Hollywood or Bust (1956) User Reviews

A Couple Of Traveling Guys And Their Great Dane

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 16 October 2008]

Though according to the Nick Tosches biography of Dean Martin, both Martin and Lewis were barely speaking to each other off camera, the two of them did go out on a good note in Hollywood Or Bust.

In fact the antagonism between them probably helped in a way. The plot calls for Martin to be a gambler into a bookie big time. But he's got a scheme whereby he cheats a lottery and wins a new car. The problem is that Lewis, playing his usual schnook, also has a winning ticket, the real one. Car dealer Willard Waterman gives joint ownership of the car to them.

Martin takes the offer thinking he can dump Lewis and still sell the car to cover his losses. But Lewis wants the car to meet his dream girl Anita Ekberg playing herself.

Two other passengers come along on this New York to Hollywood trip, aspiring showgirl Pat Crowley and Lewis's great Dane, Mr. Bascomb. The gags involving the dog were taken straight from the WC Fields classic, Six of a Kind. That's certainly in keeping with the Paramount tradition of having Martin and Lewis remake some of their classics. The great Dane foiled Dino's schemes and caused quite the ruckus.

A very hot song writing team of the period, Sammy Fain and Paul Francis Webster, wrote the score for Hollywood Or Bust. They won two Oscars in the Fifties for Secret Love and Love Is A Many Splendored Thing. One of Dino's best ballads comes from this score, It Looks Like Love. His Capitol Record is a classic.

Because of the antagonism the two were feeling in real life, the scenes were sharp between Dean and Jerry. Lewis in fact told one and all this would be the team's last joint effort.

And in Hollywood, they did indeed bust, but they busted with style.

last time for legendary pair

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 1 December 2017]

Malcolm Smith (Jerry Lewis) wins a car in a lottery but degenerate gambler Steve Wiley (Dean Martin) scams the contest with a counterfeit ticket. Malcolm is a dedicated fan of famed actress Anita Ekberg driving across the country to Hollywood. Steve pretends to be her neighbor and joins him on the drive. Steve fails to steal the car and they lose it to an armed old lady. They get the car back and pick up aspiring dancer Terry Roberts on her way to Vegas.

This is the final movie for this legendary pairing. Things got so bad that the guys barely conversed off screen. They are still very professional in their performances. I'm sure their split affected the critical reception at the time. This has the broad comedy and song singing that one expects from this duo. It is not that offensive except for the native stopover and various old fashion stuff. Much of it is a picturesque travelogue. It is not the deepest of movies but one wouldn't expect one here.

Actually a lot better than the team's previous film--too bad it was also their last together.

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 18 October 2010]

This is the final Martin & Lewis film before their breakup. It begins with gambler Dean getting in trouble for gambling debts and the mob sends a tough guy (Maxie Rosenbloom) to beat him up unless he pays. However, instead of paying him off, Dean convinces Maxie to wait, as he's got a scheme to steal a brand-new convertible--thus paying off his debt and then some. It seems that these is a car giveaway at the local movie theater and Dean had the same printer make an extra set of tickets--then he can claim the prize. He figures that whenever there's a raffle, the winning ticket isn't usually the first or second one drawn, as many ticket holders don't bother to come to the theater. But, unfortunately, his plan falls apart when the winning ticket holder IS there (Jerry) and the two men both try to claim the prize. Instead of giving them two cars, the theater owner says they should share the car--and Dean plans on just stealing it the first chance he gets. So, Dean convinces movie-crazy Jerry to go with him to Hollywood so he can introduce him to Anita Ekberg (not a bad plan, as MOST heterosexual men in 1956 would quickly fall for this angle!). Naturally, however, the plan does NOT go smoothly and there are comic situations galore--thanks in many cases to Mr. Bascom (see the movie to find out more about him) and better than normal writing.

