They Met in Bombay

1941
Approved
1h 32m

IMDb RATING

6.6/10

1.4K

YOUR RATING

Clark Gable and Rosalind Russell in They Met in Bombay (1941)

Play trailer2:51

1 Video

14 Photos

Globetrotting Adventure Heist Adventure Comedy Crime Drama Romance War

A jewel thief and a con artist are rivals in the theft of a valuable gem as the Japanese army invades China.A jewel thief and a con artist are rivals in the theft of a valuable gem as the Japanese army invades China.A jewel thief and a con artist are rivals in the theft of a valuable gem as the Japanese army invades China.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.6/10

1.4K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Hotel Manager
(as Edward Ciannelli)

Luis Alberni

Maitre d'hotel

Rosina Galli

Carmencita

Jay Novello

Bolo

Keye Luke

Mr. Toy
(scenes deleted)

Philip Ahn

Japanese Officer
(uncredited)

Philson Ahn

Japanese Radio Man
(uncredited)

Ernie Alexander

Sailor
(uncredited)

Harry Allen

Soldier in Saloon
(uncredited)

Jimmy Aubrey

Soldier in Saloon
(uncredited)

Rama Bai

Restaurant Patron
(uncredited)

William A. Boardway

Officer
(uncredited)

Storyline

Edit

Did you know

Edit

Trivia
At the beginning of the movie, a friend of Gerald Meldrick is making an imitation of the Star of Asia. The film doesn't say what kind of gem it is, but there is a real Star of Asia. It's a 330-carat star sapphire. It is in the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. The deep blue gem was mined in Burma (modern Myanmar) and is said to have belonged to the Maharajah of Jodhpur at one time. An even larger blue sapphire is the Star of India. The 563-carat gem is one of the largest of its kind in the world. It has a colorful history that includes being heisted in 1964 from the American Museum of Natural History in New York. The unusual stone, with stars on both sides, was recovered the following year. It was mined in Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon) around the year 1600, but much of its past before the 20th century is clouded.

Goofs
When the Japanese soldiers confront Meldrick in the town square and, again, when the Japanese set an ambush on the road, they are wearing German "coal scuttle" helmets. In fact, contemporary photographs of the Japanese Army in China (e.g., during the Rape of Nanking) show Japanese soldiers with German army "coal scuttle" helmets, which, obviously, were purchased from Nazi Germany.

Quotes
Gerald Meldrick: It's my duty to arrest you... but how can a man put handcuffs on moonlight?

Connections
Featured in Clark Gable: Tall, Dark and Handsome (1996)

Soundtracks
On the Road to Mandalay
(uncredited)
Music by Oley Speaks
Lyrics by Rudyard Kipling
Played several times as part of the score

User reviews21

Review

Featured review

6/10

fun pairing in odd war movie

Gerald Meldrick (Clark Gable) is a wanted jewel thief. He arrives in Bombay to steal the Star of Asia from the Duchess of Beltravers. Unbeknownst to him, con woman Anya Von Duren (Rosalind Russell) has the same idea. The two thieves quickly figure each other out. They compete and end up together. After both stealing the gem at different times, they escape the authorities on board Captain Chang (Peter Lorre)'s ship to Hong Kong. They arrive with war looming over the horizon.

The first half is a fun little screw-ball caper. I like both Gable and Russell having fun with the characters and each other. It's loads of fun in a light affair. The movie eventually turns into war movie and it's not always the best. Gable and Russell get separated in a large middle section. Gable's con is a bit fun until the war breaks out. The action, the vehicles, and the gears are not the most realistic. It's also wartime in the real world and a bit of war propaganda is to be expected. This is a good pairing and one can excuse any flaws for the greater cause. The mix of a real war and light comedy is just a bit awkward.