Lucky Numbers

October 24, 2000

Jays Rating:
Actors: /
Director:

If you’re lucky, you’ll miss the boring so-called comedy about the lottery, Lucky Numbers. It’s a very warm December in Pennsylvania and a self-absorbed weatherman named Russ Richards (John Travolta) is in debt as a result of his lavish spending. He drives a Jaguar, lives in a big house, and owns at least a dozen snowmobiles. As the weather becomes warmer, his debts increase but he convinces himself that he’ll pay them off when it gets cold again. He is on the brink of losing his house and car, then he catches part of a broadcast about the state lottery at the television station where he works. All of a sudden he has a great idea! Russ talks to Crystal (Lisa Latroy), the dizzy blond who picks the winning balls out of the lottery machine and tells her his idea on how to scam the lottery. (Wait a second – let’s talk about the word “scam.” If you pay seven dollars to see this movie, you’ll know exactly what getting scammed is.) Crystal seduces the guard w hile Russ sneaks into the lottery room and tampers with the lottery balls. Their numbers are drawn the next day for six and one half million dollars, but because they work for the television station they can’t turn in the winning ticket. Somehow things begin to go wrong and everybody finds out about their illegal activity. Their boss Dick Simmons wants half the money or he’ll turn them in and a thug named Dale wants half a million or he’ll work Russ over with a baseball bat. At this point, being worked over with a baseball bat would have been preferable to watching the rest of the movie. This almost two-hour movie was about one and a half-hours too long, with emphasis on a lousy plot and very uninteresting characters. This is one film I’m glad I couldn’t see and I give it a D rating.

This movie has been given an R rating by the MPAA