This is the only Martin & Lewis film I hadn't seen up to today and I always expected it to be terrible. After all, the team soon broke up and reportedly the two couldn't stand each other and barely spoke during production. But you really couldn't see this in the finished product--a clever movie with some nice gags. It also has a nice, leisurely pace that works well--surprisingly well. Considering the end product is so good and the film relies less than normal on Jerry's over-the-top histrionics than many of their films, it's a shame they went their separate ways. In a few cases, however, Jerry's shtick went on way, way too long was the over-acted bullfight scene and his expressions during the craps game. Still, a nice blend of comedy, music and romance--I wish I'd seen this one sooner. Certainly not great but quite enjoyable.

In Las Vegas, be sure to keep a close eye on the marquees they pass on their way through town.

A very funny satire on Hollywood by Frank Tashlin

[Kalaman · 26 December 2002]

"Hollywood or Bust" was the last of Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin musical comedies and a very good one. Although it is not as bracingly innovative and riotous as Tashlin's "Artists and Models", I kept laughing throughout.

Some hilarious and enjoyable scenes come to mind: The opening moments in the movie theater where Lewis is ruining a woman's hair with popcorn; the rousing musical number "A Day in the Country" (Martin and Lewis in a car) which is Tashlin's homage to the "Beyond the Blue Horizon" number in Lubitsch's 1930 musical "Monte Carlo"; and there is Lewis' imitation of Rudolph Valentino's "Blood and the Sand".

Sure it can be silly and puerile at times, but it's a lot of fun.

Worth seeing.

If you own a Great Dane, you must see this movie!

[cougfan · 7/10 · 7 December 2000]

A very enjoyable film, though my view may be a bit prejudiced due to I have a Dane. Kudos to director Tashlin for giving Mr. Bascomb a distinct personality and some very funny moments! This movie is a testament to both Martin and Lewis as they had basically ended their partnership while HOB was being made, yet still seem to be enjoying themselves.

Martin & Lewis's final film as a comedy team. Good clean fun - silly, cartoonish humor, but I liked it.

[Entertainment-Buff · 6/10 · 24 August 2017]

I caught this on YouTube soon after the great Jerry Lewis passed away. I always love to read the "backstories" about films, so I read about it in Wikipedia and IMDb before I watched it. This was the comedy team's final film, and the two barely spoke to each other off camera during the shoot. You can't tell that from the finished film, because the chemistry between the two is there. Because the version I saw on YouTube turned off the audio whenever there was a song (for music copyright reasons), I can't comment on the music, but I am sure that it was good. Enjoyable, frothy comedy.

The poorest of the Martin & Lewis pics?

[vincentlynch-moonoi · 6/10 · 3 July 2013]

It was time. Time to end the partnership. As this film shows, writers couldn't come up with anything very different for the boys to do. Unfortunately, this wasn't a very good film to go out with.

So what's wrong with it? 1. Why is Jerry singing so much????? 2. Why is a big, dumb dog such an important character in the film? 3. Were all those slinky models all over really beautiful...even in 1956? 4. Pat Crowley was a pleasant actress. Did someone actually think she could sing? 5. Couldn't they find stunt men that weren't so obviously NOT Dean and Jerry? Dean does what Dean's supposed to do here, but -- at least in the first half of the script -- appears to be a "letch". Although, that's less disturbing than the glimpse we finally get of Jerry Lewis in puberty. It's not a pretty picture for either. Dean has one really good song in the film, which he shares with Crowley -- "It Looks Like Love". The other tunes are okay, but not as good as one might expect from Sammy Fain and Paul Francis Webster. Ad mentioned, Pat Crowley was a pleasant actress...of course, maybe that's not saying a lot. And Anita Ekberg has a sort of extended cameo as Jerry's lust interest.

Much of the film is a sort of road picture, but in my view they were traveling down the wrong road here. There is some good scenery pics (e.g., Santa Fe and the Grand Canyon), but of course, Dean and Jerry weren't there.

No, it was time for it all to end.

CHEER! - (7 stars out of 10)

[BJG-Reviews · 7/10 · 10 May 2023]

The stage curtains open ...

"I'd have never known about the phony ticket or the stealing if you didn't tell me, which means you're very noble. You're as noble as Abraham Lincoln or Raymond Massey."

