned type adventure that could have done with a better script. Eve and Patrick ultimately fall in love, but most of the time they're fighting. When I see Tom, especially back then, I want more romance than this film provides.

Sadly this could have easily been made for TV. It is beautiful to look at, and the planes, named for Lillian and Dorothy Gish, are very impressive. Selleck and Armstrong have good chemistry. Some trivia: This was originally a project for Bo Derek. I saw the original proposal.

A few years after having to miss out on the plum starring role in "Raiders of the Lost Ark", TV star Tom Selleck made his official feature-film starring debut here. He plays Patrick O'Malley, a WWI veteran hired by heiress Eve Tozer (Bess Armstrong) to find her missing father. If she can't bring him back to England by a certain date, she loses out on her inheritance.

Sparks are destined to fly between the two leads, as they both have their flaws: he's become a surly drunk, and she's a strident, stuck-up brat. But, as the characters become more endearing (to us and to each other), we know that romance will be in the air.

The working definition of an old-fashioned adventure (with practical stunts & special effects), this was directed by Brian G. Hutton, who made such pictures as "Where Eagles Dare" and "Kelly's Heroes". While it's not on the level of the aforementioned "Raiders", it shows the audience a pretty good time. It's LOUD, action-packed, and lively, and Selleck & Armstrong play off each other quite well.

They receive strong support from Jack Weston, as O'Malley's mechanic / sidekick "Struts", Wilford Brimley, who appears late in the film as the missing father, the always superbly hammy Brian Blessed, and the enticing Cassandra Gava. Robert Morley plays his scheming villain entirely for laughs, with Timothy Bateson as his sniveling toady. In small roles you'll see Michael Sheard, Ric Young, and Wolf Kahler (the latter, of course, was the boss German Dietrich in "Raiders").

Overall, "High Road to China" is decent fun for people looking for some globe-trotting escapism.

Seven out of 10.

This is one of the best adventure films I've ever seen. Tom Selleck and Bess Armstrong are great and Jack Weston as Struts is hillarious.

It has some great scenes of the planes flying across country. And John Barry's music is excellent.

The story is simple: Rich woman (Armstrong) hires drunken pilot (Selleck) to fly her to China to find her missing father.

Meanwhile, people are trying to have her killed, and each stop they make along the way allows for a sideline adventure.

All in all, one of my favourite films, and a rare treat of a movie. They don't them like this any more. I wish it were available on DVD!

Okay, giving this film a 7/10 might be being overly generous. The writing is substandard, the acting is over the edge, and the plot is .. well, there really isn't any plot to speak of.

But still, I enjoyed this film immensely. Bess Armstrong is a babe(!) and Tom Selleck is his usual wonderful self. Selleck typically acts like Selleck (much like John Wayne always acted like John Wayne and Cary Grant always acted like Cary Grant). But the fact is, I happen to like how Selleck acts. He always has the slightly-evil smirk that makes you stand back just a bit.

Bess Armstrong is the only one that keeps the film from dying on its feet. She was a rising star when she did this movie and it always amazed me that she didn't do better afterwards. Bad manager I suppose.

Anyway, the movie has its moments and if you don't mind the obvious high-school-like plot and bad costumes, you'll enjoy it also!

Today, when I bought a consumer DVD recorder, and went through a stack of 300+ laserdiscs to dub some not-available-on-DVD-yet films for a very long flight to London tomorrow, this was the second disc I dubbed (Grand Prix was the first) and realized just how perfect a movie this remains, even after 20 years. First off, the John Barry score is first-rate; as someone else mentioned, the master took the easy way out and simply revised it for Out of Africa a few years later (and it works as well there as it does here).

I'm not sure what defines screen chemistry, but Selleck and Armstrong (one of my all-time favorite actresses) have it here. While there is conflict between their characters, it seems apparent to me that they are having a good time acting out this tightly scripted adventure/fantasy. The underlying sexual tension (again as someone else noted there's zero nudity here) between the two is palpable.

The aerial sequences stand up well over time; certainly better than the computer-generated crap that looks so fake (like Pearl Harbor) that passes for special effects today, will look in 2020.

While image quality of the laserdisc is certainly better than VHS, it falls short of what we've come to expect today, 10 years into the DVD era. Why this film hasn't made it into the 5-inch medium, with a cleaned up Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack (to better showcase the John Barry score), is beyond me.

When one sees the utter dreck that is released today, scraping the bottom of the film vault barrel, it amazes me to wonder why this neglected gem sits in a vault somewhere. As there are no true A-list stars in this film filled with wonderful performances, why Warner Brothers, has this not been given a full bore DVD release? I wonder if it's available in some market outside of North America.

Clocking-in at a bit less than two hours, this is a movie in the mold of similar films produced in the immediate post-WWII era. I think that when I watch it on the plane Sunday, I might even watch it in black and white.

A great reason to keep you laserdisc player, watch auctions on eBay for this to pop up on LD and to buy a DVD recorder as this is a movie you can watch over and over and enjoy it each time.

Shame on you Warner Brothers for not putting it out on DVD.

Upon its release, 1983's "High road to China" was considered a cheap imitation of "Raiders of the Lost Ark ". While some elements are there, the cast's commendable effort and the engaging plot make for a film with its own special character.

During the First World War, a wealthy socialite (Bess Armstrong) finds herself in an utterly threatening position. Her father, the head of a powerful business, has disappeared, and if she doesn't find him in the space of twelve days, the enterprise will be passed onto his partner. She finds the solution to this problem in the face of the flying ace O'Malley (Tom Selleck), a drunkard, irritable man, and his naive sidekick. This incredible trio of adventurers set off for a trip to deep Asia, that will bring them, in the end, to the war-torn China.

While the plot brings at a relatively slow pace, as soon as the trip starts, it accelerates, like the speed of Selleck's biplane. From British Afghanistan they will travel to the Asian steppe and , of course to China. Through a mix of crazy situations - in one scene, the heroes are chased by some henchmen of the evil businessman while they try to get the plane off the ground - and convincing performances.

Speaking of which, the actors were the ones that transformed the film from a failed adventure story to an engaging feature. Selleck, in his first major role, was extremely enjoyable to see as the distant, selfish hero, and his pairing with Armstrong rendered the film both romantic and comedic, due to their contradictory personalities.

Adventure is not the primary quality of this film. This is a movie balancing comedy and romance, with a healthy dose of toned-down action. The reason why it succeeds as a film is the director's skill at combining these different genres into a story that not only makes sense, but is appealing too. Without bordering on the absurd, the comedy mostly stems from the neurotic nature of the two protagonists.

"High road to China" does have faults; in spite of its enjoyable plot, the film feels a bit long-winded in some scenes, while the sequences involving a Mongol leader could be considered off the mark at best, offensive at worst. The way that this culture is represented feels out of place in an otherwise innocent movie, perfect for family entertainment.

The reason I used that last characterisation was because the film doesn't come off as a serious aventure feature à la "Raiders of the Lost Ark", but rather as a comedy with adventure elements. Its seriousness exists only on the surface, quickly replaced by humour and a little absurdity.

For all that, the total result is one of a film that wanted to be a critically acclaimed feature, inspired by "Raiders of the Lost Ark", but missed the mark. Still, it successfully transformed itself to a commercial romantic comedy, where adventure is only the pretense. The heroes found their (cinematic) purpose, even if they needed to go all the way to China in order to do so.