The Luckiest Man in America
Starring: Paul Walter Hauser, Walton Goggins, David Strathairn, Shamier Anderson
Directed By: Samier Oliveros
Movies about game show contestants are all the rage right now. Anna Kendrick’s recent directorial debut, Woman of the Hour, tackled the very haunting true story of a serial killer who was a contestant on The Dating Game. It’s worth a watch. Kendrick handles the subject matter with respect to the victims and honesty about the fear women face on a regular basis.
The Luckiest Man in America is nowhere near as dark as Woman of the Hour but it remains intriguing. It’s based on a true story that follows Michael Larson (Paul Walter Hauser), a con-man who makes his way on to a popular game show called Press Your Luck despite the understandable hesitation of casting director Chuck (Shamier Anderson).
After stumbling through the first round, Larson has a streak of luck that leads him to win more money than anyone in the history of the show. With no end in sight to his winning streak, show-lead Bill Carruthers (David Strathairn) begins to wonder if Larson is actually lucky or if he could be cheating? Carruthers convinces Press Your Luck host, Peter Tomarken (Walton Goggins) to encourage him to stop the streak at any cost. This is a network game show, after all. Why would they let the contestant go home with so much money?
Side note - Of course, Walton Goggins is in this movie. We are in the Walton Goggins renaissance. He could show up anywhere, at anytime.
Larson is unrelenting in his approach and will not stop pressing his luck. How far can he take the game? (That’s for you to find out by watching the movie. Or his Press Your Luck episode if you can find it somewhere. The choice is yours, I guess.)
The movie leads to a unique scenario that asks if Larson is cheating or utilizing a loophole in the system to win money. What Larson is doing is on the level of going to Vegas to count cards. It’s a grey area and the characterization of Larson makes it even more of an interesting dynamic.
After I watched The Luckiest Man in America I had many questions. Most of these questions (actually all of them) involve the 1980s game show, Press Your Luck. They need to be addressed right now.
Question #1: How was Press Your Luck a real game show that had an audience?
The premise of this show is that three contestants sit on a stage and press a button. While they press the button, a big board (That’s what they call it. The big board.) lights up, spins, and lands on a prize. This show ran for 3 seasons and was revamped in 2019 with Elizabeth Banks! There is a trivia round early in the show, but from what I can tell, the majority of the game is watching people press a button. What about that premise is drawing in an audience? I realize movies are fictionalized but the audience acts like they’re at a Beatles concert every time Michael presses the button, and it lands on a prize. He wins and this is pretty much what we see:
HE PRESSED THE BUTTON AGAIN! - The audience trying not to pass out from excitement
Question #2: Why did Press Your Luck have a mascot called The Whammy that looks like it wants to harm people?
Throughout the game, contestants are threatened by The Whammy, which could appear on the board at any moment and take away all of their money. If that’s not enough, there is a giant Whammy mascot on the set peering around corners and staring at the contestants. It’s intimidating at best. Nightmare-fuel at worst.
Question #3: Were people really watching this show when they woke up?
In the movie, Michael Larson claims that Press Your Luck is the only way to get the attention of his estranged wife and daughter. He says they watch it together while eating breakfast. I encourage people to watch whatever they want with their breakfast but I’m a little stuck on the fact that this show aired in the mornings? I’m sorry, that feels weird. Watching a show with a flashing big board, contestants slamming a button, and The Whammy taking everyone’s riches is a tad overstimulating right after waking up. Who at the network came up with the schedule? Maybe for you this seems like a perfectly reasonable morning game show. For me, this is clearly an evening game show.
These are the majority of my questions for right now. If I have any more, I’ll be sure to add them. If you watched Press Your Luck or the reboot in 2019, please detail your experiences with this unique game show in the comments.
Have you seen The Luckiest Man in America? What were your thoughts?