"Hollywood or Bust" (1956), starring the comedy team of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, holds the most fond memories of any of their movies for me. Ironically, it was the most bitter of movies for both Martin and Lewis as this would be their last film together, and then a years-long feud began. In fact, things had gotten so bad between them, that they refused to speak off-camera while shooting this movie - and Lewis stated later that he wasn't ever able to watch this film because it would've been too painful to see. But, for the rest of us, this is still a fun, comedic road adventure.

Steve Wiley (Martin) owes a large gambling debt, so he has counterfeit tickets created to dishonestly win a car during a theater raffle drawing one night. He plans to take the car to Hollywood and sell it for top dollar to pay off his debt. However, when Malcolm Smith (Lewis) clambers aboard the stage waving the real winning ticket, they are both awarded the car ... each owning half. Malcolm also wants to go to Hollywood to meet his dream girl crush, actress Anita Ekberg (playing herself). So, they pack up their bags, Malcolm's Great Dane, 'Mr. Bascomb', and hit the highway. Along the way, they cross paths with another traveler named Terry - and while Malcolm continues to dream of Anita, Steve's eyes are only for Terry. We watch as they have some madcap adventures on their way to the West Coast where things don't quite turn out the way any of them expected.

I first saw this one on TV when I was just a kid, and I loved the Martin and Lewis movies. For some reason, this was my personal favorite one, and the one I remember the most. I liked the concept of both of them winning the car and butting heads along the way to California with the comedic stylings that only Jerry Lewis could bring, and the straight man antics that Dean Martin had down only too well. In an attempt to make Hollywood more glamorous than it might have been, the film is stock full of posing beauties who wave to the traveling duo all throughout the movie - which was highlighted by Anita Ekberg herself.

Even knowing how hard it must have been for them to make this movie, it is still a real pleasure to watch. It is a highly enjoyable film from days gone by when the smallest, happiest things could make movie stars burst into a harmony of song. Jerry Lewis is one of those comedians who could make me laugh just by walking onscreen. I would recommend this classic at a solid 7 stars out of 10. It's too bad that this marked the end of something so good, but it is a good way to go out.

Good swan song

[DJBC · 8/10 · 3 June 2000]

It's hard to believe that this was Martin and Lewis' last film. It was reported that they could barely stand each other to make this film--this is hardly evident when you watch it. There are some great laughs in the film, such as the beginning when Jerry spills popcorn in the lady's hair.

Some great comedic stuff is provided by the dog, Mr. Bascom. There is an especially cute segment where he meets and "falls in love" with Anita Eckberg's dog. Oops....don't want to give too much of it away.

All in all this is a very funny movie, and well worth buying or renting.

Wasn't funny & constantly objectified women

[rebeccamary-96038 · 3/10 · 11 May 2020]

Dean and Jerry seem as though they are just going through the motions in this movie. I don't think I laughed at all and was kind of bored.

I am also disturbed by the scene where Dean's character, Steve, grabs Terry and forcefully kisses her. When she wriggles free, clearly not consenting, he keeps following and grabbing her. I watch a lot of old movies (love Jerry Lewis) and understand that mindsets were different, but this is really unacceptable. I thought the whole movie was just overly sexual and objectified women constantly.

The last picture with Martin and Lewis

[Petey-10 · 9/10 · 22 August 2005]

Dean Martin plays Steve Wiley, a gambler with bad debts and Jerry Lewis is Malcolm Smith, a huge movie lover who wants to go to Hollywood to meet Anita Ekberg.And then there is a car raffle where Steve wins a car with a fake ticket and Malcolm wins it with a real one.So they're both off to Hollywood with Malcolm's dog Great Dane and Terry Roberts (Pat Crowley), a girl they meet along the way.A very pretty lady, if I may add.By the way, Dean Martin's daughters Claudia, Deana and Gail can be seen in the movie.Frank Tashlin's Hollywood or Bust (1956) is a good and funny comedy which offers you some good laughs.One good and funny scene is where Jerry sings the song of the dog food commercial and then there's of course the one where the dog goes for a ride with the car.A dog behind the wheel is always funny.This was the last movie Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis did together.There were personal conflicts that ended the relationship.They were such a hilarious duo and they did lots of great films together.But as you know,nothing lasts forever.Luckily they didn't stay as enemies forever.In 1976 Frank Sinatra reunited them on stage and they stayed as friends till Dean's death in 1995.While making this film there was lots of anger between them but you can hardly see it.This isn't all time best of Martin and Lewis but it's very enjoyable anyway.Jerry Lewis has said he hasn't seen Hollywood or Bust because it's much too painful for him to watch.Good movie, bad memories.

