One Way Passage (1932)
One Way Passage (1932)
A delightful romantic comedy-drama starring William Powell and Kay Francis about two “doomed” people who meet and then fall in love on a cruise ship traveling from Hong Kong to San Francisco. Powell is being returned to San Quentin by a police officer (played by Warren Hymer) for a murder charge; Francis who is being attended to by a doctor (played by Frederick Burton) is terminally ill and not expected to live much longer. Both keep these things secret from the other. Frank McHugh who we first see being chased by the local authority onto the cruise ship plays a slippery con who knows Powell from past association. Aline MacMahon plays another con already onboard from Powell’s past who’s pretending to be a Countess in order to scam rich male passengers. McHugh and MacMahon who also know each other previously decide to work together to help Powell escape … part of which involves MacMahon “courting” Hymer. The story which was remade with several minor alterations (but includes McHugh repeating his role) as ‘Til We Meet Again some years later (Robert Lord) won the Academy Award for Best Writing Original Story that year. Directed by Tay Garnett Roscoe Karns appears uncredited as the ship’s bartender.
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