La bonne combine

New York-area counterfeiter, a kindly old junk collector who means no harm, may have met his match in a new Secret Service man determined to nab the 10-year offender of phony one-dollar bills. Despite an early placard telling us the film was made with "the special permission of the Secretary of the Treasury", as well as with "the assistance of the Treasury Department of the United States Secret Service", the film is surprisingly light and blithe. Edmund Gwenn, Santa Claus in 1947's "Miracle on 34th Street", ends up before the judge again, and his sweetly honest disposition and gentle nature puts us on his side no matter what the crime. Agent Burt Lancaster, wooing Gwenn's neighbor Dorothy McGuire, is perhaps too intense an actor for such a breezy, frivolous take on this situation, yet he works well with his co-stars and has a good scene questioning some Bowery kids (Billy Gray among them). Not an important picture by any means, though mildly entertaining. Gwenn received a Golden Globe for his performance, followed by an Academy Award nomination as Best Supporting Actor. **1/2 from ****

I was surprised how fun this film was given the plot. Dorothy McGuire is charming and as usual, Edmund Gwen steals the show.

Edmund Gwenn (best known as Santa Claus in "Miracle on 34th Street) portrays another charming old man who makes ends meet by a little counterfeiting on the side. Burt Lancaster is the treasury agent set to track down the mysterious "Mr. 880," as the Secret Service calls him, but who has time for a little romance. Gwenn, as usual, is delightful and Lancaster, at the beginning of his career, shows the softer side that became more apparent toward its end. The film is a forgotten gem.

I realize that 9 is an incredibly high rating, but I stand behind it. It's also high given that I was ready to bail after the first three minutes of this film-- blatant pro-Secret Service propaganda, complete with a stentorian voice-over. But then the characters show up: Burt Lancaster at his most charming, Edmund Gwenn doing his peerless benevolent eccentric, and a positively luminous Dorothy McGuire, exuding intelligence, wit, and gutsiness.

The title comes from the case file number (880) of a real-life counterfeiter—Emerich Juettner, ,a.k.a. Edward Mueller. The feds gained such respect that they called him Mr. 880—and his story deserves a film. Mueller (called "Skipper" and played by Gwenn) did indeed live in New York as a small-time counterfeiter who, amazingly, was as incompetent at etching a passable $1 bill ("George Wahsington") as he was competent at passing his queer money without detection for 10 years (1938-48).

The addition of Lancaster's and McGuire's roles is pure poetic license, but their duo only enhances the story because of the clever interlocking structure of the plot, and the often crackling dialog between them and with others, notably the wry and dry Millard Mitchell.

The hackneyed old phrase applies—I laughed (or at least smiled frequently), I cried (got teary-eyed once or twice), I got caught up in it. The point at which Burt and the feds are closing in on the dear old paperhanger, and McGuire is in a moral quandary about whether to help them or protect him, is so well done that it generated the same quandary in me—what would I have done?? It's a question I couldn't answer, and one that increased the tension that built to the courtroom scene and denouement.

"Mister 880" needs to be seen, right through to the end, which I won't spoil. But I will add a marvelous coda: Ultimately, the real Mr. 880, Juettner, made more money from this film than he did from a decade of counterfeiting—though of course, if he hadn't counterfeited there wouldn't have been a movie to profit from. So we get both poetic license and poetic justice.

Very Enjoyable film. Too bad Burt Lancaster didn't make more comedies - as he displays a very nice touch here, making fun of his macho image.

I didn't know anything about this film before I watched it and was pleasantly surprised. The characters are a little more "loose" or natural acting than is seen in most Hollywood fare of the time. The story concerns a secret service agent looking for counterfeiters, a translator at the United Nations, and a beloved old man. A very nice, original story.

All the actors are good - Burt, Dorothy McGuire is quite radiant and Edmund Gwynn is dynamite. I'd say he is better in this than in "Miracle on 34th Street". If you are looking for a nice movie that will put a smile on your face - you can't go wrong with this one. It'll stick with you.