stupid

[ronfernandezsf · 2/10 · 17 May 2020]

As with most Martin and Lewis films, this is as stupid as the others. Plot inconstancies..Where did they get all the clothes since at one point there is no luggage in the back seat or the trunk. I know one must not take these films seriously, but there should be some semblance of reality. The best thing about the film is the Great Dane. He steals every scene he's in and puts the movie in his pocket. Great training and love the name Mr. Bascom. See this for the dog as the movie itself is a real DOG.

The boys sign off with unbridled joy.

[hitchcockthelegend · 8/10 · 23 June 2009]

Malcolm Smith loves the movies and especially Anita Ekberg. Getting one of his lucky feelings, Malcolm buys a ream of raffle tickets to win a car. Sure enough he wins, but so does gigolo gambler Steve Wiley, who, not unsurprisingly has won by less than honourable means. Refusing to give out two cars, the promotion merely tells the men that they will have to share the car. Much to Steve's annoyance as he has debts to pay. So deviously he agrees to drive with Malcolm to Hollywood, planning to ditch him at the first chance he gets. Only he hadn't figured on Mr. Bascom, Malcolm's Great Dane who's along for the ride, and an encounter with the pretty Terry Roberts. Yep, it's safe to say this is not going to be an ordinary road trip.

With their relationship deeply fractured at this time (this was their last film together), it's something of a surprise to find that Hollywood Or Bust is one of the finest films that Dean Martin (Steve) and Jerry Lewis (Malcolm) made. Everything that made the duo so massively popular is in here, even into the bargain daring to cast a satirical slant to the whiles and trials of Hollywood itself. A lot of the credit has to go to director Frank Tashlin. Tashlin, who was also at the helm for arguably the boys career high point Artists & Models, keeps the whole thing zippy, steering the duo in a direction to which they simply could not fail.

Sure enough the humour is almost juvenile at times, and yes Dean of course croons and tries to bed the girl (a spiky Pat Crowley as Terry), but it's got such a sense of joy to it, the kind of joy that much like Artists & Models, can really lift the blues. Stand out songs from the Sammy Fain and Paul Francis Webster score are "A Day in the Country" and "It Looks Like Love", whilst it will be tough not to giggle at some of the antics of Mr. Bascom and the irrepressible Lewis, particularly with one particular movie parody. Anita Ekberg comes and joins in the fun later in the piece, just in time for the riotous carnage that you know is around the corner.

If the sight of a Great Dane driving a car is not funny to you? Well chances are you should avoid this film completely. But that would be a shame for it's a delightful film, brisk and cheeky, it's most definitely one that's in desperate need of reappraisal from the grumpy brigade because it's a real blues lifter. 8/10

Martin & Lewis ended their partnership on a good note with Frank Tashlin's Hollywood or Bust

[tavm · 9/10 · 30 August 2011]

Having spent the last two or so weeks watching Martin & Lewis movies in chronological order on YouTube, I just finished their very last one on the same site. Once again, a couple of female players from their previous ones have appeared here: Pat Crowley, previously Jerry's girl in Money from Home, is now Dean's here though she initially plays hard to get. And Anita Ekberg, who was a model in Artists and Models, plays herself as the movie star Jerry has a massive crush on. Since this is directed by Frank Tashlin, expect plenty of well-endowed women in view, particularly when Dean and Jerry are watching the views of various farming countrysides on the road. Oh, and there's also a dog named Mr. Bascomb in tow to add to the hilarious comedy that's almost nonstop throughout. Watching this, you wouldn't know that Martin & Lewis weren't talking to each other off-set and that they would break up the act for good. Maybe it's just as well as they both would continue to have success solo (Jerry) and with others (Dean). I've had the best time seeing them grow as performers during this time and I'm looking forward to watching what I can of their subsequent films separate from each other. So on that note, I highly recommend Hollywood or Bust. P.S. While the IMDb cast list doesn't identify him, I swear the guy who announces the winning car ticket that Dean & Jerry claim is Harold Peary, best known to me as The Great Gildersleeve on radio, especially when he enunciates certain words. And I immediately recognized when they went through my birthtown of Chicago, Ill., by the Prudential building.

