Jerry and Marge Go Large
by Karen Pecota

David Franke, USA, 2022

Filmmaker David Frankel directs a delightful story based on a true story in JERRY & MARGE GO LARGE. Frankel's viewing audience discovers how two unassuming retirees (Jerry and Marge Selbee) legally gamed the lottery over a nine-year period.

Jerry and Marge began their lottery adventure with a game called Winfall in their home state of Michigan until it closed down, but then ventured to the state of Massachusetts where the game was still available to play. Jerry and Marge expand their horizons and “go large” (buying larger number of tickets), to further their winnings bringing along with them their family, friends and community.

If you were not privy to the article written by Jason Fagone that appeared in the “Huffington Post” (HuffPost), under the same name in 2018, I strongly encourage you to read his detailed account of the Selbee's real deal. It is a complicated but fascinating description of a tale worth the read either before or after you watch Frankel's version of their narrative. Frankel simply has a knack to present stories with heart, starting from a solid script to quality performances and classic cinematography.

Synopsis:

Jerry Selbee (Bryan Cranston), an extraordinary mathematician, retires from a very stable and satisfying job which he's held for decades. A faithful and loyal employee, Jerry learns that his expertise is no longer wanted by his company upon offering his services post-retirement.

Jerry feels purposeless, even though he's at a wonderful age to enjoy retirement years with his loving and supportive wife, Marge (Annette Bening). Marge, on the other hand, is ready for new adventures to begin for the two of them. To embark on a new life phase together is attractive to Marge, especially since they now have the time and still the energy to engage in attractive escapades.

Jerry's retirement routine begins with his morning coffee at the local country store. One day he eavesdrops on a conversation the store owner has with a customer regarding a new lottery game called Winfall that has the potential for people to win loads of money. Though Jerry is anything but a gambler, he does a little research on this new game and puts his mathematic expertise to good use. Jerry discovers that there is a flaw in the system that could be beneficial for big winnings if one purchased enough tickets at one time.

Jerry experiments and wins; he doesn't tell Marge right away because he is using their hard- earned savings to risk big in secret and he wants to make sure his theory truly works. It does; he tells Marge and she's in! The two unassuming retirees begin an adventure that will turn out to be an amazing story for the lottery annals. And legal too! But, not without severe competition from privileged Ivy Leaguers and Internet techie-gurus. (KP)