High Road to China
Encyclopedia
High Road to China is a 1983 adventure-comedy film, set in the 1920s, starring Tom Selleck
as a hard-drinking biplane
pilot hired by society heiress Eve 'Evie' Tozer (Bess Armstrong
) to find her missing father (Wilford Brimley
). The supporting cast includes Robert Morley
and Brian Blessed
. The Golden Harvest
film (released by Warner Bros.
) was directed by Brian G. Hutton
, very loosely based on a novel
by Australian author
Jon Cleary
. The musical score was composed by John Barry
. It was the 27th highest grossing film of 1983, bringing in $28,445,927 at the domestic box office
.
living the high-life in 1920s Istanbul
. She needs to find her father (Wilford Brimley) before he is officially declared dead or risk losing her inheritance to his scheming partner Bentik (Robert Morley). She hires WWI ace-pilot Patrick O'Malley (Tom Selleck) and his planes to locate her father. O'Malley is eager to take the job as he needs to leave town rather urgently himself. However, Eve, also an accomplished pilot, is determined to accompany him in his other aircraft, which causes the first of many arguments between London and China.
Their journey in two biplanes (named Dorothy
and Lillian
) through six countries leads them to finally find the eccentric Bradley Tozer in China
, where he is helping a small village to fight against an invading warlord. O'Malley and Eve help them to win the final battle, but Eve's father refuses to return with her to London.
". Rumor has it that it was "given" to Selleck as a sort of consolation prize for having to pass on "Raiders of the Lost Ark" due to scheduling conflicts with Magnum, P.I.
In early development, this film was slated to star Roger Moore
and Bo Derek
.
Tom Selleck
Thomas William "Tom" Selleck is an American actor, and film producer. He is best known for his starring role as Hawaii-based private investigator Thomas Magnum on the 1980s television show Magnum, P.I.. He also plays Police Chief Jesse Stone in a series of made-for-TV movies based on the Robert B....
as a hard-drinking biplane
Biplane
A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two superimposed main wings. The Wright brothers' Wright Flyer used a biplane design, as did most aircraft in the early years of aviation. While a biplane wing structure has a structural advantage, it produces more drag than a similar monoplane wing...
pilot hired by society heiress Eve 'Evie' Tozer (Bess Armstrong
Bess Armstrong
Elizabeth Key "Bess" Armstrong is an American film and television actress.-Life and career:Armstrong was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the daughter of Louise Allen , who taught at Bryn Mawr, and Alexander Armstrong, an English teacher at the Gilman School...
) to find her missing father (Wilford Brimley
Wilford Brimley
Allen Wilford Brimley is an American actor. He has appeared in such films as The China Syndrome, Cocoon, The Thing and The Firm. He had a recurring role on the 1970s television series The Waltons...
). The supporting cast includes Robert Morley
Robert Morley
Robert Adolph Wilton Morley, CBE was an English actor who, often in supporting roles, was usually cast as a pompous English gentleman representing the Establishment...
and Brian Blessed
Brian Blessed
Brian Blessed is an English actor, known for his sonorous voice and "hearty, king-sized portrayals".-Early life:The son of William Blessed, a socialist miner, and Hilda Wall, Blessed was born in the town of Goldthorpe, West Riding of Yorkshire, England...
. The Golden Harvest
Golden Harvest
Golden Harvest is a film production, distribution, and exhibition company based in Hong Kong. It played a major role in becoming the first Chinese film company to successfully enter the western market for an extended period of time, especially with the films of Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan...
film (released by Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
) was directed by Brian G. Hutton
Brian G. Hutton
Brian G. Hutton is a film director whose most notable credit is for the 1970 action classic Kelly's Heroes.-Filmography:*Wild Seed *The Pad and How to Use It *Sol Madrid...
, very loosely based on a novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by Australian author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
Jon Cleary
Jon Cleary
Jon Stephen Cleary was an Australian author.-Biography:Cleary was born in Erskineville, Sydney. He wrote many books, among them The Sundowners , a portrait of a rural family in the 1920s as they move from one job to the next, and The High Commissioner , the first of a long series of popular...
. The musical score was composed by John Barry
John Barry (composer)
John Barry Prendergast, OBE was an English conductor and composer of film music. He is best known for composing the soundtracks for 12 of the James Bond films between 1962 and 1987...
