"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.
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.