End of an era

[colonelzagbar · 9/10 · 30 May 2011]

This is the last of the 16 movies which Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis made together, and by this point they weren't even speaking to each other off-camera, but this time the screen is filled with even more inventiveness than usual. That's because the director is master satirist Frank Tashlin, who, having already taken on rock and roll (The Girl Can't Help It) and comic books (Artists and Models, also with Dean and Jerry), now turns his attention to movie fandom.

Dean plays Steve, a down-on-his-luck gambler who wants to pay off his debts by cheating in a raffle to win an expensive car, but the legal winner (Malcolm, played by Jerry) also turns up, and the contest holder rules that they have to share the car. Malcolm (a movie fan who's obsessed with Anita Ekberg) wants to drive the car to Hollywood to meet her, and Steve goes along for the ride, planning to ditch him somewhere along the way. Unfortunately, Malcolm is also bringing his gigantic dog "Mr. Bascom," who manages to thwart a few of Steve's plans.

Besides the numerous references to movies real and fictional (i.e., "Chloroform and Old Calico"), we also get romance, great musical numbers, beautiful Technicolor, Jerry doing a bullfighting routine a la Rudolph Valentino, a hilarious gambling sequence in a Vegas casino, and much more. Dean and Jerry part ways after this, but at least they leave on a high note.

Hear Dino bark! See Jerry eat popcorn! See a dog!

[Brevity · 14 August 2005]

Oh, poor little film, only three user comments! I'll scribble something for self-amusement, so, uh... You might as well skip this.

The film is indeed highly enjoyable.

Some of the bits are stupid, borderline-infantile in fact, but that matters not.

The movie buff element could've been emphasized more.

I need to see more Tashlin. Nice cartooniness again, though the look of "Artists and Models" is even sweller. In fact, it's better overall.

The songs, in something of a surprise, are great!

The dialogue sparkles at times, which I appreciate much.

What, that's it?

Great zany comedy

[adrian-43767 · 8/10 · 24 September 2018]

I rate this the best Martin & Lewis vehicle of all. Completely zany, it pokes fun at everything happening in the 50s, with Lewis in particularly spirited form. Still, the greatest performance comes from Mr Bascomb (the dog), ably seconded by the old lady who asks for a lift and steals their car.

Great direction, funny sequences, wonderful photography, a delectable Anita Ekberg and a few other less memorable beauties, pretty good soundtrack make me always look forward to rewatching this unpretentious gem, with none of the contrived mumbo-jumbo that modern "comedies" keep serving the spectator.

Wacky farewell for Martin and Lewis, and blatant blast at television

[SimonJack · 8/10 · 2 November 2020]

Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis made this very good, wacky comedy and musical for their parting of ways in films. "Hollywood or Bust" is a type of road show, literally, that may be the most blatant Hollywood blast at television. The opening prologue does that with its hilarious dedication to movie fans around the world. This was 1956, and the cinema world of movie theaters, films and actors was really starting to suffer from the humongous bourgeoning of TV since 1950.

This is one of the best of the 15 pairings of the two stars, whose careers would continue for the next three decades. The plot is a simple one, and besides an opening jab at TV, it seems designed to appeal to the broad section of people across the country. It literally traverses the country for two-thirds of the film. Dean and Jerry meet by happenstance in New York, and both have the winning ticket of a big new car give-away. Dean plays Steve Wiley and Jerry is Malcolm Smith. The film shows the skullduggery in how that happened. So, they each have half ownership in the car and head for Hollywood where they will sell the car so Dean can pay off his bookie debt of $3,000.

