The Wayward Bus

You hear so little about this film although it was taken from a well received John Steinbeck novel which I understand had to be cleaned up for the screen version. Of course in today's world there's nothing particularly shocking about any of the unruly passengers as they get detoured on a rundown bus making a short trip through California.

RICK JASON is the ruggedly handsome driver (whatever happened to him?), JOAN COLLINS is his unhappy wife tipping the bottle, JAYNE MANSFIELD is a showgirl riding to her next strip assignment, DAN DAILEY is a stock character as a traveling salesman with an eye for a pretty girl, and others are strictly cardboard creations.

But it's strikingly photographed in B&W and CinemaScope, briskly directed by Victor Vikas (who won a directing award for this at the Berlin Film Festival), and not as bad as it might seem for all of its obscurity in the realm of classic films.

Probably lacks the punch of the Steinbeck novel in transferring his characters to the screen in accordance with the code of the '50s.

You would expect a total bitchfest with a movie starring both legendary bombshell Jayne Mansfield and soap opera diva Joan Collins....but what you get is a fascinating film based on the John Steinbeck novel of a bus driver and his passengers and their adventures as they get detoured and sidetracked...both on the bus and in life. Joan Collins is the wife of driver Rick Jason (so gorgeous). It's a small and run down little bus that makes side trips. Joan Collins is the owner of a little restaurant who likes the bottle a bit too much. Unhappy with what has become of her life, she decides to "surprise" husband Jason mid-way through his bus trip. Jayne Mansfield is the shamed burlesque dancer on the way to a heavy paying gig in San Juan and gets caught up in the flirtation by a traveling salesman, played by Dan Dailey. Delores Pritchard gives a great performance as the "fast" daughter traveling with her parents on this trip. Also noteworthy is Betty Lou Keim who plays Norma. A really good ensemble piece that deserves a remastered DVD version.

Concentrating on America only 1957 was a good year for films that were mainstream and yet took on adult issues. ' No Down Payment ', ' The Bachelor Party ', ' Monkey on My Back ' and a ' A Hatful of Rain ' are a few well worth tracking down, and from the Sci-Fi horror movie field there were many delights, and the threat of the Atomic Bomb underlined a lot of them. It seemed like the year people expected to see issues outside the norm. ' The Wayward Bus ' almost ranks among the above mentioned. It could have gone further as the Steinbeck work does, but remains a little timid towards what it had on its hands. Despite that Jayne Mansfield shows that she could overcome being a stereotype if given the chance and Joan Collins manages to look ordinary and both act better than in other films I have seen them in. Rick Jason looked like a contender for being better known but somehow ( he had the looks ) drifted into television. Dan Daily acts the serious buffoon, and the chemistry was not quite there with Mansfield as a ' love ' partner. As for the direction it looks fairly good enhanced by sharp black and white Cinemascope and the action scenes ( especially with the bus on the collapsing bridge ) are well done. I could watch it again quite easily and I think it deserves an 8 for nearly being that adult film it should have been. But only please watch it in Cinemascope because in pan and scan it looks dull and a lot of available copies of it around are not in Cinemascope.

"Johnny Chicoy" (Rick Jason) owns a run-down bus which operates on a route from Rebel Corners, California to San Juan, Mexico. His wife, "Alice Chicoy" (Joan Collins) runs the small bus stop and and they have two young employees named "Norma" (Betty Lou Keim) and "Ed 'Pimples' Carson" (Dee Pollock) who help them out. Although Johnny and Alice love one another the problem is that Alice is an alcoholic who is insanely jealous of other women and mistreats both Norma and Ed rather badly as well. In any case, after a heated argument Norma decides to quit and gets on the bus to San Juan with some other passengers which includes several rather unusual characters. Although the actual bus ride isn't very long, what none of the people count on is the weather taking a severe turn for the worse which subsequently results in some life-changing decisions for all them. Now from what I understand, this film was based on the book of the same title written by John Steinbeck with a few changes here and there to accommodate a motion picture audience. Likewise, it was also being used to showcase the talents of Jayne Mansfield (as the stripper "Camille Oakes") who had only recently come into prominence as one of Hollywood's leading sex symbols. Be that as it may, what I liked in particular about this movie was the depth of the characters and the manner in which all of the actors played their parts. Additionally, there were a couple of suspenseful scenes which were also quite entertaining as well. That being said, although it is certainly dated, I enjoyed this movie and have rated it accordingly. Above average.

I have often liked this film with Joan Collins as the bus stop café owner whose wandering husband-bus driver, Rick Jason, takes a group of oddly matched tourists on a rugged journey south down a storm flooded road. There is quite a bit of gripping suspense as Chicoy (Jason) manages to pull the bus across a flooded river before the bridge collapses. Also, it has some romantic surprises while the passengers are stranded from their bus as Chicoy searches a barn for a tractor he can use as a tow. Jayne Mansfield does quite well as a cynical bubble dancer trying to conceal her trade. Someone should do a remake of this movie.