Honeymoon in Bali

I bought the movie at K-Mart myself, watched it and thought oh boy, black and white. I sat through the entire movie, went and got some popcorn and coke and watched it again. No "T & A", no fould words, no super suggestive scenes. Just a cute, wonderful, and decent movie. My daughter, age 17, came home and she watched it and liked it. simple, but fun to watch.

I have just finished watching the DVD Version of "Honeymoon In Bali" and must say that it is really good. The DVD Version was released by Passion Productions. Fred MacMurray and Madeleine Carroll, was just wonderful. anyone wishing a little romance in their lives should really enjoy this movie.

"Honeymoon in Bali" is a sweet romance that has inexplicably fallen into the public domain. Often, public domain films suck--but this one is far from sucky.

The film is about a nice guy who has returned to the States to visit, though Bill (Fred MacMurray) lives in Bali (that's a very large island in Indonesia, if you care). After having a fortune teller inform her she'd meet someone, Gail (Madeline Carroll)--a high-powered career woman. The two kind of hit it off, but Gail isn't convinced that Bill is the man the fortune teller told her about...after all, he is moving back to Bali and she has her career. She also has a boyfriend already, and Eric (Allan Jones) seems like a very nice guy. However, when Gail meets Bill's young ward (Rosie, played by Carolyn Lee), her heart is captured. But how can Gail have Bill and Rosie in her life? After all, they're returning to Bali and she has her career...as well as Eric.

The scenes between MacMurray and Carroll were very nice and they worked well together. However, the scenes between Carroll and young Lee were magical. Lee was perfect--adorable, but not too much and seemed very natural. I do wonder why she only had a few screen credits. Regardless, due to a nice story, very good dialog and some nice characters (Eric is exceptionally sweet), the film is just fun and a decent date film. Well worth seeing and available on YouTube and most likely also from archive.org since it's a public domain film.

What an enjoyable piece of fluff. Though I'd say it was a bit more than a piece of fluff, really, as there is subtlety galore, and philosophy, and irreverence and some macabre/screwball humour when the love rival for Fred MacMurray says in an offhand way that she'd attempted suicide but then got married, but then found it hard to be sad when her husband was killed playing polo... That kind of humour would raise eyebrows even today! Alan Jones sings his manly heart out while wearing a pencil moustache, and Madeleine Carroll says some very clever and deep things about the nature of female independence. You can tell that the actress really thought these lines were quite wise and put a lot of feeling into them, even though the film is at pains to prove the opposite view. Likewise subtle is the fact that MacMurray is a bit of a cad, not a straightforward hero. I actually hated him for a good few minutes. The small roles are played with great skill and elan, particularly the fortune teller with her blithe, witty delivery and of course Window-cleaner philosopher Akim Tamiroff, whom I ended up applauding out loud for his sheer verve, and the comedy and character he packs into each gesture. The fly in the ointment, to this cow-poke anyway, is the truly cringeworthy little girl. Ugh! You can just see her pushy mother urging her on to become the next Shirley Temple. Sorry dear, that requires talent, not just a shrill voice and a pudgy face.

What a jewel to find! I bought a DVD for $1 to get a Cary Grant film, and this movie was included under the name "My Love for Yours." "Honeymoon in Bali" is a much better title. We watched it twice - the scene with the fortune teller is such fun when you know how the story line goes. Carolyn Lee as the little girl steals every scene she is in. For those of us who grew up with Fred MacMurray and "My Three Sons," this movie is a real surprise. MacMurray plays a wonderful romantic lead. The cameo appearance by Akim Tamiroff is a perfect bookend for the beginning and end of the film. The singing telegram boy is another classic moment. A film worth watching!