They flee from Bombay (Gable in tropicals in a wild chase under palms) to a ship with destination Hong-Kong. But the chinese captain of this ship (Peter Lorre with glued-on eyelids) is a traitor: Since 10.000 pounds have been set on Gable's head he plans to extradicate him. Gable and Russell pass themselves off as runaway lovers and vacillate between the confession of how much they loathe their immoral existence and the desire to get rid of each other. Finally they escape from the ship. In Hong-Kong Gable poses as captain of the army and recruits an entire regiment. He forces the chinese to open the safe with the stone, but his plans to escape disguised as missionary are thwarted when the japanese invade the country. He is ordered to evacuate 130 european and chinese civilians from a monastery. Since this is a film, he intimidates the enemy rather quickly. Now we get to see an impressive scenery and an expensive-looking battle in the mountains. During a hail-of-bullets, he manages to sneak behind enemy-lines and throws some hand-grenades on them. He is wounded, but recovers and is decorated with the Victoria-cross.

Quick: name the sexiest criminal according to Hollywood: Yes, it's the "gentleman-thief". Since the penal-code is full of equally promising crimes I wonder: why don't they make a movie about a sexy hit-and-run-offender or and attractive polluter...In the long list of actors who played gentleman-thieves, the seductively sensitive Ronald Colman (Raffles, 1930)and the amiably crazed John Barrymore (Arsene Lupin, 1932) stand out. The audacious Edward G. Robinson (The amazing Dr. Clitterhouse, 1938) and Cary Grant in Hitchcock's "To catch a thief" are equally good. Gable is brazen and sexy and smart. He and Russell do what they can, but even their joint efforts cannot save this script. The film looks exotic and expensive and some scenes are funny, like the one when they exchange secrets of their trade (Drug the victims and smash their heads with an axe, Gable suggests). Jessie Ralph is a battleship of a duchess: ("I hate caviar: It's like eating golf-balls"). Gable and Russell order "a cabin for two" and she forces him to sleep in a shabby corner and once she exclaims:"It belongs to me. After all, I was the one who stole it". Her outfit is hilarious: With her headkerchief she looks like the sphinx - with a hat better suited for Ascot on top of it - Her co-stars try very hard not to break down laughing. But this is not enough to sustain the entire film: The dialogue should have been wittier, snappier...