Lovesusti The Worst Film Ever

Acensbart Excellent but underrated film

FirstWitch A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

Madilyn Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.

writers_reign Like the man said, you can't go home again, and you got that right, Tom. I saw this movie as a young kid and overall retained fond memories of the film overall without remembering anything specific except that in one segment a coupon checker employed by a Football Pool, attempts to 'slip' a winning entry - filled in after the results were broadcast - into the pile being checked. Even then my memory played tricks because I had spent a lifetime 'remembering' a female coupon checker when in fact it was Dennis Price, who against the run of play and laws of probabilities, had 'pulled' Greta Gynt and was acting at her behest. The other three segments had completely dropped off me mental radar and in playing order they were 1) a 'family' sequence in which, improbably, an 'ordinary' family inhabit what appears to be a minor mansion with umpteen rooms and a panelled dining room. Their genuine pools wins leads, inevitably to discord. In the second segment, milquetoast Mervyn Johns also enjoys a genuine win but is too brain-washed to quit his job. Succumbing to counter-brainwashing by his take-no-prisoners wife, he decides to fake a heart attack in order to retire on health grounds, only to suffer the real thing. The third segment is the one I half- remembered and the fourth features Edward Rigby as a disgruntled bass player in a large orchestra.Like the man also said, nostalgia isn't what it used to be.

MartinHafer "Easy money" is an anthology film with four segments about people who are claiming the top prize for a football (soccer) pool in the UK. The segments are strung together by some very heavy-handed narration. For the most part, the four segments are adequate and no more.The first segment is about a family that goes from being happy to being at each other's throats--all thanks to the winning ticket. In the end it has a nice twist, though I saw it coming well before it arrived. I'd give this one a 6. It is, however, a nice chance to see Petula Clark when she was a very young actress.The second was pretty much a waste of time in my opinion. A guy who doesn't want to win happens to win and then he dies of a heart attack. I am not sure exactly what the writer intended with this one--it was pretty awful and I'd give it a 2. Why?! The third was a 'crime does not pay' segment and instead of comedy it's got shades of film noir--with a real femme fatale. Mildly interesting but it didn't seem to fit the film--coming off as moralistic and ill-fitting. I'd give this one a 3...maybe a 4. It's well made but as I said, it didn't seem to work with the rest of the film.The final segment is about an old guy who plays with an orchestra. He's not particularly accomplished and when he learns he's won (in the middle of a performance), he announces to everyone that he's won and soon quits. I do wonder if the film makers copied this one from "If I Had a Million", as it's very, very, very similar to the final segment in it. It's mildly amusing and the best of the four segments, but the one in the earlier film was A LOT better--and more original. I'll give this one a 6--as the movie COULD have done this idea much better.Overall, this is a pleasant but undistinguished British film. While normally I adore British films, in this case Hollywood did a similar sort of thing a whole lot better--and earlier---making it more original.By the way, I agree with the one reviewer who felt this film was NOT the inspiration for the TV show "The Millionaire"--which was actually inspired more directly by the film "If I Had a Million". While there are similarities to each other, the plots for "Easy Money" and "The Millionaire" are too different.

ProfessorEcho Just to correct an earlier post someone made here: This film was NOT the inspiration for the 1950's American television series THE MILLIONAIRE, which featured an unseen character named John Beresford Tipton giving a million dollars to a different person every week. That series was spawned by a 1932 American film for Paramount entitled IF I HAD A MILLION. EASY MONEY is certainly a variation on the idea, portraying various people's stories after suddenly becoming wealthy. It's interesting in spots, but never quite achieves the levels of profundity or poignancy of the 1932 film.

calvertfan This movie is actually made up of 4 separate segments, each detailing how the football pools can affect someone's life.In the first, a family discovers they have won, and at first everything is rosy. Mother wishes to move to the seaside. The son can invest some money in a mate's business. The father can rejoin the cricket team. But then the promised money causes trouble. The daughter's fiance feels inadequate marrying a rich girl. The deal is shonky. How can they live in Bournemouth AND stay in the cricket team? A lot of interesting twists in this one, to say more would give it away. 9/10 for enjoyment, though David Tomlinson does appear a bit of a bumbling fool. Keep your eyes out for 15 year old Petula Clark!In the second, I think I fell asleep.In the 3rd, the charming Greta Gynt does a blatantly obvious Gilda impersonation - "The Shady Lady" wears the same gloves and dress, has her hair the same way, acts the same as she sings, and is thoroughly enticing. She's a nightclub singer in need of a bit of cash. Her boyfriend works at the pools office, so she hatches an elaborate plan to fool the system and fake a win. A definite 10/10 for this one.The final installment is light and humorous farce, about a double bass player who wins, and then discovers money isn't everything. Quick, borders on dull, but still a 6/10.