Jump to content

Jerry & Marge Go Large

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by TraceyHechler (talk | contribs) at 11:02, 13 April 2023 (→‎Plot: Fixed typo). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Jerry & Marge Go Large
Official release poster
Directed byDavid Frankel
Screenplay byBrad Copeland
Based on"Jerry and Marge Go Large"
by Jason Fagone
Produced by
  • Amy Baer
  • Gil Netter
Starring
CinematographyMaryse Alberti
Edited byAndrew Marcus
Music byJake Monaco
Production
companies
Distributed byParamount+
Release dates
  • June 15, 2022 (2022-06-15) (Tribeca)
  • June 17, 2022 (2022-06-17) (United States)
Running time
96 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Jerry & Marge Go Large is a 2022 American comedy-drama film directed by David Frankel and written by Brad Copeland. Based on Jason Fagone's 2018 HuffPost article of the same name,[2] the film stars Bryan Cranston and Annette Bening.

The film is based on a true story.[3]

The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 15, 2022, and was released on Paramount+ on June 17, 2022.

Plot

Married couple Jerry and Marge Selbee live in Evart, Michigan. Jerry retires after forty-two years as a production line manager. A month later, he finally tries to take out his new motorboat but accidentally smashes it.

Jerry goes into the local gas station shop and overhears the clerk explaining the improved chance of winning the WinFall lottery in Michigan after a rolldown. Being a mathematician, Jerry figures out a statistical loophole to repeatedly win.

Deducing that by purchasing a sufficiently large quantity of tickets, the "rolldown" guarantees a greater return, Jerry withdraws over $2,000 to purchase tickets. He has a loss, but Marge inspires him. He realises increasing his sample size would increase his chances. Jerry empties their account, and the 8,000 makes 15,000.

Jerry isn't able to keep the win a secret, and Marge decides they should go for it. Once WinFall is shut down in Michigan, it is still operational in Massachusetts, so Marge organizes a 10-hour road trip. At a small liquor store in a small town they spend all day printing the tickets, again doubling their money.

Arriving home in Evart, Marge proposes creating a small company to help the whole town. Jerry's accountant helps them create the corporation GS Investment Strategies. People can buy a share at 500. To ensure they can use of WinFall machine afterhours, they make Bill, the liquor store owner, a partner.

As the Evart company grows, the townspeople revitalize the community. Jerry knows that their luck cannot last forever, that it will eventually get shut down — Newton's 3rd Law — so they are careful to invest the money. One couple rebuilds the town's Jazz Fest venue and others revamp and reopen their businesses. The company gets another lottery machine installed in a nearby eatery in Sunderland to increase their volume.

Simultaneously, a Harvard mathematics student also sees WinFall's potential. Enlisting the resources of his dorm mates, they make 50,000 but realise it was less than anticipated because someone else must also have discovered the loophole. A skilled hacker taps into the state lottery and tracks their main competition to two Sunderland locations.

Travelling to the small town, Tyler and Eric find Jerry and Marge celebrating their 46th anniversary. Introducing themselves, they describe their Harvard betting club, Random Industries. The haughty and condescending Tyler tells them to add their money to their 'pot' and leave the betting to them. Using a multitude of references to the couple's advanced ages, he talks of the film 'Up' and rocking chairs. Marge is outraged, Jerry politely but firmly declines. The smirky Tyler throws out a mathematical term, intending to humble them but Jerry one-ups them, pointing out the students' way of submitting their numbers is less efficient.

In Evart, Tyler finds Jerry at the gas station where he gets his morning coffee and demands he stop playing WinFall effective immediately. The cocky bully threatens to hack into his and the other investors in GS Investment Strategies' accounts, credit and identity if they don't back down immediately.

Jerry almost caves, announcing to the investors they must stop playing WinFall due to unforeseen circumstances. The gas station attendant whispers to his son about the kid's threatening visit. So he follows his dad out and asks him to not let them be bullied. Their little endeavor has restored the townspeople's self-confidence and improved their lives. Marge also rallies Jerry, reminding him of their wild side.

