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Undescribable Perfection

Simply A Masterpiece

For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

It's not great by any means, but it's a pretty good movie that didn't leave me filled with regret for investing time in it.

There's far too many characters sticking their nose into this potentially intriguing caper film noir that twists around like the Pacific Coast Highway and ends up at a dead end. Who are the good guys, who are the bad guys? You think you know one minute, but the next scene says something completely different. It's obviously set around a counterfeit money ring, with a Scotland Yard agent (John Sutton) out to crack it, involving himself on the inside and risking his cover more than once. Beaver's dad, Hugh Beaumont, is the head bad guy, with Lon Chaney Jr. ripping off his classic performance in "Of Mice Men" to desperately try to steal scenes. Doris Merrick, like a young Lana Turner, is a very feminine, seemingly innocent femme fatale, but unlike Turner, she just comes off as adolescent and without interesting motivation. There's some interesting action sequences but when you start thinking about what's been going on among all the twists and turns, eventually you realize that the script took a wrong turn somewhere and the main road is nowhere in sight.

A group of counterfeiters are under investigation by Scotland Yard and the FBI, U.S. Treasury Department. Can they bust up this counterfeiting ring before it's too late? Lon Chaney plays Louie Struber - a character similar to Lennie Small (Of Mice and Men). Louie ain't too bright, he's tough & mean but sometimes hilarious! Louie has a sidekick named Frankie Dodge played brilliantly by George O'Hanlon. When Louie and Frankie are together expect a few laughs! To give you an idea of the film's humor: Philip Drake (Hugh Beaumont) says in reference to the size of the counterfeiting plates: "One is larger than the other." Louie responds with "That ain't true. One's smaller than the other." -- Yes I laughed out loud! Wonderful film, I really enjoyed this one! BTW If you like this film try another Chaney film called "Eyes of the Underworld".9/10

1948's "The Counterfeiters" has a stronger cast than expected for a low budget independent, with top billing going to John Sutton, investigating the source of counterfeit bills that have found their way into Britain. The gang is headed by Hugh Beaumont (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER), effectively cast against type, assisted by dimwitted Louie Struber (Lon Chaney) and timid Frankie Dodge (George O'Hanlon). Doris Merrick plays a femme fatale, orchestrating a dizzying array of twists and turns that leave both sides breathless (she went on to do "Untamed Women" and "The Neanderthal Man" before her 1955 retirement). Among the good guys is Robert Kent, billed under the name 'Douglas Blackley,' which he only used during the late 40s. Former teen model Joi Lansing appears briefly as (surprise!) a model, billed as 'Joy Loveland,' first using the name Lansing in 1951. In his film debut as a scowling gang member with few lines, is Scott Brady, born Gerald Kenneth Tierney in 1924 (younger brother of Lawrence), here listed (for the first and last time) as 'Gerard Gilbert.' George O'Hanlon delivers in a tailor-made 'Joe McDoakes' role, and Lon Chaney is both dangerous and amusing doing another 'Lennie Small' turn.

This nicely done low budget B-noir has Hugh Beaumont as the very unpleasant head of a counterfeiting ring. Three minutes in and old "Ward Cleaver" is laying a vicious beating (for 1948) on undercover cop John Sutton. John Sutton is an undercover detective following the trail of phony money from London to L.A. Doris Merrick plays Beaumont's dolly. Lon Chaney, in a role he played many times, is Beaumont's rather dim-witted heavy. The story revolves around several sets of 20 dollar plates. The bodies pile up as everyone makes a grab for the plates. Each of the gang members decide they should be in charge of the profits. This of course means plenty of the old knife to the back nastiness. Merrick is especially good as she plays one gang member off against another. An unbilled Scott Brady appears as a junior member of the gangland varsity. When Chaney foolishly uses counterfeit cash at the racetrack the Police have the lead they need. With John Law hot on their trail the gang rents a boat and heads for South America. The mandatory number of fisticuffs, gunplay and dead bodies ensue before order is restored. Look quick and you can catch Joi Lansing in a bit part. The rest of the cast includes, George O'Hanlon, Don Harvey and Fred Colby.The director of this quick little B was Sam Newfield. Newfield helmed hundreds of low rent films under various pseudonyms. These films included, APOLOGY FOR MURDER, MURDER IS MY BUSINESS, BLONDE FOR A DAY, WESTERN PACFIC AGENT, MONEY MADNESS and HI-JACKED. The d of p was James Brown who likewise worked mainly on low-rent fare.