daily stream: don’t win the lottery — work it
last year’s *Jerry & Marge Go Large* is on Paramount+ (and other services) on both sides of the Atlantic
Jerry & Marge Go Large is the sort of film that, not so many years ago, used to dominate at the box office: a mid-budget dramedy in which big stars amuse us and move us with a down-to-earth(ish), relatively grownup(ish) story. Superhero movies cut the legs out from under these movies, and then the pandemic all but killed them off as reasons to get out of the house. They’re still getting made, and they’re still often well worth your time, but they’re getting lost on the streaming services.
Like this one, which debuted last year on Paramount+, and which you may not even have heard of despite the presence of Bryan Cranston and Annette Bening. They are beyond charming as Jerry and Marge, a retired small-town Michigan couple who take advantage of a mathematical loophole in several state lotteries to win a lot of small prizes, over and over again. It’s even a true story! Behind the low-key all-American little-bit-larcenous dramedy (though what they did was legal) is a sneaky critique of capitalism as it plays out today. This is a delightful not-quite-fantasy — again, this really happened! — about finding a cheat code in the rigged game (capitalism, that is, not the lottery) that we are all forced to play.
US: stream on Paramount+ (via Prime); rent/buy on Prime and Apple TV
UK: stream on Paramount+ (via Prime); buy on Prime and Apple TV
See Jerry & Marge Go Large at Letterboxd for more viewing options.
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I remember reading about the true story of this not too long ago; fascinating! Haven’t watched this yet, and don’t think I have Paramount+ access (the plethora of streaming services and their exclusivity of content is a Whole Thing I have feelings about) but I’ll have to keep my eyes on it to see if it ever becomes available elsewhere.