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30s screen idol Gene Raymond's sole directing credit and one of his last leading roles is a nifty thriller which sees him play a trusted bank employee who, uncomfortably aware that life is passing him by, steals $1m in bonds from his employer. The robbery is simple, but reaching his ultimate destination of Shanghai proves less straightforward when he finds himself sat opposite possible femme fatale Osa Massen (credited as Stephanie Paull), who's being blackmailed by fellow passenger Francis Lederer. The routine plot is energised by a series of twists and is further bolstered by the interplay between the three leads, with Lederer standing out as a pleasingly slimy antagonist.

It seems as if the late 1940s was a time when every aging Hollywood pretty-boy star from the 1930s was trying to revitalize his career by film noir. MILLION DOLLAR WEEKEND was Gene Raymond's attempt. He not only starred and co-produced, he directed it, and DP Paul Ivanov offers some noir touches almost immediately: when Raymond is confirming his airplane reservation, the desk clerk sits in a room well shadowed by Venetian blinds.

Raymond leaves his brokerage office and takes that plane. First to Honolulu, for a brief stopover while waiting for his flight to Shanghai. On the way, however, he is waylaid by Osa Massen. She is being blackmailed by a smarmy Francis Lederer, who also steals Raymond's briefcase. This leads them back to San Francisco (where else for a film noir?) and revelations.

Despite the film noir touches, for most of its length, it doesn't fit so neatly into the category. Mostly, it seems a tired retread, in which we are forced to guess what is going on, because everyone is keeping secrets. Then, just before the hour mark, Raymond and Massen tell each other what is going on, their hopes and failures, and it's clear that Mr. Raymond was not just another pretty face, but an actual actor.

The movie didn't do well at the box office. It was released by Eagle-Lion, still working its way out of its PRC roots, and film noir was a drug on the market in 1948, even with topnotch talent at the height of its fame. Even so, it's a worthy addition to the genre, if only for that one scene, of two actors talking to each other about their human frailties.

This got better as it went along. Very enjoyable film.

Gene Raymond was a huge star in the 1930s. His lovely singing voice and pretty face meant stardom and a long marriage to a big leading lady, Jeanette MacDonald. However, by the 1940s, his pretty-boy looks were not quite so evident and film roles dried up. Here in 1948, he's far from pretty, but proves in "Million Dollar Weekend" that he was quite talented, as aside from starring in the film, he directed and co-wrote the screenplay! Overall, this B-movie is quite good.

It begins with Nicholas Lawrence at work as a stock broker. However, instead of just going home that Friday afternoon, Nick steals a million dollars worth of his companies money and bonds. His plan is to head to China and live the high life. However, on the way, he gets pulled into a young lady's problems, Cynthia (Osa Massen) is being pursued and blackmailed by a slime-bag, Alan (Frances Lederer). Alan allegedly saw her kill her husband and vows to take her for everything AND have her for his own. She is appalled and seeks help from a stranger, Nick. What's going to happen next? See the film.

The film has a few logical problems. Why would Nick CARE if a woman was in trouble? After all he IS an embezzler! Why would he leave a briefcase filled with a million sitting in his room where someone could steal it? And, why would the film co-star Osa Massen? Massen had very little charisma and really was very poor in the film. It wasn't just her odd accent--after all, Lederer also had a strong accent yet he was wonderful in the film. HOWEVER, and this is fortunate, Raymond's strong performance and the plot were able to overcome much of this. So, despite the film being in the public domain, it IS quite watchable and interesting.

Raymond directs, writes, and stars in this film and and does the first two capably. While he's shown in other work that he can act, I feel he plays it too cool here and unfortunately comes off as rather stiff. Similarly with Massen, she seems a bit detached. Lederer however is quite good as the greasy bad guy. Million Dollar Weekend isn't anything to get too excited about but still, was at times entertaining and worth checking out if you're curious.

