Great visuals, story delivers no surprises

Best movie of this year hands down!

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

There's terrific pretty much everything in this exotic film noir where Robert Mitchum does detective work, Jane Russell does vocal work, and William Bendix does wisecrack work. Unfortunately, you get to know as much about quiet Mitchum that you do about the fiery Jane and the bombastic Bill. This is mostly set on a cruiser from Hong Kong to Macao where Mitchum tries to break up a crime ring and finds all sorts of trouble along the way. Exotic settings and non stop action don't really create a fleshed out plot, and for the three stars (and a decent supporting cast), it's a disappointing entry in the career of the legendary Josef Von Sternberg. There are many great moments, but moments do not add up to a great film no matter how exciting they are. Highlights include Russell singing several songs (most notably "One For My Baby") and Mitchum playing cat and mouse with the bad guys. Gloria Grahame has a truly pointless supporting role, coming in a very busy year for her, but she's not even substantial to the story even with prominent billing. The performances are all decent, but there's little history or motivation given to their characters which is the real reason I consider this one a let down. Considering the time that this was made at RKO, it's obvious that scripts were being rushed out with little regards to detail, and this suffers from being a complete missed opportunity.

From the late forties to the early fifties Robert Mitchum appeared to spend all his time in semi-exotic locales with either Jane Greer or Jane Russell thrown into the mix. As often as not he was down-on-his- luck, an adventurer, or both and all the movies were produced at RKO by owner Howard Hughes. This is really no better or worse than The Big Steal, His Kind Of Woman or any of the others although buffs will recognize the cluttered set signature style of Joseph Von Sternberg who was hired then fired by Hughes so that the movie was completed by Nicholas Ray, then in the process of divorcing Gloria Grahame, who was just along for the ride as the girl friend of Brad Dexter, who owns the largest casino in Macao but, like Pepe le Moko, can't go home again. It's a pleasant enough time-passer and Russell gets to slaughter One For My Baby, what's not to like.

Macao is a paradise to outlaws since there is no extradition from this country. The former soldier Nick Cochran (Robert Mitchum) that had a problem with the New York police; the cynical and experienced singer Julie Benson (Jane Russell) and the salesman Lawrence C. Trumble (William Bendix) travel by ship and arrive at the port of Macao. Julie pickpockets Nick 's wallet and he loses his money and documents. On the arrival, the corrupt Police Lieutenant Sebastian (Thomas Gomez) has the information that an undercover detective from New York is on board of the vessel and he believes that he is Nick Cochran. He discloses the information to the crime lord Vincent Halloran (Brad Dexter) that owns a casino and Halloran believes that Nick has the intention of taking him into international waters so that he can be arrested. Halloran hires Julie and tries to bribe Nick to leave Macao, but Nick and Julie feel attracted to each other and Nick has no intention to travel to Hong-Kong. When Trumble offers a deal to Nick with a diamond necklace, Nick shows a diamond from the necklace to Halloran and he concludes that Nick is really an undercover cop and sends his henchman to capture him. Who might be Trumble?"Macao" is an entertaining adventure with a non-original story. The screenplay is weak, with a rushed conclusion, and the characters are poorly developed. The greatest attractions are the always great Robert Mitchum and the sultry Jane Russell that makes it worthwhile watching. My vote is six.Title (Brazil): "Macao"

It seems odd for a film noir to be set on a small peninsula off the coast of China, but 'Macao (1952)' nonetheless fits the bill, in a similar vein to Howard Hawks' 'To Have and Have Not (1944).' Robert Mitchum wanders in off a ferry, looking as weary as always, and is immediately suspected by the city's resident American crime boss (Brad Dexter) to be a dangerous detective from the States. Cochran, actually a vagrant fugitive traversing the globe, accepts these accusations without batting an eyelid, thus joining the ranks of film noir "innocents" who find themselves unwittingly entangled in a messy affair in which they have no rightful business. Meanwhile, Jane Russell, with a spiteful glare that suggests utter contempt for anything that moves, works hard to avoid falling for Cochran; but on whom the sultry singer will ultimately bestow her affection is never in doubt. This film was made purely to bring together its two big stars again, but fortunately it also works as a exotic adventure thriller.According to the opening credits, 'Macao' was directed by Josef von Sternberg. In actuality, producer Howard Hughes dismissed Sternberg before production wrapped up, and so the film was completed by an uncredited Nicholas Ray. Audiences have always loved to see their favourite stars dispatched to exotic locations – however short distance they were required to travel from the studio back-lot – and the obscure Asian peninsula of Macao adds a spark of Oriental charm to an already-outlandish locale. This is a city where dangerous criminals take sanctuary and open seedy gambling joints, where mysterious Asian henchmen kill their victims with knives rather than guns. Normal societal formalities hold no sway here: Mitchum gets a luscious kiss out of his leading lady within a minute of their meeting, and, incidentally, she gets his wallet. That the screenplay is completely predictable becomes irrelevant next to the strong characterisations and seedy, mysterious atmosphere. This being my first Sternberg film, I'm unsure of his particular directing style, but the dark foot-chases along the sleazy Macao docks struck me as being characteristic of Nicholas Ray's work.Though Mitchum and Russell carry the film pretty well – and, indeed, are the only reason for the film's existence – an unfortunately-underused supporting cast also does a good job. William Bendix, playing a likable character for once, is a friendly travelling salesman to whom there may be more than meets the eye. Brad Dexter is serviceable as the primary villain, but he's not particularly sinister or intimidating, and his spur-of-the-moment decision to leave the Three-Mile Limit, especially after learning of a plot to capture him, seems utterly contrived. Gloria Grahame (Ray's then-wife, though not for much longer) has a disappointingly-brief role as the villain's shunted lover; early in the film, she and Russell exchange glares than communicate pure mutual contempt. Overall, despite an all-too-familiar storyline, the Oriental-flavoured setting and enjoyable performances make for a film with a fair amount of suspense and intrigue, with just enough laconic humour to keep the story moving along nicely {Mitchum himself reportedly wrote a few scenes to bridge the otherwise-muddled screenplay}. If this one ever comes up on the TV schedule, it's worth a gander.