The trip takes them across various states with nice scenery, especially pastoral scenes that seem to have many attractive lasses. They are pitching hay, driving tractors, fishing, sitting on fences and generally lollygagging about waving as the boys drive by in their fancy red convertible. The scenes are peppered with bits of singing, poetry and quips of cliches. An example is a scene in Missouri with two guys - one pushing and other pulling a stubborn Missouri mule. All of this is fun and funny.

Eventually they meet up with a girl on the road - some more very funny shenanigans in this scenario. And soon, Pat Crowley's Terry Roberts joins them - but she's only going as far as Las Vegas. At least, that's the plan she began her trek with for a chorus line job in Vegas.

The road trip follows a rather zig-zag pattern instead of a straight line or the shortest driving distance from New York City to Los Angeles. Again, that may be part of the appeal to movie audiences over TV shows that were then set mostly in the big cities on either coast. So, after the pastoral scenes in Pennsylvania, they wind up going through Chicago. Steve had been napping while Malcolm drove with Terry beside him. When he wakes up, he tells Malcolm to put the top up and hurry away from the Windy City. He knows too many people there whom he had no desire to see.

While all the places aren't identified in the film, except by the travelers singing and naming the states, one with good knowledge and/or experience of American geography can fairly closely map their journey. After Chicago, they must have headed South in Illinois and they cross the Mississippi River probably at St. Louis. The bridges and city scenes would have been considerably changed and different from the mid-1950s to just three or four decades later. Today, the scene in the movie probably wouldn't be recognized by people native to the area, since the changes with many Interstates and expressway routes, loops and highway connections.

So, they drive across rural Missouri and then cross the Missouri River and the beginning of the Wild West. That would have to be North of Kanas City since the Mighty Missouri River makes a right-angle bend to the left and heads straight East at KC. Then, after crossing the Mighty Mo probably in the vicinity of St. Joseph, the route turns south in Kansas, but there's no mention of Kansas. The next mention is Oklahoma, and reference to the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical hit movie of that title the previous year. There's also a ditty with Malcolm in a football helmet and pads, referring to the Oklahoma Sooners football team. In the 1950s it was a dominant college team and won various championships in 1949, 1950, 1953, 1955 and 1956.

From there, the trio drive, sing, and foible their way past oil fields in the Texas Panhandle, and on into northern New Mexico. They drive through Santa Fe; then past some pueblos, and across northern Arizona with a stop at the Grand Canyon. They then drive across Boulder Dam, a nickname at the time for Hoover Dam on the Colorado River, and into Las Vegas. And get who's top-billed on the big sign when they enter Las Vegas - Elvis Presley and the All-Star Review. A day later they head to LA and Hollywood.

One other member of the cast adds a lot of humor and fun to the film and their journey. Malcolm has a pet dog, Mr. Bascombe, which he won in a dog-food jingle contest. The dog is a Great Dane, and one of the best trained dogs one will ever see in the movies. Lassie had nothing to fear for film competition, because this huge, lanky, lovable dog plays strictly for humor. He's a model for the Marmaduke comic strip that premiered in 1954 and ran through 2015 in American newspapers.

The numerous foibles and comical incidents that Malcolm and Steve have might qualify this film as screwball comedy. It is a very amusing, fun and funny film that families even in the 21st century should enjoy.

Here are a couple favorite lines from the film.

Malcolm, "Is Gregory Peck one of your friends?" Steve, "Well, where do you think he got his gray flannel suits?" (Peck starred in a movie that just preceded this one, "The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit.")

Malcolm, "Whadda ya want me to be, an Indian giver?" Steve, "Yeah. Give her an Indian -- that's not so personal."

Sad that it was Lewis' and Martin's last film together :'(

[Irishchatter · 9/10 · 6 January 2016]

I honestly had the best times watching these pair together in all of their films I have seen. They were so incredibly brilliant by all the antics, performances and singing I have experienced in watching them by being such the best men in the whole of the show business industry. I am glad to have known that they teamed up before Martin decided to go with the Rat Pack (who I absolutely adore as well) after splitting up with Lewis. They are both legends, they were incredible!

