Jackpot movie review: Mindless but fun!

Jackpot movie review

Film: Jackpot!
Cast: John Cena, Awkwafina, Machine Gun Kelly, Simu Liu, Ayden Mayeri
Director: Paul Feig
Rating: 2.5/5
Runtime: 96 min

Set in the immediate futuristic dystopia, California, year 2030, this film portends an economic fallout following the great depression of 2026 that pushes the middle-income groups and the poor into poverty while the rich just get richer. In the midst of all that comes the announcement of a humongous ‘Grand lottery' with rules that affirm that anyone could be declared winner provided the original winner is killed by sundown by any means other than using firearms, in order for their claim to be legal.

The film has a line that clearly sets out its purpose… "Some People call it dystopian…but they ain't no fun." Don't go in expecting depth or originality. The plot is predictable, the reliance on cliches is overwhelming and the jokes are pretty stale. Despite the low-brow effort , there's a scintillating energy flowing around to make the audience ticklish enough to be in on the joke. The filmmakers were clearly catering to the base audience. It's not distasteful by any yardstick but the lack of intelligence is pretty much galling. Even so there's a whole lot of fun to be had given the manner in which the slapstick plays out and the way in which the lead stars hold fort.

This is a straight-out comedy. The narrative is replete with quips that are self-deprecating and the slapstick tickles the funny bone. The concept here appears to have been borrowed from ‘The Purge' and the jackpot element is an add-on. Aspiring actress Katie Kim (Awkwafina) finds out a little too late that she has triggered the lottery and has been declared a winner - so what we see is her going from clueless to playing catch-up. But the people out to get her are numerous. So when Noel (John Cena) pops in and offers her protection for a 10% stake, she finds she has no alternative other than to reluctantly take the offer. Enroute they bump into a bigger security set-up offering fool-proof safety, run by Louis Lewis (Simu Liu), but Kim can't be too sure because the prize money is large enough to tempt even a saint.

John Cena and Awkwafina set up the crazy spiel right from the word go. They are both immediately likeable and enhance the experience with their onscreen charisma and antics. Simu Liu and Machine Gun Kelly come in just to add momentum to the mayhem.The soundtrack adds a sense of playful levity to the proceedings. "California Girls" by The Beach Boys, "Beverly Hills" by Weezer, "Ch-Check It Out" by The Beastie Boys, "Turtle Power" by Partners in Kryme, are just some of the many gems featured here.

The narrative is breezy, pulpy and gets its action comedy schtick working overtime. Screenwriter Rob Yescombe and director Paul Feig offer full-out silliness and the action choreography is goofy enough to make this an entertainingly spirited riff-happy journey. You might in fact think you've hit the jackpot if all you are expecting is just a relaxing mindless good time!