Glasgow Film Festival 2025 – The Luckiest Man In America ★★★

Released: TBC (4 April in USA)

Director: Samir Oliveros

Starring: Paul Walter Hauser, Walton Goggins, Maisie Williams, Shaunette Renee Wilson, Bill Carruthers, Johnny Knoxville, Shamier Anderson

For most of us. Winning a life-changing amount of money is a far-fetched pipedream, but a dream nevertheless. Except for Michael Larson (Paul Walter Houser), Ohio-born game contestant, who won a record-breaking $110,237 by memorising the algorithm of the ‘Big Board’ on well-known American prize show, Press Your Luck.

It does beg the question – how far would you go for money?

Michael Larson, unemployed ice cream truck driver and repairman, is first introduced to us in a re imagined, retro-rendition of the Press Your Luck casting room, within Los Angeles’ very own CBS Studios. Bland, beige, and undeniably 80s, unassuming of the whirlwind 90 minutes that are about to unfold. Aloof and awkward, when Larson (very fraudulently) takes part in an impromptu casting call, he tells his own tale of a struggling home life- that all that he wants is to eat breakfast with his wife and daughter. Despite caution urged from the show’s casting director, Chuck (Shamier Anderson), the show’s creator, Bill Carruthers (David Strathairn) is enticed by Larson, finding him the perfect candidate to exploit on-screen. Larson in-turn manipulates his way onto starring on the show- his golden chance to truly break the game.

Unassuming (and heavily underestimated), Larson appears on set the next day, visibly anxious, yet ready to compete in a live recording of the next episode of Press Your Luck. The once-drab 80s-esque scene transforms into the familiar scene of the Big Board, incandescent and enchanting, the glow of the looming win lighting up Walter-Houser’s face.

Appearing naïve and crude in language, Oliveros creates an instant barrier between Larson and his fellow game-players, Janie (Patti Harrison) and Ed (Brian Geraghty). His behaviour is distinctive, his gauche demeanour painting him as the perfect underdog – ideal entertainment value, and surely not a candidate fit to win?

Oh, were they wrong to doubt him. As his play begins, tension builds as Larson rapidly begins to rack up cash prizes. From a seemingly unthreatening $2500, to over $20,000, his luck only continues to rise, as do his fortunes. Oliveros crafts an impressive dynamic between the viewer and our antagonist, as the uneasy realisation sets in that Larson’s so-called ‘luck,’ may in fact be a result of controversial fraudulent behaviours. As the scepticism continues to grow, the idolisation of the underdog begins to falter.

Whilst Oliveros consistently adds to this conflict of interest between the characters and the audience, notably when assistant Sylvia (Maisie Williams) appears to be warily aiding Larson in his antics as he attempts to use the telephone mid-show. This does not have the impact as intended, instead causing a feeling of detachment from the scenes on-screen. The viewer does not know exactly who to root for, and whilst this can often be an effective way of building thrill and tension, in The Luckiest Man in America, this instead sows the seeds of lack of interest.

As Larson’s prize pool continues to grow, the growing chaos behind the scenes draws attention away from the gameshow. The producers desperately scramble in frenzy, attempting to find a solution to Larson’s colossal win, which is beginning to look inevitable. As the boardroom erupts in accusations, they discover Larson hadn’t actually broken any rules- he’d simply memorized the five pattern combinations the Big Board uses.

Despite The Luckiest Man in America being an entertaining, easy-to-digest thriller drama, it somewhat lacks a deeper sense of tension- something in which single-set (or mostly single-set) productions appear to struggle with, similarly to Jason Reitman’s recent release, Saturday Night (2024). Aside from this, Paul Walter Housers’ depiction of Larson is outstanding, perfectly portraying an awkward and unconventional protagonist, perfectly complimented by Walton Goggins’ cheery depiction of optimistic show host Peter Tomarken. What should have felt like a tense, high-stakes story falls flat, suffering the fate of an anti-climactic closing sequence.