Gene Raymond is director, writer, and lead actor in this chase action-thriller from 1948. (One of three movies he made that year.) Not sure if his stiff, wooden performance is intentional, but it's quite a change from his earlier roles, where happy-go-lucky boy meets girl, they have some silly misunderstanding, then it's resolved. In Million Dollar Weekend, Nicholas Lawrence (Raymond) is absconding with the company funds, and gets involved with the pretty girl Cynthia Strong (Osa Massen), who thinks she is also running away from her problems. Both of their plans for flight are sidetracked, and they agree to try to solve their own problems back home. Some scenes are a little weak, such as the car chase (filmed slow, then sped up ??) and a fight in the hotel hall. Interloper Alan Marker gives the strongest performance of the ensemble. Black and white flick. Not bad, no plot holes. Would be interesting to know if the filming locations (Hawaii and San Francisco) were authentic or backdrops.

I have no idea why this is classified as a comedy on this site! There are no comedic elements to this film - it is in fact a quite dark, 'film noir'-ish drama, and a very good one.

Quiet middle-aged businessman Nicholas Lawrence is fed up with his life and decides to embezzle his firm of a million dollars and flee to Shanghai. However, it becomes his misfortune to find himself seated with a dodgy pair of passengers on the plane: a beautiful young widow, Cynthia Strong, taking a trip to Hawaii to get away from it all after the untimely death of her husband, and tooth-clenchingly irritating Alan Marker, who has trailed her in an attempt to blackmail her by threatening to frame her for the murder of her husband.

When Alan has to make a trip to the gents', Cynthia begs Nicholas to help her by pretending he's an old friend of hers whom they have just mutually recognised, in the hopes that Alan will take the hint and go away. However, he instead sticks himself to the both of them like glue for the entire stopover in Hawaii and makes life miserable, culminating in his stealing Nick's stolen million and hightailing it to San Francisco. Needless to say, Nick is not now able to continue on to his destination of Shanghai, but instead he and Cynthia go in pursuit of Alan.

This is a very absorbing, well-acted dark drama with a sympathetic hero, a lovely and mysterious leading lady, and a memorably obnoxious villain (Francis Lederer, who played Alan, was the founder of the American National Academy of Performing Arts and apparently was still teaching acting up to the end of his life - so he certainly knew how to play a truly obnoxious bad guy).

Very recommended film which should be better known - you can easily imagine Bogart and Bacall in the leading roles, and if that had been the case, I think this film would have been a well-known classic, but the actors who do star in this film carry off their parts very well.

Gene Raymond and Osa Massen are on a plane bound for a stopover in Hawaii in Million Dollar Weekend, also starring Francis Lederer.

Raymond has just stolen a million dollars in securities from the firm where he works. Massen is running away, but to no avail. Lederer is on the plane and tells her that he knows she killed her husband.

Lederer causes no end of trouble once in Hawaii, and Massen and Raymond find they are attracted to one another. This leads to a big decision on both their parts.

Okay movie though I did not pick up a lot of chemistry between the leads. The end harkens back to Til We Meet Again.

Entertaining.

Pretty good noirish crime drama despite its obscurity. Seems businessman Nicholas (Raymond) is fleeing the city from something unknown to us. Also fleeing is unhappy Cynthia (Massen) who's being blackmailed by slimy Alan (Lederer) for killing her husband. Together they all meet on a commercial flight to Honolulu where Cynthia inveigles Nicholas to help her fend off the snarky Alan. So how will this star-crossed meeting turn out, especially with all the hidden interests. (I wish IMDB's Plot Summary hadn't disclosed Alan's secret for fleeing his job since that's a key part of the suspense.)

There's no attempt to charm the audience Hollywood style since the principals hardly crack a smile the whole way through. Massen's Cynthia, in particular, has to remain dour the whole way, hardly the typical leading lady demeanor. Nonetheless, her talent registers. Maybe stealing the show is Lederer's Alan who's about as slimy and dislikable as they come. I kept hoping his smirking good looks would get permanently cratered at some point.

As producer, director, and male lead, it looks like actor Raymond was following along path of actor Robert Montgomery who turned impresario several years earlier with Lady In The Lake (1946) and Ride The Pink Horse (1947). However, given Nicholas's dour personality, Raymond doesn't use his executive standing to elevate himself.

