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The Million Pound Note

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This article is about the film. For the banknote, see Bank of England £1,000,000 note.

The Million Pound Note
British theatrical poster
Directed byRonald Neame
Screenplay byJill Craigie
Based onThe Million Pound Bank Note
by Mark Twain
Produced byJohn Bryan
Earl St. John
Ronald Neame
StarringGregory Peck
Ronald Squire
Wilfrid Hyde-White
Jane Griffiths
CinematographyGeoffrey Unsworth
Edited byClive Donner
Music byWilliam Alwyn
Production
company
Distributed byGeneral Film Distributors
Release date
  • 7 January 1954 (1954-01-07)
Running time
90 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Box office$1.1 million[1]

The Million Pound Note is a 1954 British comedy film directed by Ronald Neame and starring Gregory Peck, Ronald Squire, Wilfrid Hyde-White and Jane Griffiths. It is based on the 1893 Mark Twain short story "The Million Pound Bank Note", and is a precursor to the 1983 film Trading Places.[2]

It was shot at Pinewood Studios and on location around London. The film's sets were designed by the art directors John Box and Jack Maxsted. It was released by Rank's General Film Distributors. The American release was handled by United Artists under the alternative title Man with a Million.

Plot

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In 1903, American seaman Henry Adams is stranded penniless in Britain and gets caught up in an unusual wager between two wealthy, eccentric brothers, Oliver and Roderick Montpelier. They persuade the Bank of England to issue a one million pound banknote, which they present to Adams in an envelope, only telling him that it contains some money. Oliver asserts that the mere existence of the note will enable the possessor to obtain whatever he needs, while Roderick insists that it would have to be spent for it to be of any use.

Once Adams gets over the shock of discovering how much the note is worth, he tries to return it to the brothers, but is told that they have left for a month. He then finds a letter in the envelope, explaining the wager and promising him a job if he can avoid spending the note for the month.

At first, everything goes as Oliver had predicted. Adams is mistaken for an eccentric millionaire and has no trouble getting food, clothes, and a hotel suite on credit, just by showing his note. The story of the note is reported in the newspapers. Adams is welcomed into exclusive social circles, meeting the American ambassador and English aristocracy. He becomes very friendly with Portia Lansdowne, the niece of the Duchess of Cromarty. Then fellow American Lloyd Hastings asks him to back a business venture. Hastings tells Adams that he does not have to put up any money himself; the mere association will allow Hastings to raise the money that he needs to develop his gold mine by selling shares.

Trouble arises when the Duke of Frognal, who had been unceremoniously evicted from the suite Adams now occupies, hides the note as a joke. When Adams is unable to produce the note, panic breaks out amongst the shareholders and Adams's creditors. All is straightened out in the end, and Adams is able to return the note to the Montpelier brothers at the end of the month.[3]

Cast

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Production

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The short story had previously been adapted for British TV in 1950.

Director Ronald Neame and producer John Bryan had just enjoyed a big success for Rank with The Card, a comedy based on a comic novel. They decided to film Mark Twain's short story and hired Jill Craigie to adapt it into a screenplay. John Davis of the Rank Organisation wanted a star to play the lead role, so Neame and Bryan approached Gregory Peck, who was then in France, seeing the woman he would marry. Peck wanted to stay in Europe, liked the screenplay and agreed to make the film. United Artists agreed to provide some finance, enabling the filmmakers to afford Peck's fee.[4] Peck agreed to make another film in England for Rank, The Purple Plain, as well as a film in Germany, Night People. Neame says Peck's fee was £75,000.[5] His signing was announced in April 1953.[6]

Neame wanted Dinah Sheridan to play the female lead but she had retired. "We were in desperate straights because he could not find a girl," he said.[5] Jane Griffiths was cast.[7]

Filming started May 1953. The majority of filming took place in Pinewood Studios where the sets were designed by John Box and Jack Maxsted. The director also made use of locations such as Belgrave Square.[8]

Release

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The film was given a royal premiere in Auckland New Zealand in front of the Queen and the Duke of Ediburgh.[9]

Reception

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Box office

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The film was very popular in Australia.[10]

According to Variety, the film earned rentals of $1.1 million in North America.[1] Critic Pauline Kael wrote "This ingratiating English comedy failed completely in this country [the USA]; Americans may have assumed from the author’s name that the film (which is set in Twain’s period) was a dull classic."[11]

Critical

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In the 21st century, Hal Erickson described it as "satisfying", with humour that makes the audience's laughter cascade.[12]

References

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  1. ^ a b "1954 Box Office Champs". Variety Weekly. 5 January 1955. p. 59. - figures are rentals in the US and Canada
  2. ^ Drumm, Diana (8 June 2013). "'Trading Places': More Than 7 Things You May Not Know About The Film (But We Won't Bet A Dollar On It)". Indiewire. Retrieved 25 December 2016.
  3. ^ "PECK'S MILLION". The Australian Women's Weekly. Vol. 21, no. 33. Australia, Australia. 13 January 1954. p. 32. Retrieved 16 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. ^ Neame p 141-142
  5. ^ a b McFarlane, Brian (1992). Sixty voices : celebrities recall the golden age of British cinema. BFI. p. 177.
  6. ^ "Clergy Commend Fatima Picture". Daily Mirror. No. 3708. New South Wales, Australia. 23 April 1953. p. 28 (Cable Edition). Retrieved 16 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. ^ "A "Peck" of praise". The Daily Telegraph. Vol. XIV, no. 33. New South Wales, Australia. 5 July 1953. p. 38. Retrieved 16 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. ^ Ronald Neame; Barbara Roisman Cooper (2003). Straight from the Horse's Mouth: Ronald Neame, an Autobiography. Scarecrow Press. p. 142. ISBN 9781461671428.
  9. ^ "QUEEN IS AMUSED". Truth. No. 2805. Queensland, Australia. 27 December 1953. p. 2. Retrieved 16 May 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
  10. ^ "Upbeat for Brit pix in Aussie forecast". Variety. 17 March 1954. p. 12.
  11. ^ Kael, Pauline (1985). 5001 nights at the movies : a guide from A to Z. Henry Holt. p. 362.
  12. ^ "The Million Pound Note (1954) - Ronald Neame | Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related". AllMovie.
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