The Luckiest Guy in the World

Barry Nelson has been embezzling. His wife walks out on him. Then his luck begins to change, and he sees a way to start all over again. He only needs to get away with murder.

The series of crime two-reelers had been running for a dozen years at this point, but they had gotten a bit stale, and did not comport well with MGM's post-War optimism. In the 1930s, everyone was worried about crime and gangsters. In the first half of the 1940s, it was foreign spies. Now they figured the string was run out, and that CRIME DOES NOT PAY now longer paid. Good thing they went out on a high note.

"Vurn" (Barry Nelson) is $150 in the hole to his bookie and so borrows the proceeds of his insurance job to settle the debt and back some horses. He regularly fobs off his boss (Milton Kibbee), but this time he wants the cash - and next day, too. Luckily, his wife (Eloise Hardt) has a nest-egg from her late mother, but she isn't about to hand it over to this wastrel and so a scuffle ensues with tragic consequences. Rather than face up to those, he decides to abscond but before he can board the bus he realises that there might just be a better, and much more lucrative, solution - but what chance he can get away with it all? You do have to suspend reality a bit with "Vurn" as he acquires some rather unpleasant skills a bit too readily and the story becomes just a little too contrived so as to tee up the denouement, but on that front he does rather prove the point of all of the previous editions of this "Crime Does Not Pay" series and I did find the ending really quite fitting.

Luckiest Guy in the World, The (1947)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

The final entry in MGM's "Crime Does Not Pay" series seems more like a film noir than an actual film in the series but there's nothing wrong with that. Barry Nelson plays a compulsive gambler who has blown his rent money, stolen money from work and now needs money from his wife. She refuses and he accidentally kills her but this here sets off a string of good luck but of course his crime is eventually going to catch up with him. The "Crime Does Not Pay" series is one of my favorites and while this one here doesn't really feel like any of their previous films I'm okay with that because this is a very well made film that manages to have the look and feel of some of the best noirs of this period. Nelson does a very good job in the role of a loser who eventually catches a few breaks. He's totally believable as the man and really brings a lot to the character making him someone we can care about even though we don't like what he's doing. It's also worth noting that there's a comedian on the radio during one scene and this is none other than Red Skelton. This short received an Oscar-nomination, which it certainly deserved as this is one of the better examples of a noir in the shorts department.

"The Luckiest Guy in the World" is one of a series entitled "Crime Does Not Pay"--and every one I've seen has been enjoyable and well made. This particular one stars Barry Nelson who gets shot by accident when the film begins! He begins thinking back about his life and you see that Nelson was an inveterate gambler--a man in deep with his bookie. So deep that he ends up gambling with his company's funds and ends up destroying his life. How exactly this happens, I'll leave for you to find out--but it is pretty dandy little film where there are many interesting plot elements is a pretty cool twist--improbable to say the least, but still pretty cool. Like the other films I've seen, well worth your time and with very nice production values for a B-movie.

By the way, this was included on the DVD for "Ziegfeld Follies". This isn't surprising, as the audio for Red Skelton's skit about gin that you hear on the car radio is from a skit used in the film. Also, Nelson's boss is played by Milton Kibbee--the brother of familiar character actor, Guy Kibbee.

I just watched this excellent short earlier today on the turner classic movie channel as part of their 31 days of the Oscars. The Luckiest Man In The World was nominated for the Oscar of Best Short Subject, Two-reel Jerry Bresler in 1947. I'm not sure of what the other nominees were, but it is a shame it did not win the award. This short perfectly illustrates just how one's obsessing for the unreachable can easily dwindle into a downward spiral of unstoppable events eventually driving the person over the edge in an ironic twist of fate/pay back. Also, it has great characterization which enables the viewer to quickly sympathize the main character. This film has excellent pacing, not at all rushed or slow at any point. The short is simple, but gets its point across with utmost ease and beauty. If you happen to stumble across this one, count your lucky stars!