When the Harvard students run the numbers, they discover that Jerry hasn't backed down. Tyler proposes they artificially create a rolldown, getting Harvard students' parents to invest. They are successful, Jerry realises Tyler's tactic and confronts him in front of his coconspirators, pointing out his selfish tactic is hurting others.

To level the playing field, Jerry directly requests the Massachusetts State Lottery board publically announce when reaching rollback. Soon after, Boston Globe reporter Maya Jordan shows up in Evart, as she's been working on the story for months. Both Jerry and Tyler are reported to receive big payouts every three weeks. The article causes the lottery commission to confiscate the Sunderland machines and pull the plug definitively after that week's drawing. Unbeknownst to the Selbees, their investors bus to MA and played all over the state, getting in their last big win.

Cast

Production

In April 2018, it was reported that Levantine Films and Netter Films would produce a film adaptation of Jason Fagone's HuffPost article "Jerry and Marge Go Large", with Brad Copeland writing the screenplay.[4] In June 2021, it was announced that Paramount+ had greenlit the film, set to be directed by David Frankel and star Bryan Cranston and Annette Bening.[5]

Filming began in July 2021 in Georgia, with Rainn Wilson, Larry Wilmore and Jake McDorman joining the cast.[6][7] In August 2021, Uly Schlesinger, Michael McKean, Anna Camp, Ann Harada, and Devyn McDowell joined the cast.[8]

Release

The film had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 15, 2022.[1][9] It was released on Paramount+ on June 17, 2022.[10]

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 68% of 56 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.1/10. The website's consensus reads: "Instead of investing in its tremendously talented stars and outlandish fact-based story, Jerry & Marge Go Large gambles on a pile of clichés."[11] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 52 out of 100, based on 11 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[12]

References

  1. ^ a b "Jerry & Marge Go Large". Tribeca Film Festival. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
  2. ^ Fagone, Jason (April 18, 2018). "Jerry And Marge Go Large". Huffington Post. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
  3. ^ "'Jerry and Marge Go Large': How retirees gamed the lottery". June 16, 2022.
  4. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (April 18, 2018). "Levantine Films, Netter Films Option HuffPo Feature 'Jerry And Marge Go Large'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  5. ^ Kroll, Justin (June 21, 2021). "Bryan Cranston And Annette Bening To Star in New Paramount+ Movie 'Jerry And Marge Go Large'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 3, 2021.
  6. ^ Donnelly, Matt (July 22, 2021). "Larry Wilmore, Rainn Wilson Join Annette Bening and Bryan Cranston in 'Jerry and Marge Go Large' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved August 3, 2021.
  7. ^ Grobar, Matt (July 30, 2021). "Jake McDorman Joins Bryan Cranston & Annette Bening In Paramount+ Pic 'Jerry And Marge Go Large'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 3, 2021.
  8. ^ Grobar, Matt (August 12, 2021). "Uly Schlesinger, Michael McKean, Anna Camp & More Board Paramount+ Pic 'Jerry And Marge Go Large'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 12, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. ^ Rubin, Rebecca (April 19, 2022). "Tribeca Festival Adds Bryan Cranston and Annette Bening's Jerry and Marge Go Large, Films From Lena Waithe, Ray Romano to 2022 Lineup". Variety. Retrieved April 20, 2022.
  10. ^ Grobar, Matt (April 26, 2022). "'Jerry And Marge Go Large' Premiere Date, First-Look Photos: Bryan Cranston & Annette Bening Lead Paramount+ Comedy". Deadline. Retrieved April 26, 2022.
  11. ^ "Jerry & Marge Go Large". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
  12. ^ "Jerry & Marge Go Large". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jerry_%26_Marge_Go_Large&oldid=1149621123"