Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

Million Dollar Mystery Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov May 29, 2021

Richard Fleischer's "Million Dollar Mystery" (1987) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the disc include new audio commentary by journalist and author Bryan Reesman as well as vintage trailer for the film. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

Where do we find the money?

Richard Fleischer’s Million Dollar Mystery might be one of the very best films to see during the Memorial Day holiday weekend because its energy and enthusiasm are off the charts while its incredibly lush colors can almost make you feel the Arizona heat coming off the screen. In other words, it screams Summer is just around the corner, and after a long and dreary winter this feels awfully good.

In a rundown diner somewhere in the Arizona desert, a middle-aged man orders a bowl of smoky rattlesnake chili and moments later drops on the floor. Realizing that he has had a massive heart attack and is about to meet his creator, the man reveals to a group of strangers that have gathered around him that he can make them very rich -- but only if the sexy waitress Dotty (Pam Matteson) agrees to give him a big wet kiss. When she reluctantly agrees and makes his wish come true, the man announces that he has hidden four cases with million dollars each at different locations, and the first can be found “in the city of the bridge”. The man then kicks the bucket and everyone rushes out the door determined to get to the case before the other wannabe millionaires do. But finding the hidden case, and then the remaining three cases, proves to be not only a very tricky business, but an unexpectedly dangerous one as well.

Seasoned film aficionados will quickly realize that Million Dollar Mystery is very comfortable with the idea of borrowing from a whole bunch of other similarly-themed films, a few of which are considered genre classics. For example, while not as elaborate the desert action uses the blueprint that It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World and The Gumball Rally worked with, and most of the group mayhem draws inspiration from the Cannonball Run films. (Given the nature of the most outrageous group material, Cannonball Run II, in particular, could have been something of a model). Or perhaps Million Dollar Mystery does not do any borrowing at all and the reason why some similarities exist is because these types of road comedies have to follow a particular formula to be as entertaining as they are. Whatever the case might be, the familiar mayhem that is at the core of Million Dollar Mystery is very, very entertaining.

The treasure hunters are not just a motley crew of instantly forgettable characters either. Rollie and Lollie (Eddie Deezen and Wendy Sherman) are two hilarious nerdy newlyweds who want to get rich quick but spend just as much time looking for the right location to produce some high-intensity romantic fireworks. The Briggs family (Rick Overton, Mona Lyden, Douglas Emerson) are equally entertaining because they have left suburbia and entered the desert without having a clue how the real world functions. Talentless rock singer Crush Daniel McDonald) and his three backup singers (Penny Baker, LaGena Hart, Tawny Fere’ Ellis) are high on energy but low on what is typically needed to at least appear bright. Traveling professional wrestlers Bad Boris (Bob Schott) and Awful Abdul (H.B. Haggerty) accidentally join the search for the hidden millions but very quickly leave the impression that they seem to enjoy the action a lot more than they should. The loony ranger Slaughter (Rich Hall) accidentally discovers the right girl to fall in love with, while officers Gretchen (Gail Neely) and Quinn (Kevin Pollak) initially go after the treasure hunters but then change their minds and decide to claim their share of the hidden millions as well.

Fleischer dispatches the mayhem in a very familiar direction and then wraps it up in a predictable manner, but this isn’t a crucial flaw because the atmosphere throughout the film is what makes it attractive. It’s silly fun of that vintage kind that now seems like a lost art. Sure, other films have done it better, but this is the type of entertainment that does not need to be original to be effective.

Million Dollar Mystery Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Million Dollar Mystery arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber.

The release is sourced from an old master that was supplied by StudioCanal. Unfortunately, on top of looking very dated the master does not have stable organic qualities. Indeed, its sharpness and contrast levels are quite inconsistent, which is why various areas of the film can appear quite harsh. The daylight footage from the desert is the most problematic, but even indoor footage routinely looks shaky. (For reference, the quality of the presentation is only slightly better than that of Soldier Blue, which is another release that was sourced from a shaky old master supplied by StudioCanal). Delineation and depth range from underwhelming to decent, but the larger your screen is, the easier it will be for you to conclude that the entire film should look quite a bit better. Colors are acceptable. However, they can look healthier and better balanced. Image stability is good. There are no distracting large debris, cuts, damage marks, warped or torn frames, but some tiny white flecks and blemishes can be spotter. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Million Dollar Mystery Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

The audio is very clear and dynamic intensity is as good as I expected it to be. However, while viewing the film I noticed a few areas with minor unevenness. It is not distracting, but it is of the kind that makes you realize that the master that was used to produce the release is indeed older. Everything else was fine.

Million Dollar Mystery Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - vintage U.S. trailer for Million Dollar Mystery. In English, not subtitled. (2 min, 480/60i).

• Commentary - entertainment journalist and author Bryan Reesman offers a predictably informative analysis of the film and its production history, as well as plenty of interesting observations about its style and the era in which it was conceived.

Million Dollar Mystery Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I had a great time with Million Dollar Mystery. Admittedly, I am almost never disappointed by these types of outrageous vintage comedies -- if they feature prolonged car chases shot in the dusty South it is actually impossible for me to dislike them because I have a soft spot for desert visuals -- but this film has some genuinely hilarious moments and it was perfect to see during the Memorial Day holiday weekend. Kino Lorber's release is sourced from an old and regrettably rather rough master that was supplied by StudioCanal. If you want to have Million Dollar Mystery in your library, I suggest picking your copy when you can find it heavily discounted.