classicsoncall Review of Any Old Port!

Any Old Port! (1932)

"I bet on you to lose and you double crossed me!"

[7/10 · 19 October 2015]

The title is a bit of a misnomer - it's true that Laurel and Hardy just stepped off a whaling boat, but then the short turns into a boxing story! I guess you could say that makes perfect sense when dealing with Stan and Ollie, you never know where you're going to wind up. Stan is steamrolled into a boxing match by his partner after leaving their money behind at a hotel owned by a brutish looking owner (Walter Long). The reason they're on the run is because they thwarted the nasty innkeeper's desire to marry a young woman at Ye-Mariner's Rest, saving her from a fate worse than you can imagine. The picture left me a bit uncomfortable in the way Mugsie tried to force himself on the girl (Jacqueline Wells); had the boys not intervened it almost felt like he was about to violate the young woman, that's how aggressive the brute's actions appeared to be. Considering the difference in their size and temperament, Mugsie sure didn't need an unfair advantage in the ring, so when his loaded glove wound up with Stan, the outcome of the match left everyone at ringside justifiably stunned. Too bad Ollie put his money on the bad guy, if he had more faith in his buddy he would have cleaned up.