Any Which Way You Can (1980)

A trucker turned prize fighter, his brother and their pet orangutan have a series of misadventures involving the mob, corrupt cops, motorcycle gangs and pretty dames.

Director:

Buddy Van Horn

Writers:

Stanford Sherman, Jeremy Joe Kronsberg (characters)

Stars:

Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, Geoffrey Lewis

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Clint Eastwood	...	Philo Beddoe
Sondra Locke	...	Lynn Halsey-Taylor
Geoffrey Lewis	...	Orville
William Smith	...	Jack Wilson
Harry Guardino	...	James Beekman
Ruth Gordon	...	Ma
Michael Cavanaugh	...	Patrick Scarfe
Barry Corbin	...	Fat Zack
Roy Jenson	...	Moody
Bill McKinney	...	Dallas
William O'Connell	...	Elmo
John Quade	...	Cholla
Al Ruscio	...	Tony Paoli Sr.
Dan Vadis	...	Frank
Camila Ashland	...	Hattie (as Camila Ashlend)

Storyline

Philo Beddoe (Clint Eastwood) takes part in a bare knuckle fight, as he does, to make some more money than he can earn from his car repair business. He decides to retire from fighting, but when the Mafia comes along and arranges another fight, he is pushed into it. A motorcycle gang and an orangutan called Clyde (C.J. the Orangutan) all add to the "fun".

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Plot Keywords:

orangutan | bare knuckle fighting | fistfight | hit in the face | bare knuckle boxing | 

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Taglines:

Faster, funnier and wilder. It'll knock you out.

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Genres:

Action | Comedy

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

The movie later on had a major re-release on a double-bill with its predecessor Every Which Way but Loose (1978).

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Goofs

There are two bass guitar players on the stage during the first song sung by Sondra Locke ("One Too Many Women In Your Life"). One is standing on her left and the other is seated in the back wearing a white shirt and bluejeans. There are not two bass tracks in the song.

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Quotes

Philo Beddoe: [after Jack rescues Philo in the brawl at the Palamino] You play a hell of a game of squash.
Jack Wilson: So do you. I believe that makes us even.
Philo Beddoe: I believe it does. Find out what you want to know?
Jack Wilson: Yeah, I did.
[smiles approvingly]
Jack Wilson: You're fast and you like pain. You eat it like candy. I've seen a few cases like that in my time. The more they get hurt, the more dangerous they become. But you got to be durable, too. Real durable. Most ain't.
Philo Beddoe: Yeah, you're right. Most ain't.
Jack Wilson: Let's call this fight off. There's no point ...
[...]

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Alternate Versions

In the version shown on network television, scenes were added that were cut from the theatrical and home video versions. Those scenes include: Big Tony's thugs shooting Beekman's snake (the scene showing Beekman later eating the snake when he finds out the fight is on exist in all prints) and Big Tony ordering his commercial jet to head back to Jackson for the big fight. The final credits are time compressed or speeded up to end sooner.

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Connections

Referenced in Saturday Night Live: Karen Black/Cheap Trick/Stanley Clarke Trio (1981)

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Soundtracks

Orangutang Hall Of Fame
Written by Cliff Crofford (as C. Crofford) and Snuff Garrett (as S. Garrett)
Sung by Cliff Crofford

User Reviews

Better than the first one

It may not be saying much, but Any Which Way You Can is much better than Every Which Way But Loose.

The biker gang are funnier this time around, Clyde gets far more screen time (which is a good thing), and the big fight near the end is a fairly brutal cracker.

A no-brainer, certainly, but who can resist seeing Barry Corbin driving his plane along the roads, in order to get to the fight?

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 December 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

Any Which Way You Can

Filming Locations:

Jackson Hole Airport, Jackson, Wyoming, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$8,024,663, 21 December 1980

Gross USA:

$70,687,344

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$70,687,344

Company Credits

Production Co:

The Malpaso Company, Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

116 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color (DeLuxe)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1