Who's Minding the Mint? (1967)

A brilliant film that helped define a genre

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

Notwithstanding all the positive comments for this movie by other reviewers, nobody else mentioned all those stacks and stacks of money during the early tour at the Bureau of Engraving. I went on one of those tours once and seeing all those sheets piled up and ready to be cut into bills is a mind blowing experience.Well this is a farcical comedy that's as implausible as one can imagine but it's a fun romp with a fine cast of comedians from the Sixties. Attempting to replace a fifty thousand dollar bundle of hundred dollar bills he accidentally took home and destroyed, Harry Lucas (Jim Hutton) hits upon a plan to replace the money before it's missed. Problem is, each character he brings into his scheme comes up with a reason he'll need another 'partner'. On top of that, their participation in the caper comes with a gradually increasing fee until the initially reluctant Harry tops it out at a million bucks apiece! If you're paying attention you'll wind up wondering why Harry's crew winds up completely dry right after they all get soaked in the sewer system on the way to the engraving vault. Speaking of which, no one mentioned the odor down there seeing as how Washington, D.C. produces it's fair share of you know what with all the politicians working there. You know, I think the producers for the film missed a casting opportunity by not hiring Art Carney for his 'Honeymooners' experience as an underground sewer worker. He would have fit right in with Berle, Gilford, Brennan and all the rest.One more goof - when Captain Victor Buono comes to the rescue with his fleet of kiddie boats, he's seen arriving in a miniature tugboat pulling five additional small boats for the rest of his 'crew'. However upon leaving, there are seven boats, one each for Harry, Verna, Luther, Dugan, Ralph, Pop Gillis and beagle Inky with her newborn pups. I guess no one made a head count on the way in.You know what really got my attention though? When Harry tries to rationalize printing seven million dollars to admirer Verna (Dorothy Provine) and she balks at the idea, he actually uses what would come to be known as the Hillary Clinton defense four decades later - 'What difference does it make'? Well if you like to take in a mindless comedy every now and then this can be an enjoyable flick. The unintended consequences unleashed by the printing scheme multiply like falling dominoes and when it's over, the players have to endure their own 'Treasure of the Sierra Madre' moment when all their cash goes bye-bye. The hardy troopers didn't even seem all that upset about it.One last thing - if you stayed to the closing credits, you'll note that Inky the beagle was played by Peanuts. Why not just let the poor dog use it's own name?

Screenwriters R.S. Allen and Harvey Bullock have an original, potentially-great comic idea here--wily accountant at the U.S. Mint in Washington, D.C. has to break in after-hours and replace money he accidentally destroyed--but debuting director Howard Morris gives it a numbskull treatment, with the plot advanced on the proviso that every outrageous character on-screen act as stupidly as possibly. Jim Hutton is supposed to be playing a mild-mannered swinger skilled in the art of getting what he wants without paying for it, but there's nothing in this soft-edged, colorless actor that even begins to suggest these attributes. His cohorts in crime (played to the hilt by comedic veterans, mainstays, and newcomers) are a useless, selfish bunch who keep increasing their share of the action for personal gain--and is there anything less funny on the screen than greed? *1/2 from ****

This low-key comedy features a wonderful cast which is generally fun to watch. There are not a lot of laugh-out-scenes and definitely not as funny as adversed, but still enjoyable. Although mostly greedy, most of the characters are still likable enough. I particularly enjoyed Jack Gilford and Milton Berle's roles, the latter when he played George Washington!The rest of the cast includes such names as Dortohy Provine (there's a '60s actress that seemed to disappear quickly), Walter Brennan, Bob Denver, Victor Buono, Joey Bishop and Jamie Farr.In all, a pleasant lightweight comedy which probably deserves to be better known.

It's a smaller-scale "Mad Mad Mad etc World" with some crafty veteran gagsters (Gilford, Berle, Buono, Brennan, Bishop et al) doing their shtick. Small improbabilities build and build until you end up with a string of boats with wildly-costumed characters sailing in an improbable location from an impossible caper. Total on-screen madness, yet it made sense at every small plot step along the way. Tightly-constructed and very much a late-60s comedy. It's one of those favorites you're slightly ashamed of.