Films like 'It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World' and 'Scavenger Hunt' are films I remember watching when I was a kid and loving the crazy off the wall antics of people wanting to get rich quick! I really enjoy these kinds of films. Well, in 1987 there was another of these films. It was entitled Money Mania or Also Known As The Million Dollar Mystery.
Over the years like most of these low budget films, this film has gained a somewhat cult following. Now the good folks at Kino Lorber under the KL Studio Classics label are giving this cult classic a Blu-ray release that the fans are going to love.
At a roadside diner in the southwest, a former White House aide takes a seat at the counter, orders a bowl of chili and suddenly drops dead of a heart attack. But before he dies, he reveals to the rest of the customers that he’s hidden $4 million in embezzled loot on four different bridges throughout Arizona. Seems logical? At least in these type of movies.
Now the race is on as a nerdy newlyweds, a family of snooty yuppies, a sexy girl group, professional wrestlers, bumbling federal agents and one very deranged ranger—all are after a huge payday. Who is going to get the money?
Now this film was a unique one in the fact that it was a mystery that if someone could figure out where the money was hid they would win a millions dollars. Needless to say this was not a successful film. It basically bombed. But that doesn't mean this film wasn't a fun one to watch.
I have to be honest. I didn't know this film even existed, until Kino Lorber announced it. When I read about it, needless to say I was all in to check it out. And I am so glad I did. The things I love so much about "Mad World" and "Scavenger Hunt" are found in this film too. It is just a fun film to escape from the cares of life for an hour and a half.
Richard Fleischer directed such great films as The Narrow Margin, 20,000 Leagues under the Sea, Fantastic Voyage, Soylent Green and many more. But here in his final film he brings us off the wall craziness and does it with such pizazz. While this film doesn't have the star power of "Mad World" there is a lot of very recognizable stars in this one from Tom Bosley (Happy Days), Eddie Deezen (Grease), Rick Overton (Eight legged Freaks), Rich Hall (No necessarily the news), Kevin Pollack (The Usual Suspects), H.B. Heggerty (Deathsport), Rudy De Luca (High Anxiety), Penny Baker (Playboy).
The film has been transferred in 1080p in it's original 2.35:1 aspect ratio. The audio is a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. English subtitles are included for the deaf and hard of hearing. The transfer looks pretty nice. The picture is sharp and the colors are vibrant. The audio is clear and free of hiss and pops.
The bonus features included;
- Audio Commentary by Entertainment Journalist and Author Bryan Reesman
Bryan does a great job explaining the Glad tie-in with the movie and so many more interesting facts about this mostly forgotten 80s film. - Theatrical Trailer
- Additional trailers for Honky Tonk Freeway, Moving Violations, Running Scared and Bank Shot
In this era people may not know Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World or Scavenger Hunt. But they may know Rat Race. The cray stunts found in Rat Race are on full display in the Million Dollar Mystery as well!
So if you love those crazy off the wall comedy adventures as much as I do, I can not recommend this one enough. Kino Lorber did a great job on this Blu-ray. Kudos to them, and a huge thank you from film fans. Head over to Amazon.com and get your copy today!
Out of 4 Film Reels (4 Being the Best) KL Studio Classic's Blu-ray of Million Dollar Mystery receives...
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