The Luckiest Man in America

"The Luckiest Man In America" is the true 1984 tale of Michael Larson (Paul Walter Hauser - strong again) who blagged his way onto the tv game-show 'Press Your Luck' (hosted by Walton Goggins) to rack up monster winnings - and make the show's staff (inc David Strathairn, Maisie Williams, & Shamier Anderson) suspect that something was amiss. It's fascinating fare, well made (by second-time director Samir Oliveros who co-wrote this his first screenplay with second-time writer Maggie Briggs) with the likes of Johnny Knoxville & Haley Bennett in minor support - tho it'll leave most asking Google to complete Larson's story for them. It's a good movie... just a little thin.

The Luckiest Man in America was a fascinating watch for me, especially because it's based on a true story I hadn't heard before. It follows a man who managed to con his way onto a game show and ended up getting incredibly lucky while on it. I was completely unfamiliar with the real-life event or the man at the center of it, which made the film all the more intriguing.

What really grabbed my attention was how quickly the story pulled me in. It's one of those movies where, as soon as it ends, you immediately want to Google the real events to find out what actually happened. And in this case, there's a surprising amount of additional bizarre and fascinating information about the guy that didn't make it into the film.

As for the movie itself, I'd call it a solid one-time watch. It presents an unusual slice of 1980s history in an entertaining way. It's not necessarily a film you'd revisit, but it succeeds in shining a light on a quirky, forgotten moment in pop culture. You watch it, think "Well, that was interesting," and move on-now I'm a little more informed about one of the oddest stories to come out of the game show world.

This film is a dramatization of a game show scandal from the 70s.

A con artist, played by Paul Walter Hauser, appears on the game show Press Your Luck and shocks the audience and producers with his winning streak. This ultimately leads to backstage turmoil and cheating revelations.

We've seen this before in the gold standard "Quiz Show" and more recently "Perfect Bid." This failed to keep me as interested as those two compelling films did.

I think the problem lies in Hauser's portrayal. The character's affect is so odd and off putting that it's a wonder he was chosen for the show to begin with let alone have an entire audience rooting for him. To be fair, I don't know what the real man was like, but I expected a professional con man to be more smooth. The relationship with his daughter and ex wife was also underdeveloped and gave little insight into the man behind the madness.

It's mildly entertaining at best. I saw it at my local theater at the one showing they had but this is an absolute wait for streaming kind of film.

Let me take you back to 1984. Michael Larson, an AC repair man and ice cream truck driver, ends up on the game show Press Your Luck. THE LUCKIEST MAN IN AMERICA tells this true story. Michael (Paul Walter Hauser) keeps winning, with no end in sight. This causes everybody at CBS to panic in their own ways, including the host Peter Tomarken (Walton Goggins), the producer Bill Carruthers (David Strathairn), his assistant Chuck (Shamier Anderson), and the show's assistant Sylvia (Maisie Williams). This movie is entertaining from start to finish. Hauser is amazing yet again as a character who is socially awkward. When you look at him, you can't shake the feeling that something's off. Goggins is always great in everything he does, no surprise there. The tension builds as the movie goes on, highlighted by the score and by Hauser's body language. Not knowing what actually happened back then, I had no idea where it was going. My one problem was the ending. It seemed abrupt and I'm not sure if it's because of the low budget, but I would've liked to have a little more finality to it. I do recommend staying during the credits though. Overall, THE LUCKIEST MAN IN AMERICA is a very entertaining historical moment brought back into the light of day with a great ensemble cast, seemingly accurate enough to what actually happened at the time. I recommend it wherever you can find it!

Saw this at a TIFF screening last night, theatre completely sold out. The film itself is a pretty nice 90-minute film mostly sitting on one set. While the film does have a really strong premise, it most definetly loses its steam in the latter acts due to its lack of understanding of where to go. I really adored Paul Walter Hauser in this, but his character felt severly underwritten- it sorta seemed like he was many things for a long time and yet, he just turned out to be a normal pretty intelligent man. They kept alluding to something big was going to happen at the end with a twist, but it never comes, leaving an odd sour taste in my mouth as the credits rolled. But its still a very enjoyable casual wednesday night watch.