Up to His Ears ( or in English, "Tribulations of a Chinaman in China") is a 1965 French-Italian international co-production adventure comedy film starring Jean Paul Belmondo and Ursula Andress. It was an indirect sequel to That Man from Rio reuniting many of the same team; directed by Philippe de Broca written by Daniel Boulanger, stunt work by Gil Delamare it was loosely based on the 1879 novel Tribulations of a Chinaman in China by Jules Verne.
Plot Millionaire Arthur Lempereur is bored with life. He tries to kill himself but fails, then decides to travel to Hong Kong to see if his depression can be cured.
In Hong Kong, Arthur discovers that his money is gone. Mister Goh, his old tutor and a Chinese philosopher, makes him take out a life insurance policy to benefit Alice, Arthur's fiancée, and Mister Goh. Goh promises to kill Arthur for him.
Arthur then meets Alexandrine, an ethnologist and striptease dancer. He decides not to die, and goes to track down Goh before Goh can hire a hitman.
Cast
Production In addition to its footage of China, the film contains several minutes of the Agra area in India, including the Taj Mahal, which appears much whiter than it does today. The film also includes approximately 15 minutes of footage of the central area of Kathmandu, Nepal, the nearby Swayambunath hillside temple and more rural mountain areas of Nepal, with the impressive Himalayas as the backdrop.
Filming started under the title Chinese Adventures in China on January 5, 1965 in Nepal.TRAIL OF TRIAL: Pioneers' Tragic Trek To Be Filmed -- Tanglewood to Tel Aviv -- Sequel By A.H. WEILER. New York Times 29 Nov 1964: X11. Ursula Andress left for Hong Kong in February 1965.Sammly Agrees to Play Iago Role: Lilia Skala, Ex-N.Y. City Center Employe, to Return as Singer Hopper, Hedda. Los Angeles Times 8 Feb 1965: c20. Filming took place in Hong Kong and Paris.CALL SHEET: Marquand Signed for 'Phoenix' Martin, Betty. Los Angeles Times 24 Apr 1965: B7.
In January 1966, the title was changed to Up to His Ears.Mailer Novel to Be Filmed Martin, Betty. Los Angeles Times 18 Jan 1966: c13.
Reception The film was the tenth-most popular of 1965 in France, after The Sucker, Goldfinger, Thunderball, Gendarme in New York, Mary Poppins, Fantomas Unleashed, God's Thunder, The Wise Guys and Viva Maria!.
References
External links
Up to His Ears at Letterbox DVD Up to His Ears at Philippe de Broca