Review: The Ring (1927)
Carnival sideshow boxer Carl Brisson meets his match when Ian Hunter steps up to take him on…and promptly beats him. Humiliated in front of his girl (Lillian Hall-Davis), Brisson finds out that the victor (Ian Hunter) is actually an Australian boxing champ. Seeing her man defeated causes Hall-Davis to switch her interest to Hunter, whilst still continuing to see Brisson. Brisson actually ends up working as sparring partner to Hunter, but it’s obvious that his true destiny lies in challenging Hunter for the big belt. That’s if he can win enough fights in the meantime to even get a shot. Director Alfred Hitchcock ( “The Lodger” , “The 39 Steps” , “Strangers on a Train” ) scripted this 1927 boxing romance-drama himself (with only uncredited contributions by wife Alma Reville), and sadly it’s bottom-tier Hitchcock for me. I can’t figure out what his interest was here. Even by 1927 standards there’s not a lot going on here. It’s your standard two boxers rivalling for both professiona