Money for Speed

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Money for Speed
Directed byBernard Vorhaus
Written by
Produced byBernard Vorhaus
Starring
CinematographyEric Cross
Edited byDavid Lean
Music byPhilip Braham
Production
company
Hall Mark Productions
Distributed byUnited Artists
Release date
  • March 1933 (1933-03)
Running time
73 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

Money for Speed (U.S. title: Daredevils of Earth[1]) is a 1933 British sports drama film directed by Bernard Vorhaus and starring John Loder, Ida Lupino, Cyril McLaglen and Moore Marriott.[2] It was written by Vorhaus, Vera Allinson, Monica Ewer and Lionel Hale.

It features speedway riders Ginger Lees, Lionel van Praag and Frank Varey, and speedway promoter Johnnie Hoskins. The film's editor David Lean appears briefly as a newspaper reporter.

Preservation status

In 1992 the British Film Institute classed Money for Speed as a lost film.[1] Subsequently two prints resurfaced, one dubbed into French and the other with German subtitles.[3]

Plot

Big Bill Summers is an Australian speedway rider who is introduced to Jane by his rival, motorcycle ace Mitch Mitchell. Though Jane appears to be a simple country girl, she is actually a hard-boiled gold-digger conspiring with Mitchell to fleece Summers for everything he is worth. Upon discovering her betrayal, Summers goes berserk. He rides into a major race with vengeance on his mind, intentionally crashing into Mitchell and leaving his rival seriously injured. Banned from the track, Summers drifts down the professional ladder until he finds work riding in a funfair's "Wall of Death." The fair's proprietor convinces him to attempt a spectacular stunt: a death-defying leap from the wall into a safety net. Realising that pulling off the feat is his only shot at personal redemption, he agrees.. Despite sustaining injuries during the landing, Summers knows he has conquered his demons, and a thoroughly repentant Jane is waiting for him.[4]

Cast

Production

The film was made by the independent company Hall Mark Productions at Wembley Studios and was distributed by United Artists.

Reception

The Daily Film Renter wrote: "Unconvincing narrative redeemed by excellently photographed and highly thrilling motor cycle racing shots with machines crashing in flames. Wall of Death leap injects punch into climax. Noted speedway riders provide realistic atmosphere. Attractive performance by Ida Lupino as double-crossing heroine. Should appeal to popular patrons. It was a good idea to utilise the speedways as a talkie background, and although the film is not an over-ambitious production, it 'certainly carries a number of thrilling sequences."[4]

Picturegoer wrote: "Here we have that rara avis, a successful British action drama, and its producers are to be congratulated on bringing to the screen the thrills of a popular British sport – speedway racing – and linking them with a straightforward but convincing story. Authentic speedway sequences taken at Wembley are thrilling, excellently photographed, and give the film a slick momentum rare in our productions."[5]

Variety wrote: "Piffling stuff. ... As a hero Cyril McLaglen is not very effective. John Loder is an obvious heavy. The story is sluggish, sometimes silly and often incoherent. ... Plenty of library newsreel shots of crowds and racing scenes, not very clear but fair enough."[6]

References

  1. Eyles, Allen; Meeker, David, eds. (1992). "Money for Speed". Missing Believed Lost: The Great British Film Search. British Film Institute. pp. 45–46. ISBN 0851703062.
  2. "Money for Speed". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 18 March 2026.
  3. Angelini, Sergio. "Money for Speed (1933)". BFI Screenonline. Retrieved 18 March 2026.
  4. "Money for Speed". The Daily Film Renter (1905): 3. 27 March 1933. ProQuest 2594674065.
  5. "Money for Speed". Picturegoer. 3: 26. September 1933.
  6. "Money for Speed". Variety. 121 (6): 15. 22 January 1936. ProQuest 1475947595.