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A Simple Case of Money Reviews

1952
1 hr 22 mins
Comedy
NR

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A Simple Case of Money (originally released in 1950 as Millionaires d'un Jour) is set in motion when a greenhorn reporter (Bernard Lajarrige) carelessly prints the wrong winning number in the French national lottery. As the reporter and his boss (Leon Bellieres) defend themselves in court, they are confronted with several people whose lives were profoundly affected by the error. Gradually, these "victims" come to realize that they are far better off as losers than they ever would have been as winners. This is especially true of estranged husband and wife Pierre (Jean Brochard) and Helene Berger (Gaby Morlay), whose tattered marriage is patched together by the experience. Simple Case of Money is most effective as a character study, and least effective as a satire of provincial manners and mores. Coming off best in the large cast is Pierre Laquey as a lovably antisocial centenarian.

When a young French newspaperman accidentally publishes the wrong numbers for the lottery, the lives of various people are affected. Bellieres, Lajarrige's publisher, brings his newshound to court and calls various would-be winners as witnesses. Included in the courtroom parade are an inebriated bum, an unhappily married couple, a river barge captain, and the oldest man in France, a feisty 107-year-old. It turns out that although none of them get the money they thought they had won, the group is still much better off than they had been before the error. This French production is charming in its own way, though it suffers from some unnecessary repetition of gags. The cast and direction are competent, making the offbeat premise work nicely.