Blame It on Rio (1984)

Director:

Stanley Donen

Writers:

Charlie Peters and
Larry Gelbart

Release Date:

17 February 1984 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

You can blame the night, blame the wine, blame the moon in her eyes, but when all else fails . . . you'd better . . . Blame it on Rio!

Plot:

Best friends and their daughters holiday in Rio only for one to fall for the other's daughter.

Plot Keywords:

Outdoor Sex | Vacation | Promiscuous Past | Voyeurism | Brazil

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Michael Caine	...	Matthew Hollis
Joseph Bologna	...	Victor Lyons
Valerie Harper	...	Karen Hollis
Michelle Johnson	...	Jennifer Lyons
Demi Moore	...	Nicole 'Nikki' Hollis
José Lewgoy	...	Eduardo Marques
Lupe Gigliotti	...	Signora Botega
Michael Menaugh	...	Peter
Tessy Callado	...	Helaine
Ana Lucía Lima	...	Macumba Lady #1
Maria Helena Velasco	...	Macumba Lady #2
Zeni Pereira	...	Mother of the Bride
Eduardo Conde	...	Singer in the Dance Club
Betty von Wien	...	Isabella
Nelson Dantas	...	Doctor
Thomas Lee Mahon	...	Lorenzo
Victor Haïm	...	Bernardo
Jane Duboc	...	Singer in the Cafe
Rômulo Arantes	...	Diego
Giovanna Soore	...	Astrid
Grupo Benzala	...	Capoeirista
Angelo DeMatos	...	Dancer

Directed by
Stanley Donen

Writing credits
Charlie Peters		and
Larry Gelbart

Produced by
Stanley Donen	....	producer
Larry Gelbart	....	executive producer
Bruce McNall	....	producer
Robert E. Relyea	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Kenneth Wannberg

Cinematography by
Reynaldo Villalobos

Film Editing by
George Hively
Richard Marden

Casting by
Wallis Nicita		(as Wally Nicita)

Art Direction by
Marcos Flaksman

Makeup Department
Dalee Henderson	....	hair stylist
Tony Lloyd	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Flavio Chaves	....	assistant production manager
Dilma Lóes	....	production manager
Robert E. Relyea	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
D. Scott Easton	....	first assistant director
José Joaquim Salles	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Paulo Dubois	....	construction coordinator

Sound Department
Milton C. Burrow	....	supervising sound editor
Marty Church	....	adr mixer
Jay M. Harding	....	sound re-recording mixer
David J. Kimball	....	sound re-recording mixer
William L. Manger	....	supervising sound editor
Graham Nieder	....	boom operator
Philip Rogers	....	sound recordist
Gregory H. Watkins	....	sound re-recording mixer
Jim Willis	....	production sound mixer
Ken Dufva	....	foley artist (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Peter Lyons Collister	....	photographer: second unit
Chuck Finch	....	gaffer
Vic Hammond	....	key grip
David Morgan	....	first assistant camera
Mike Proudfoot	....	camera operator
Richard Seal	....	electrical best boy

Casting Department
Flávio R. Tambellini	....	casting: Brazil

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Helena Gastal	....	costume supervisor

Editorial Department
Jeff Chaves	....	colorist (digital color correction)
Larry Morrison	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Oscar Castro-Neves	....	music supervisor
George Doering	....	musician
Kenneth Wannberg	....	music editor (as Ken Wannberg)
Kenneth Wannberg	....	music supervisor (as Ken Wannberg)

Other crew
César Cavalcanti	....	location manager
Peter Donen	....	title designer
Gita V. Engelhart	....	production coordinator
Sally Jones	....	script supervisor
Jaime A. Schwartz	....	production assistant
Ralph M. Leo	....	location accountant (uncredited)
Patricia Sansone	....	production accountant (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Sherwood Productions

Distributors

• Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation (1983) (USA) (VHS)
• Vestron Video (1984) (USA) (VHS)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• MGM Home Entertainment (USA) (video)
• Producers Sales Organization (PSO) (1983) (Non-USA) (all media)
• TGG Direct (2010) (USA) (DVD)
• VTI Home Vídeo (19??) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Video Treasures (????) (USA) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Cinema Research  titles and opticals
• Echo Film Services  sound editing
• Lee Lighting  grip and lighting equipment

Also Known As:

"Adventure in Rio" - Japan (English title)

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Australia:M | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Finland:K-8 | Sweden:Btl | USA:R | West Germany:16 | Canada:A (Ontario) | UK:15 | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Singapore:PG (cut) | New Zealand:R16 | Portugal:M/12

Filming Locations:

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Company:

Sherwood Productions

Trivia:

Film debut of Michelle Johnson.

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: When Victor and Matthew are fighting in the bedroom, some of their lines were dubbed in later. The most notable is Matthew's line, "Those are my balls," because when he says it, his mouth does not move.

Quotes:

Victor Lyons:You slept with someone? Why didn't you tell me?
Jennifer Lyons:I just did.
Victor Lyons:Now you tell me? What good does it do me now?
Jennifer Lyons:What good is it SUPPOSED to do you?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Dallas: Blame It on Bogota (#9.18)" (1986)

Soundtrack:

Time Out

A Fun Role For Michael Caine?

There was one major reason to watch this movie: Michelle Johnson, and that's about it. The film doesn't offer too much else. Basically, it's a silly story.

Michael Caine ("Matthew") and Joseph Bologna ("Victor") plays some middle- aged guys who are going through marriage problems (bad marriage and a divorce, respectively) so they go down to Brazil to spend money since they're rich. They bring their late teen/young-adult daughters? Huh? Well, Victor's daughter is a knockout and they have a fling. Johnson plays the girl, "Jennifer," who shows off her breasts as much as she can in this film. This is why I and a lot of other guys saw this movie. In reality, there isn't much merit to this story, regardless.

This must have been a wonderful role for Caine to play! Caine, an outstanding and likable actor, keeps this film - along with Johnson's obvious assets - from being a total bomb. As "Matthew," his mind knows this a bad relationship and vows to end it, but you know what else "doing the talking" for him, so it ain't easy. Demi Moore, by the way, plays Caine's daughter in this movie.

It's really not a horrible film but it's pretty inane and crude in areas. The real shocker might not be all the nudity or sex jokes and lying but who directed the film: good 'ole Stanley Donen, who also gave us "Singin' In The Rain" and "Charade." How in the world did he get involved with this movie? Maybe Johnson was too much of an allure for him, too!