Hitchcock always does good direction and adds nice touches that enhance the enjoyment of the film, but this story, written by Hitch himself, is hard to swallow. Jack and Mabel are engaged to be married. Jack boxes at a sideshow. Boxing champ Bob and his manager come along and decide Jack is good enough to be employed as Bob's sparring partner - and fight some minor fights. While Jack and the manager work out the details, Bob is off with Mabel kissing her. He also gives her a bracelet that she treasures. Sure, Jack and Mabel do get married, but while Jack's working his way up in the boxing ring, Mabel is out partying with Bob. She doesn't hide much from Jack either - her arm around Bob at a party, playing piano while staring at a photo of Bob (and Jack is looking over her shoulder and she knows it!), even going over to Bob and talking at length to him after a sparring session, not to her husband. Sure Jack is jealous, but he does nothing except look angry. Supposedly he'll get his "revenge" in the ring one day when he's won enough matches and worked his way up to a match with the champ. In the meantime, Mabel continues going out with Bob. What can Jack be thinking? It all comes to a head one evening after Jack has finally won the match that will qualify him to fight the champ. Mabel comes home late after partying with Bob (Jack sees her from an upstairs window get out of a car, then go back to it leaning in the window and obviously kissing someone goodnight.) In the heat of the fight, Mabel picks up the photo of Bob that Jack threw on the floor, runs from Jack to the bedroom and locks the door. Jack goes to "the club" (there's always a "club" in the films) where he confronts Bob, slugs him and says Bob can get his revenge in the ring if he wants to. When Jack goes home, Mabel has left him with a note saying she's going to people who treat her properly. What does that mean - that she's going to Bob? You would think Jack would write her off at this point and never have anything to do with her. But wait. The night of the big match comes up. We see Mabel go into Bob's dressing room. Hitchcock wisely does not let us know what is said, but from the looks she's giving, she's still "mooning" over Bob. Here's where it gets very cliché and hokey. Jack is losing the fight - literally knocked out until saved by the bell. At his worst, Mabel goes to the barely conscious Jack in his corner between rounds and tells him she's in his corner, she's with him. I'll bet you can't guess what happens next? Yep, he gets up and wins the fight. What a surprise! And further still, the two of them are reunited. Jack, you're an idiot! Oh, and we are to suppose that because Mabel takes off the bracelet after Jack wins the fight and drops it on the floor that, symbolically, it's now over with Bob? Sorry, but it's hard to believe any man could be the willing cuckold Jack is in this movie. Rather than cheering for Jack and wanting to see them get back together, you spend your time wanting to knock some sense into Jack and tell him to go find someone else who he can trust when his back is turned!
Review of The Ring
