Bombs Over Burma

{{short description|1943 film by Joseph H. Lewis}}

{{Infobox film

| name = Bombs Over Burma

| image = BombsOverBurma1942265.flv.jpg

| caption = Theatrical release poster

| director = Joseph H. Lewis{{IMDb title|0034538|Bombs Over Burma (1942)}}

| producer = Arthur Alexander
Alfred Stern

| screenplay = Joseph H. Lewis
George Wellington Pardy

| story = Milton Raison

| starring = Anna May Wong

| music = Lee Zahler

| cinematography = Robert E. Cline

| editing = Charles Henkel Jr.

| distributor = Producers Releasing Corporation

| released = {{Film date|1942|6|5}}

| runtime = 65 minutes

| country = United States

| language = English
Mandarin

}}

Bombs Over Burma (also known as The Devil's Sister) is a 1942 American war film directed by Joseph H. Lewis, based on a story by Milton Raison.Evans 2000, p. 30. To depict the Chinese character faithfully, the star, Anna May Wong, and other characters speak Mandarin in the first few minutes.Leong 2005, p. 191.

Plot

In 1942, Chinese guerrillas fighting for the Allied cause in Burma during World War II are helping to build a road. During the construction of a military supply road like the Burma Road and Ledo Road, the project is sabotaged by an English nobleman who is a German agent.

Using a scientific device, the English nobleman is instrumental in the coordination of a Japanese air attack on supply trucks attempting to cross a key bridge. A Chinese school teacher (Anna May Wong) reveals the schemes of the traitor, and brings about his destruction at the hands of Chinese peasants armed with picks and shovels.

Cast

As appearing in Bombs Over Burma, (main roles and screen credits identified):[https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/69325/bombs-over-burma "Credits: Bombs Over Burma (1942)."] Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved: May 7, 2012.

Production

Lack of an adequate budget and a two-week shooting schedule hampered the production, limiting Bombs Over Burma to "B-fare".Leong 2005, p. 101.Erickson, Hal. [http://www.allmovie.com/cg/avg.dll?p=avg&sql=1:85609~T0 "Bombs Over Burma."] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060426195934/http://www.allmovie.com/cg/avg.dll?p=avg&sql=1%3A85609~T0 |date=April 26, 2006 }} Allmovie. Retrieved: March 22, 2012.

Reception

Production values doomed Bombs Over Burma both at the box office and with critics. The review in The New York Times succinctly called it a "dud", loaded with stock shots, even recognizable "California architecture."T.S. [http://www.movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9401EEDD1239E33BBC4852DFBE668389659EDE "Movie Review: Bombs Over Burma (1942)."] The New York Times, August 10, 1942. Later reviews such as that of Leonard Maltin, noted that the film was an "... interesting if failed attempt to make a hard-hitting, topical film ... Director/cowriter Lewis' visual flair can't save a talky, pedestrian script. Wong comes off well, as usual."[https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/69325/bombs-over-burma "Leonard Maltin Film Review: Bombs Over Burma (1942)."] Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved: May 7, 2012.

Availability

Alpha Video released the film on region-1 DVD on June 28, 2005.[http://www.oldies.com/product-view/4792D.html "Bombs Over Burma."] oldies.com. Retrieved: March 22, 2012.

References

;Notes

{{reflist}}

;Bibliography

{{Refbegin}}

  • Evans, Alun. Brassey's Guide to War Films. Dulles, Virginia: Potomac Books, 2000. {{ISBN|1-57488-263-5}}.
  • Leong, Karen J. The China Mystique: Pearl S. Buck, Anna May Wong, Mayling Soong, and the Transformation of American Orientalism. Berkeley, California: University of California Press, 2005. {{ISBN|0-5202-4422-2}}.
  • Taves, Brian. Joseph H. Lewis, Anna May Wong, and Bombs Over Burma. In Gary Rhodes, ed. The Films of Joseph H. Lewis. Detroit, Michigan: Wayne State University Press, 2012. {{ISBN|978-0814334621}}.

{{Refend}}