''Blame It on Rio'' is a 1984 American

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typic ...

film directed by

Stanley Donen Stanley Donen ( ; April 13, 1924 – February 21, 2019) was an American film director and choreographer whose most celebrated works are '' On the Town,'' (1949) and ''Singin' in the Rain'' (1952), both of which he co-directed with Gene Kell ...

and written by Charlie Peters and

Larry Gelbart Larry Simon Gelbart (February 25, 1928 – September 11, 2009) was an American television writer, playwright, screenwriter, director and author, most famous as a creator and producer of the television series ''M*A*S*H'', and as co-writer of the B ...

based on the 1977 French film ''Un moment d'égarement'', starring an

ensemble cast In a dramatic production, an ensemble cast is one that is composed of multiple principal actors and performers who are typically assigned roughly equal amounts of screen time.Random House: ensemble acting Linked 2013-07-17 Structure In contrast t ...

led by

Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite; 14 March 1933) is an English actor. Known for his distinctive Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films in a career spanning seven decades, and is considered a British film ico ...

Joseph Bologna Joseph Bologna (December 30, 1934 – August 13, 2017) was an American actor, playwright and screenwriter notable for his roles in the comedy films ''My Favorite Year'', ''Blame It on Rio'' and '' Transylvania 6-5000''. Life and career Bolo ...

, Michelle Johnson, Valerie Harper,

Demi Moore Demi Gene Moore ( ; née Guynes; born November 11, 1962) is an American actress. After making her film debut in 1981, Moore appeared on the soap opera '' General Hospital'' (1982–1984) and subsequently gained recognition as a member of the Br ...

, and

José Lewgoy José Lewgoy (16 November 1920 – 10 February 2003) was a Brazilian actor. He is recognizable to many art-house cinema fans for his role as Don Aquilino in Werner Herzog's 1982 film ''Fitzcarraldo''. Biography He was born in Veranópolis, ...

Plot

Matthew Hollis is married to Karen, and father to teenage daughter, Nikki. Victor Lyons, Matthew's colleague and best friend, who is going through a divorce, is father to 17-year-old Jennifer. Matthew's marriage is not going well for reasons that are not clear. Shortly before they are to embark for a trip to

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, Karen says she is going on vacation to

Bahia Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Rio de Janeiro) and the 5th-larges ...

by herself to "think about everything." Matthew and Victor agree to go to Rio with their daughters. Jennifer and Nikki share a room, where she says to Nikki, "Your father is so sweet... I used to have a crush on him", to which Nikki replies, "Me, too". At the beach, Victor and Matthew see a lot of music and pass numerous young girls and women walking around

topless Toplessness refers to the state in which a woman's breasts, including her areolas and nipples, are exposed, especially in a public place or in a visual medium. The male equivalent is barechestedness, also commonly called shirtlessness. Expose ...

. The fathers spot their daughters in their

bikinis A bikini is a two-piece swimsuit primarily worn by women that features two triangles of fabric on top that cover the breasts, and two triangles of fabric on the bottom: the front covering the pelvis but exposing the navel, and the back cover ...

in the distance, but the girls turn around to reveal that they are topless as well. After dropping the girls off at a wedding, the men visit a pub. After Victor pairs off with a local divorcée, Matthew winds up at the wedding, where he runs into Jennifer. Suddenly all attendees of the wedding strip down to their

briefs Briefs (or a brief) are a type of short, form-fitting underwear and swimwear, as opposed to styles where material extends down the thighs. Briefs have various different styles, usually with a waistband attached to fabric that runs along the pe ...

and

panties Panties (in American English; also called pants, undies, or knickers in British English) are a form of women's underwear. Panties can be form-fitting or loose. Typical components include an elastic waistband, a crotch panel to cover the genit ...

and take a dip in the cold ocean. Jennifer insists on having Matthew join them and takes off her top. As soon as Matthew says that the water is warmer than he anticipated, Jennifer passionately kisses him, which Nikki witnesses, and the two proceed to have sex on the beach. The next morning, Matthew stresses it can never happen again but to no avail, Jennifer begins seducing Matthew in various inappropriate situations. At one point, while Victor and Nikki are having breakfast in the garden, Jennifer kisses Matthew while he is shaving and transfers some shaving foam to her cheek. At another point she touches his crotch bulge from under the table while having dinner and eventually the two make love again. Jennifer tearfully tells her father that she had an affair with an "older man". Victor becomes furious and sets out to hunt down the mystery man, expecting Matthew to help. While Matthew tries to talk Jennifer into ending their relationship, she is determined to never give him up and takes a naked

polaroid Polaroid may refer to: * Polaroid Corporation, an American company known for its instant film and cameras * Polaroid camera, a brand of instant camera formerly produced by Polaroid Corporation * Polaroid film, instant film, and photographs * Polar ...

of herself and gives it to Matthew in public while riding

Sugarloaf Cable Car The Sugarloaf Cable Car ( pt, Bondinho do Pão de Açúcar) is a cableway system in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The first part runs between Praia Vermelha and Morro da Urca (at ), from where the second rises to the summit of the Sugarloaf Mountain ...

