I remember watching the original two-episode run when Michael Larson was on Press Your Luck back in the 1980s. It was astounding to watch as a kid, but even then I remember thinking he was too good at the game for this to be true. Little did I realize that I was watching history, and those episodes would never be aired again until this documentary was made. It's an unreal story if you've never heard of it, because it's the first time that you could genuinely say someone broke a gameshow. Let me be clear, he did not truly cheat or break any rules (which had happened before if you've ever watched Quiz Show,) he simply took control of the game and removed the element of "luck" that everyone thought was built into the show. I will say, for those who know nothing about the story, it might be worthwhile for you to check out this documentary (which is free on Youtube) just to see what happened.
As a documentary, Big Bucks is a bit rudimentary, and has a tendency to be a tad condescending to the audience. Rather than assuming we are smart enough to follow things, they hold our hands a bit too much. But this was just a TV special that was partially designed simply as cheap marketing to remind audiences of Press Your Luck before they tried rebooting the show. However, it still tells the story effectively by both replaying the bulk of the two episodes that Michael Larson appeared on, and breaking down how he did it. I also love some of the frame-by-frame details that show the little tells in Michael's expression that reveal what might be going on in his mind. It's just too bad that, outside of the show, Michael didn't have a more endearing story. It's one of those moments where you'd love to cheer for the underdog taking down the corporate network, but his life after the events detailed in Big Bucks: The Press Your Luck Scandal was less than remarkable.
As a documentary, Big Bucks is a bit rudimentary, and has a tendency to be a tad condescending to the audience. Rather than assuming we are smart enough to follow things, they hold our hands a bit too much. But this was just a TV special that was partially designed simply as cheap marketing to remind audiences of Press Your Luck before they tried rebooting the show. However, it still tells the story effectively by both replaying the bulk of the two episodes that Michael Larson appeared on, and breaking down how he did it. I also love some of the frame-by-frame details that show the little tells in Michael's expression that reveal what might be going on in his mind. It's just too bad that, outside of the show, Michael didn't have a more endearing story. It's one of those moments where you'd love to cheer for the underdog taking down the corporate network, but his life after the events detailed in Big Bucks: The Press Your Luck Scandal was less than remarkable.