Anyway, don't look for a lot of action except for a scenic car chase and brief fisticuffs. The flick's really more about character and fate (the meet-ups) than cops and atmosphere especially with the scenic Hawaiian locations. Likely, the 72-minutes amounts to too much of a downer to ever gain a following. Nonetheless, the obscure production manages to carve out an oddball impact of its own.

With actors as (in)famous as Gene Raymond, Osa Massen or Francis Lederer - the latter as the Napoleon brandy-drinking blackmailer - the most you get is a Z production directed by none other than... Gene Raymond himself, with sloppy and hazy camera work by Paul Ivano (ever heard of him? Me neither!)

In fairness, Gene does look distracted, and not by beautiful Osa Massen alone. He steals $1 million from his boss and is en route to Shanghai when fellow traveler and fairly merry widow Massen asks him to play the part of long standing friend so as to protect her from nefarious blackmailer Lederer, who wants half her indemnity insurance... plus her.

Gene goes along with her plan, is swiftly relieved of the $1 million he stole, and proceeds to check every hotel in Fran San Cisco for the bad blackmailer... alas, the latter ought to have known better than to order Napoleon brandy.

And on that note of publicity for the famous brandy that probably paid for the entire Z production, Gene waits in the moonlight for the latecoming Massen for a happy ending in which murder, theft, and blackmail are all forgotten and forgiven.

Well, I ain't so forgiving about wasting 72 minutes of my precious life. 2/10.

One evening company executive Gene Raymond decides to start a new life, with the company's money. He takes all the money & stock papers he can from his office safe and boards a plane to Honolulu, where he will switch to a plane to Shanghai. On the plane he meets recent widow Osa Massen (credited as Stephanie Paull), who is being stalked by family friend Francis Lederer who tries to blackmail her, as he claims he saw her kill her husband. Massen tries to use Raymond to get Lederer off her back, but it only leads to more trouble when Lederer steals Raymond's suitcase with the money & papers and heads to San Francisco, just as Raymond decides his boring life is exciting enough after all.

Despite what IMDb thinks, this movie is pretty far removed from film noir. It has a few elements with the dissatisfied, stealing protagonist and the blackmailer, as well as a potentially murderous widow, but it doesn't amount to much to be honest. The movie is fairly bland, things stay predictable and straight-forward, and while it does entertain decently enough, the ending is as predictable as they get.

Actor Gene Raymond went all out on this one, as he also co-wrote the story (with the producer) and directed it. He is pretty solid here, as are Massen and slimy Lederer. If only Raymond's writing and directing was more exciting. Heck, even veteran cinematographer Paul Ivano ('Black Angel', 'The Shanghai Gesture', 'The Suspect') doesn't excite here with only a few shadowy scenes.

A missed opportunity, there was potential here. Enjoyable in parts (and Raymond and Massen work well together) but not noir enough to earn a recommendation. 6/10

Stumbled across this one and very disappointing.

Story was poor and acting very stiff , don't waste your time 😞

I really enjoyed this film. I was able to view it on YouTube.

The leads are attractive and work well together. Osa Masseen was quite an attractive woman and a very good actresses. Strangely she uses a different name for this film.

This film has been categorized as a noir. I don't think I'd quite classify it as such. It does have a somewhat original concept. It was a nice try at something new and I think for the most part they pulled it off.

The film starts with embezzlement and blackmail. I won't tell you how it ends.

Sure there are plot holes and implausibilities. Try to overlook them and enjoy.

Gene Raymond directed this film and plays the main protagonist, committing the perfect crime with all prospects of getting away with it, until he, naturally, meets a dame in trouble, who is harassed by a vicious scoundrel of a ruthless cynical blackmailer, who succeeds in getting them both into trouble. The journey was planned to go to Shanghai, it gets no further than Honolulu, and there there is an awkward return to San Francisco. The play-acting is good, the story and plot is good, the unexpected turnings are very appropriate, so it's indeed a noir of the better kind, and there are some striking parallels to the notoriously famous "Detour" some year earlier, except that here the villain is a man, while the one woman gains in favors the more she tells about herself. Finally we see the crime, and we can judge for ourselves about her true nature. It is only a B-noir, but it offers full satisfaction.