. Matthew ultimately discloses to his friend that Jennifer had the affair with him. Victor is not as irritated as Matthew expects, because Victor is revealed to have been having an

affair An affair is a sexual relationship, romantic friendship, or passionate attachment in which at least one of its participants has a formal or informal commitment to a third person who may neither agree to such relationship nor even be aware of ...

with Karen. Jennifer tries to take her own life with an overdose of

birth control pills Oral contraceptives, abbreviated OCPs, also known as birth control pills, are medications taken by mouth for the purpose of birth control. Female Two types of female oral contraceptive pill, taken once per day, are widely available: * The combin ...

, but survives and the incident brings all of the friends closer together, although the men constantly object about each other's sexual misconduct. Karen and Matthew choose to work on their marital problems, Jennifer begins dating a young male nurse she met while recuperating in the hospital, and Matthew thanks daughter Nikki for being the only one who has not misbehaved. As the closing credits roll, Matthew, in voice-over narration, says, "You only live once, but it does help if you get to be young twice".

Cast

as Matthew Hollis *

as Victor Lyons * Michelle Johnson as Jennifer Lyons *

as Nicole (Nikki) Hollis * Valerie Harper as Karen Hollis *

as Eduardo Marques * Lupe Gigliotti as Signora Botega *

Nelson Dantas Nélson Dantas (November 17, 1927 – March 18, 2006) was a Brazilian actor in film and television. He began in 1949, but his peak period began in 1962. In 1981 he won an award at the Festival de Gramado.Tania Carvalho - 2009 Tônia Carrero: mov ...

as Doctor

Production

The film was shot on location in Rio de Janeiro. Johnson, who was 17 at the time of filming, received permission from a court to appear topless and bottomless in some scenes of the film.

Reception

Vincent Canby Vincent Canby (July 27, 1924 – October 15, 2000) was an American film and theatre critic who served as the chief film critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1969 until the early 1990s, then its chief theatre critic from 1994 until his death in ...

, reviewing ''Blame It on Rio'', stated "...there's not a single funny or surprising moment in the movie. However, ''Blame It on Rio'' is not simply humorless. It also spreads gloom. It's one of those unfortunate projects that somehow suggests that everyone connected with the movie hated it and all of the other people involved." The Australian newspaper ''

The Canberra Times ''The Canberra Times'' is a daily newspaper in Canberra, Australia, which is published by Australian Community Media. It was founded in 1926, and has changed ownership and format several times. History ''The Canberra Times'' was launched in ...

'' described ''Blame It on Rio'' as "one of the

worst movies ever made The films listed below have been cited by a variety of notable critics in varying media sources as being among the worst films ever made. Examples of such sources include Metacritic, Roger Ebert's list of most-hated films, ''The Golden Turkey ...

and definitely the most banal piece of rubbish to have Michael Caine's name on the credits—and he has quite a few bombs to his credit."

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

gave the film 1 star out of a possible 4, writing: "It's really unsettling to see how casually this movie takes a serious situation. A disturbed girl is using sex to play mind games with a middle-aged man, and the movie get its yuks with

slapstick Slapstick is a style of humor involving exaggerated physical activity that exceeds the boundaries of normal physical comedy. Slapstick may involve both intentional violence and violence by mishap, often resulting from inept use of props such ...

scenes ..What's shocking is how many first-rate talents are associated with this sleaze."

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

gave ''Blame It on Rio'' a rating of 8% based on reviews from 24 critics.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Blame It On Rio 1984 films 1980s English-language films 1984 romantic comedy films American romantic comedy films Films directed by Stanley Donen Films set in Rio de Janeiro (city) Films shot in Rio de Janeiro (city) American independent films American remakes of French films 20th Century Fox films Films with screenplays by Larry Gelbart Films about vacationing American slapstick comedy films 1980s American films