TrueJoshNight Truly Dreadful Film

Sameer Callahan It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

Sarita Rafferty There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Darin One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

mark.waltz Blowing off the boss who has taken advantage of your services; Vowing revenge on the pigs on the road who cut you off rudely; Getting even for years of protecting an inventory and making it a smashing experience; Baking your pies the way you want and making the patronizing social service people do the rocking; Getting rest in a bed without the presence of a business transaction. That's just some of the goings on in this outstanding multi-story masterpiece, both comic and dramatic, often tragic, sometimes ironic, and in a few cases, quite poignant. It surrounds the estate of steel tycoon Richard Bennett, tired of the family hangers on, the yes men, the red tape and the coddling of well meaning but annoying servants. Seemingly on the verge of death, he pops out of that state and announces without apology that he's going to leave his entire fortune to a bunch of strangers, unaware that they are about to have their lives changed entirely.Some of the segments are better than others, but a few are now regarded as classic. Recipients W.C. Fields and Alison Skipworth decide to get revenge on the road hogs and buy an army of cars to do to them what they've been doing to others. Tired clerk Charles Laughton takes the longest walk to give to his boss what many of us would like to do, although he does it more politely. Nagged Charlie Ruggles is tired of his wife Mary Boland's incessant nagging and takes his revenge out in a glass shop. "Lady of the evening" Wynne Gibson simply does what many of us would like to do when the world closes in on us, and she does it in style. Then there's the final story of the neglected May Robson, an old dear longing for family visits and the chance to make her famous pies again. The well meaning retirement home staff just wants her to relax, and when she gets her bequest, she gets the best revenge of all.Prepare to laugh at times and look on in shock at others, because in this depression era "fantasy", not all dreams come true, and one comes at quite the wrong time. A few triumph, one gets a well deserved rest, and as for Bennett, he finds that a rich man's doctor doesn't always have all the answers. This obviously lead Robson to be cast as Apple Annie in Capra's "Lady For a Night", making her one of the few mature woman movie stars who could handle leading roles in addition to regular supporting roles. Once you see this movie, I guarantee you will never forget it.

writers_reign An early example of the pantechnicon entry this has dated badly but I accept that had I seen it in a movie theatre closer to the time it was released (32' 33'?) as many writing here seem to have done I may be more sympathetic. I have probably been frightened by other superior examples of the genre, Julien Duvivier's Un Carnet de bal especially, this was only four years after Million but in style and quality it is light years ahead. In the next decade England weighed in with Dead Of Night and two adaptations - Quartet/Trio - of short stories by Willie Maugham (a third, Encore, arrived in 1950), plus Easy Money and Train Of Events. Alas, there isn't much one can say about If I Had A Million but I'm glad I finally got round to seeing it.

Paularoc This episodic movie has something for everyone - humor, hope, pathos. It also has a stellar cast, a who's who of Paramount actors of the early 30s. It has a simple storyline of a millionaire who thinks he's dying and since he dislikes (quite rightly) all of his relatives and colleagues decides to give a million dollars to strangers selected out of the phone book. The movie was clearly the inspiration for the later very popular and, by me, fondly remembered Millionaire television series. In addition to its cast, the movie's strength is its variety. All of the episodes are good but the episode with the most impact is the Wynne Gibson one where she plays the weary prostitute who first uses part of her windfall by getting the best room in a fancy hotel where she can spend the night alone. Very powerful episode. The episode with the always wonderful May Robson is both sad and inspiring. And the movie has the comedy vignettes with Charlie Ruggles and Mary Boland, W.C. Fields and Alison Skipworth, and Charles Laughton. A superior film worth watching and re-watching.

mukava991 This box of Paramount chocolates contains a couple of duds but enough tasty morsels to justify consumption. The episodes are housed in a raucous, funny framing story starring the one and only Richard Bennett as a cantankerous millionaire who decides to give his fortune away to total strangers rather than leave it to the greedy pack of family vultures lurking around his death bed. We are presented with several outcomes of the bestowal of sudden unearned wealth: fulfillment of revenge fantasies, degrees of self-indulgence, and even two unfortunate cases where character flaws or plain old uncooperative fate prevent the recipient from enjoying the miraculous bounty offered.The best segment, combining high comedy with deep drama, stars the incomparable May Robson as a sad denizen of an old ladies' home who turns the tables on management when her ship comes in. Another geriatric entry stars Alison Skipworth as a tea shoppe proprietress (and former vaudeville performer) and her male companion (WC Fields) who avenge themselves on every roadhog they can find after one such menace totals their new car. Although much of this little adventure is given to repeated car crashes, the performances of the leads lift it from common slapstick.Second runners up: A sweet tale about a mild-mannered, henpecked clerk in a china shop (Charles Ruggles, in the kind of role one would normally associate with WC Fields) whose money provides the opportunity for messy and satisfying revenge on his boss; Mary Boland is on hand as his chatterbox wife. Equally good is Charles Laughton in a very short segment about how a clerk reacts to the arrival of a check in the mail—simple, beautiful, stately and very obviously directed by Ernst Lubitsch. One notch down from these are segments with George Raft as a desperate forger who can't cash his check because he's wanted by the law; Wynne Gibson as a prostitute who treats herself to a luxury hotel room as reward for having suffered a life of degradation. At the bottom: a uncomfortable bit with Gene Raymond as a death row prisoner; a rather strained segment with Gary Cooper, Roscoe Karns and Jack Oakie as three disobedient Marines who think their check is a practical joke.