. It was the 27th highest grossing film of 1983, bringing in $28,445,927 at the domestic box office
Box office
A box office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through an unblocked hole through a wall or window, or at a wicket....
.
Cast
- Tom SelleckTom SelleckThomas William "Tom" Selleck is an American actor, and film producer. He is best known for his starring role as Hawaii-based private investigator Thomas Magnum on the 1980s television show Magnum, P.I.. He also plays Police Chief Jesse Stone in a series of made-for-TV movies based on the Robert B....
as Patrick O'Malley - Bess ArmstrongBess ArmstrongElizabeth Key "Bess" Armstrong is an American film and television actress.-Life and career:Armstrong was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the daughter of Louise Allen , who taught at Bryn Mawr, and Alexander Armstrong, an English teacher at the Gilman School...
as Eve 'Evie' Tozer - Jack Weston as Struts
- Wilford BrimleyWilford BrimleyAllen Wilford Brimley is an American actor. He has appeared in such films as The China Syndrome, Cocoon, The Thing and The Firm. He had a recurring role on the 1970s television series The Waltons...
as Bradley Tozer - Robert MorleyRobert MorleyRobert Adolph Wilton Morley, CBE was an English actor who, often in supporting roles, was usually cast as a pompous English gentleman representing the Establishment...
as Bentik - Brian BlessedBrian BlessedBrian Blessed is an English actor, known for his sonorous voice and "hearty, king-sized portrayals".-Early life:The son of William Blessed, a socialist miner, and Hilda Wall, Blessed was born in the town of Goldthorpe, West Riding of Yorkshire, England...
as Suleman Khan
Plot
Eve Tozer (Bess Armstrong) is a society heiress and flapperFlapper
Flapper in the 1920s was a term applied to a "new breed" of young Western women who wore short skirts, bobbed their hair, listened to jazz, and flaunted their disdain for what was then considered acceptable behavior...
living the high-life in 1920s Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
. She needs to find her father (Wilford Brimley) before he is officially declared dead or risk losing her inheritance to his scheming partner Bentik (Robert Morley). She hires WWI ace-pilot Patrick O'Malley (Tom Selleck) and his planes to locate her father. O'Malley is eager to take the job as he needs to leave town rather urgently himself. However, Eve, also an accomplished pilot, is determined to accompany him in his other aircraft, which causes the first of many arguments between London and China.
Their journey in two biplanes (named Dorothy
Dorothy Gish
Dorothy Elizabeth Gish was an American actress, and the younger sister of actress Lillian Gish.-Early life:...
and Lillian
Lillian Gish
Lillian Diana Gish was an American stage, screen and television actress whose film acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912 to 1987....
) through six countries leads them to finally find the eccentric Bradley Tozer in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, where he is helping a small village to fight against an invading warlord. O'Malley and Eve help them to win the final battle, but Eve's father refuses to return with her to London.
Production
The film is regarded as one of the better imitators that populated movie theaters in the years following "Raiders of the Lost ArkRaiders of the Lost Ark
Raiders of the Lost Ark is a 1981 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, produced by George Lucas, and starring Harrison Ford. It is the first film in the Indiana Jones franchise...
". Rumor has it that it was "given" to Selleck as a sort of consolation prize for having to pass on "Raiders of the Lost Ark" due to scheduling conflicts with Magnum, P.I.
Magnum, P.I.
Magnum, P.I. is an American television series starring Tom Selleck as Thomas Magnum, a private investigator living on Oahu, Hawaii. The series ran from 1980 to 1988 in first-run broadcast on the American CBS television network....
In early development, this film was slated to star Roger Moore
Roger Moore
Sir Roger George Moore KBE , is an English actor, perhaps best known for portraying British secret agent James Bond in seven films from 1973 to 1985. He also portrayed Simon Templar in the long-running British television series The Saint.-Early life:Moore was born in Stockwell, London...
and Bo Derek
Bo Derek
Mary Cathleen Collins , better known as Bo Derek, is an American film and television actress, model, and sex symbol, known for her role as Jenny Hanley in the 1979 comedy film 10. However, Derek's film career soon faltered; her later films, including, Bolero and Ghosts Can't Do It , were poorly...
.