Anyways back to the movie, it was funny to have seen a Great Dane to journey with the two men and Lewis calling him a silly name - Mr. Bascomb. I wonder why he came up with that name for the poor dog xD I liked how Lewis had a personality of a fan boy, you normally don't see lads playing as fan boys in movie but I swear, he hit the nail there with his acting skills! I can feel by the look on their eyes that the duo knows that this is their last movie and they are gonna make it worth the effort to make this a memory of their lifetime. It breaks your heart that they split but they were brilliant so definitely I will make this a memory in 2016 that I have discovered these Lads in the 50's. 💟💟💟

Very funny stupid comedy

[cwg2005a · 8/10 · 18 November 2016]

Okay, let's see: a large dog drives a car, a film nerd gets caught in a bull-ring wearing a red coat, the film nerd falls from a scaffolding right onto the bed on which Anita Ekberg lies. There are story holes (Dean still owes the money at the end to the gangsters, right?)

Does any of this read as if we are embarking on an intelligent film odyssey (ie, cp with any Steve Martin film). Of course not. That being said, this is a really fun and funny movie. The characters are drawn sufficiently full that we feel we do know what and who they are, the slapstick is set up reasonably logically, and the visual comedy reflects the fact Lewis and Dean had honed their shtick over many many years.

It all works, and works well. The songs are nice, Dean looks great, Lewis' timing is on-spot, all the women shown in the opening credits, pool scene, etc are still fun to see, the director keeps it humming quickly along, the shots of Chicago's Lake Shore Drive and downtown are fun to see, and the story, well, the story is the nonsense to get from one scene to another.

A Favorite Martin & Lewis road picture

[rjw999 · 8/10 · 6 September 2018]

I grew up a huge Jerry Lewis fan. I even "taped" these movies on cassettes so I could listen to them at night in my bed. This one was a favorite The music is decent and the comic shtick is what you expect. If that's what you like, this movie delivers.

Excellent Martin Lewis vehicle

[searchanddestroy-1 · 8/10 · 7 March 2022]

I am usually not fond at all of comedies, but those played by Jerry Lewis are full of charm and remind me my childhood, when they were shown on French TV channels. Gags galore, score, fast paced editing, everything is available to entertain all kinds of audiences. Many Hollywood film tributes are here too, for instance FROM HERE TO ETERNITY, when Dean Martin wants to kiss Pat Crawley near the river.... Yes, this movie is dedicated to Hollywood industry, and that was the least that he could offer.

The Last M&L and One of Their Best

[Michael_Elliott · 27 August 2017]

Hollywood or Bust (1956)

*** (out of 4)

Steve Wiley (Dean Martin) is a gambler who is in over his head with some bookies. He works up a scheme to basically steal a car from a theater that is giving it away through on raffle. The only problem is that die hard movie fan Malcolm Smith (Jerry Lewis) ends up with the car and the two are forced to share it, which sends them on a road trip to Hollywood.

Hollywood OR BUST would turn out to be the last Martin & Lewis movie and it's really too bad because it seems the duo were making some of their best movies at the end. This one here is an incredibly entertaining and at times very funny picture that manages to offer up a pretty good story and three great lead performances. It has been said that Martin and Lewis' relationship was pretty much dead during the making of this picture and that they refused to speak to each other but you certainly can't tell that by watching the film.

I really thought that out of all the Martin & Lewis films I've seen this one here gave both actors their most equal parts. I think the highlight of the film is a moment early on when the two are inside the theater and trying to win the car for their own reasons. There were some very funny moments inside the theater and things got even funnier when the large Great Dane dog enters the picture. Martin, Lewis and the dog have some very funny scenes together and things get even funnier when Pat Crowley joins things as well as Maxie Rosenbloom in her quick role. Anita Ekberg plays herself, the star who Lewis loves the most.

There are a couple decent music numbers throughout the picture but here is one time where Dean's songs take a back seat to the comedy. Hollywood OR BUST is your typical road picture but I really thought it was an extremely funny picture and one with a good spirit and a nice pace. It's really too bad Martin & Lewis came to an end here but at least they went out with one of their better pictures.