Money Madness

Money Madness is a 1948 film noir mystery film directed by Sam Newfield starring Hugh Beaumont and Frances Rafferty.[1]

For the silent film, see Money Madness (1917 film).
Money Madness
Theatrical release poster
Directed bySam Newfield
Produced bySigmund Neufeld
Screenplay byAl Martin
Story byAl Martin
StarringHugh Beaumont
Frances Rafferty
Music byLeo Erdody
CinematographyJack Greenhalgh
Edited byHolbrook N. Todd
Production
company
Sigmund Neufeld Productions
Distributed byFilm Classics
Release date
  • April 15, 1948 (1948-04-15) (United States)
Running time
73 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Plot

Steve Clark (Hugh Beaumont) is on a Los Angeles-bound bus and gets off in a small town on the way. He first hides a large amount of cash he had been carrying in his suitcase. Then he gets a job, which leads him to a chance encounter with Julie Saunders (Frances Rafferty), a local woman in her 20s. Julie lives with an elderly, bitter aunt who makes her life miserable. Clark, with his charm and original outlook on life, instantly becomes a ray of sunlight for her, and they quickly marry.

However, Clark soon admits to her that the marriage is part of a plan he has crafted. This plan will help him launder a large amount of ill-gotten cash—but it also involves murder and will make Julie an accessory to it, against her will.

Cast

Reception

Critical response

Film critic Dennis Schwartz, while giving the film a mixed review, liked the feature, writing, "A low-grade film noir that has its chilling moments. It opens with Julie Saunders (Frances Rafferty) sentenced to a prison term of ten years for being an accomplice to murder. A flashback is used to show how a sweet girl like Julie could have gotten into such deep trouble ... Beaumont went on to be Ward Cleaver in television's Leave It to Beaver, but here he's great to watch as a sleazeball and sicko killer. It's film where it takes a suspension of belief to get through all the problems built into the implausible plot, but nevertheless the film has a certain insanity kicking in that somehow works to give it an edge."[2]

References
  1. Money Madness at the American Film Institute Catalog.
  2. Schwartz, Dennis. Ozus' World Movie Reviews, film review, April 17, 2005. Accessed: July 11, 2013.
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