Call Me Bwana
Bob Hope, Anita Ekberg, Edie Adams
Directed by Gordon Douglas
Originally released 1963
MGM 2011
Call Me Bwana is a fun Bob Hope comedy now available as an on demand DVD in the MGM Limited Edition Collection. Like all Bob Home movies, Call Me Bwana features travel to a strange land, lots of quips and bon mots, and quite a few silly scenes. The print used for this widescreen DVD transfer is quite good aside from one 3 second moment early on after Anita Ekberg gets off the plane.
Bob Hope plays famous explorer Matt Merriwether. When a space capsule lands in darkest Africa in Ekele territory the U.S. government calls on Ekele expert Merriwether to go to Africa and retrieve the capsule. Problem is Matt Merriwether is has never strayed further than Central Park and all this books are based on the diaries of his great uncle.
Merriwether is accompanied by a CIA agent (Edie Adams), a luscious Russian spy (Anita Ekberg) and her supposed pastor father. After a few silly and quite funny moments such as coming across golfer Arnold Palmer (Arnold Palmer) and playing a bit of golf, and after a few bad attempts on his life, one of which is right out of Dr. No –the movie is produced by Bond producer Albert Broccoli—the explorer finds the capsule.
The rest is a less entertaining rush to the finish that oddly enough foreshadows a couple of later Bond endings including Moonraker.
Call Me Bwana starring Bob Hope is one of the more entertaining titles in the MGM Limited Edition Collection.
Body Slam – MGM Limited Edition Collection