One Way Passage (1932)

One Way Passage - 1932

Today's film is "One Way Passage" from 1932.  It stars William Powell, a great favorite of mine, and Kay Francis.  The two meet in a bar in Hong Kong, and unbeknownst to each other are traveling on the same liner to San Francisco, with a stopover in Honolulu.  Their love story is instant.  The moment they meet each other nothing else matters.  Powell plays Dan, a condemned murderer on his way to a hangman's noose in San Francisco.  Kay Francis plays Joan, a terminally ill young woman who is fighting to have her last days filled with happiness.

The supporting cast includes Aline MacMahon, Frank McHugh, Warren Hymer, Willie Fung, and Roscoe Karns.

Their first meeting takes place at a bar in Hong Kong, and happens quite by accident.  She accidentally bumps him, causing him to spill his drink.  "There seems to be a few drops left," he says after she apologizes.  "Always the most precious, the last few drops," Joan says.  "That's luck."  They drink while gazing into each other's eyes.

When they finish their drink, they break the glasses and lay the stems on top of each other.  They part company, not knowing that they will soon meet again.

Dan is later arrested for murder by a detective and handcuffed to his side.  He breaks away from the detective by jumping overboard, handcuffed to the detective but aware of where he keeps the key.  He saves the detectives life.  Sgt. Steve Burke is so grateful he lets Dan stay uncuffed for the rest of the cruise.  While in the water, he looks up at the deck of the ship and catches a glimpse of Joan.  He scours the ship looking for her, and when he thinks he's lost his chance at finding her, she taps him on the back and they share a drink.

Once again, they break the glasses, leaving the stems crossed on the bar.

A shipboard romance ensues.  The two spend every moment of the next four weeks together, falling in love.

Dan even dodges his detective and manages to get in some sightseeing in Honolulu.  While there, he makes plans to ditch the ship entirely and books passage on another ship heading the opposite way.  Before he gets the chance to, Joan collapses, and Dan makes the decision to see her to the safety of their ship and her doctor.  Joan's doctor tells Dan that she is very dangerously ill and needs absolute rest if she's to make it to the mainland alive.  Dan comes clean to the doctor about his future, and says he must tell her.  The doctor counsels him not to shock her, for it will kill her.

On the last day of the cruise, they share a farewell drink.  "Remember our first?" Joan asks.  "We thought it was our last," Dan says.  "You never can tell."  

They once again break their glasses and cross the stems.  They part company after saying they want to see in the New Year in Agua Caliente, Mexico, both knowing they will never make it.  Joan overhears a porter talking about how Dan is a murderer and runs to find him.  After saying farewell to him one last time at the gangplank, she collapses into her doctor's arms as Dan is led away by the detective to San Quentin and his eventual execution.

Fast forward a month, and the New Year's celebrations are going strong in Agua Caliente.  The nightclub is crowded with people.  The camera moves to the bar where two bartenders are talking and they hear a crash of glass.

The bartenders turn around to see two cocktail glasses broken and the stems crossed.

A few seconds later, the glasses vanish.

Cast rundown:

   William Powell........................................Dan Hardesty

   Kay Francis............................................Joan Ames

   Aline MacMahon......................................Betty

   Frank McHugh........................................Skippy

   Warren Hymer........................................Sgt. Steve Burke

   Willie Fung.............................................Hong Kong Curio Dealer

   Roscoe Karns.........................................S.S. Maloa Bartender

That's a wrap for One Way Passage.  The film is absolutely beautiful.  From the moment Dan and Joan meet you are drawn in to their love story.  It was given the Academy Award for Best Story, and it is so well-deserved.

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