What is it about? 1 chance in 19 million. It is more likely to be hit by a meteor than to win the lottery. For our lucky winners, a dream will quickly turn into a nightmare and their lives will be shattered by a spectacular firework display of black comedy and thrills.
The birth of the project
With Happy Winners, Maxime Govaret and Romain Choi wanted to tell a story about what can completely disrupt human nature and its value system: “Thanks to a random game like the lotto, money falling from the sky was the perfect fit. It was about extraordinary things that happened to ordinary people. Winning the lotto is like a particle accelerator. Your life changes from day to day.”explain the two directors, who also recently collaborated on The Sequined Shrimp and its sequel, The Revenge of the Sequined Shrimp.
A poisoned gift
Maxime Govaret and Romain Choi wanted to show how winning the lottery can turn into a nightmare. So, realistically, 50% of people who win the jackpot are broke within four years. Directors specify: “It’s a lot of money at once for people who are not necessarily ready for it, it attracts a lot of desire. And then we have an example of an actor we know whose wife played the lotto with two close friends.”
“They bought three different tickets, but it was the only one with the right number and two of his friends wanted to split it into three, which was absurd. On the same day he won 1.5 million and lost his best friends. We wanted to make a movie that was funny and fun. To put the audience at the center of situations to create a rollercoaster of emotions that plays with our feelings in a way that is sometimes a little cruel and ironic.”
“There are things we’ve heard and others we extrapolate. But nothing is actually based on a true story. It’s all made up.”
Fabrice Eboué
Prestigious references
As for references, Maxime Govaret and Romain Choi cite Damien Schiffron’s Les Nouveaux Sauvages, Peter Berg’s Very Bad Things, and Fabre Eboue’s Barbac: “I will also quote, without pretension, Pulp Fiction from Tarantino How he tells several stories related to the same theme. We were also able to draw inspiration from certain aspects of the work Claude Chabrol. The idea was to offer one story genre: action, romantic comedy or something a little more cynical…” confides another.
Who Paul?
Maxime Govaret and Romain Choi explain why they were chosen Fabrice Éboué Paul’s Game: “Fabrice ticked two boxes, obviously black humor, but also the fact that she embodies the average Frenchman so much with her roles, a little bit of a disturbing cowardice, a little bit of a glorious loser. She’s our Marianne in the masculine and she shows more. More humanity. The script made her laugh a lot. . We laughed a lot ourselves when we were in the middle of writing the film to see Barbacco.”
They add about Audrey Lamm: “There are drama actors and comedy actors. Audrey just excels in both genres. Pleasant and spontaneous, she embodies something very popular, in the noblest sense of the term, close to the people.”. In addition, the actress is reuniting with Fabrice Eboué after co-production by the latter in 2017.
group dynamics
Happy Winners also covers the story of a nursing home where the staff stole a 60 million ticket from Henri, an old man who had just died when he found out he won and will share the winnings. “We were interested in the amoral side of the group dynamic, as well as the fact that we had a character who was almost too good to begin with. Sandra, played by Anouk Greenberg, has a form of positive radicalism that turns negative.”
“Strength of Persuasion then follows a very different path. Romain: The notion of group dynamics is also a reflection of reality. Sometimes there are fire departments or police departments that win together, and that makes for interesting stories that don’t always end well. Sandra Nurse is such a selfless character, what does that do? An angel with so much money, becomes evil?’– the directors say.
Source: Allocine

Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.