SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

PiraBit if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

Kien Navarro Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Kaelan Mccaffrey Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

anbutle1 I LOVED Windfall! I disagree with the other poster. I don't remember that much from the pilot, but it wasn't completely horrible. However, the show got SO interesting throughout the rest of the season! I wanted to see how everything would turn out! Also, Luke Perry was NOT the only star in that show! There was Malinda Williams, Jason Gedrick and Tembi Locke. I found it interesting how the writers connected each character to each other in some way throughout the show. What happened with Damien and Frankie? What about Cameron and Nina? How could they leave us hanging?This show was great! I'm mad that they cancelled it!

mdpomroy Remember Luke Perry? Oh come on, course you do. He was in teen drama Beverly Hills 90210 playing a high school kid even thought it was patently obvious that the man was so far into his 30s he was old enough to be some of the students' father. There you go, you can picture him now, well he's back.In fact he's the main draw in this drama that follows 20 lottery winners after they all become notably rich. With US$20million each they head off spending but for each of the characters the win comes with unexpected problems from marital and ethical to legal and criminal. While indulging in the fantasy of instant wealth (there are lots of shopping scenes) it also fulfils the human desire to see rich people have problems too. Lightweight and easygoing it's more soap than heavy primetime material but a nice distraction nevertheless. For Luke Perry, being given another shot at the prime time must have actually been like winning the lottery. But Windfall was cancelled in the first season, although there are 13 episodes to watch which is more than many are permitted these days. Many in America didn't get the chance to see how it all ended as some NBC affiliates screened pre-season football instead of the final episode. Well worth a look but if all this talk of Luke Perry has done is awaken a buzz of 1990s nostalgia then please note that the Beverly Hills 90210 DVD set was released to buy last November. You're excited now aren't you?

liquidcelluloid-1 Network: NBC; Genre: Drama; Content Rating: TV-PG (for some language and suggested sex); Perspective: Contemporary (star range: 1 - 4);Seasons Reviewed: Complete Series (1 season) At a Lottery Party, a group of 20 friends of all different ages and ethnicities - including Lana Parrilla ("Third Watch"), Jason Gedrick ("Boomtown"), Sarah Wynter ("24" hottie with the angry eyes) and Luke Perry - each put a dollar into a pot and, overnight, the numbers hit and they all become millionaires. At first it is great. Who wouldn't want to be a father able to give his kid a carnival in the backyard for his birthday or be able to hop on a first class jet and take an afternoon shopping spree in Paris.But this is a dysfunctional group and there are a few problems from the outset all of which get heightened by the fame and fortune that comes from the lottery. The most compelling story involves Jon Foster ("Life As We Know It"), as a high schooler who cooks up a scheme to emancipate from his ruthless father by marrying a Russian mail-order bride. D.J. Cotrona ("Skin", not "Wonderfalls" but they look alike) plays an ex-con, unable to claim the money on his own for fear of being caught by the feds and tracked down by an old nemesis. He enlists a lawyer, Zoe (Sarah Morris) for help claiming it.Created Laurie McCarthy and Gwendolyn Parker, "Windfall" has such a potentially fun concept it can instantly appeal to everyone. Who hasn't at one time stated that all their problems could be solved by winning the lottery? But soon what began as a fun and entertaining wish fulfillment series takes a sharp left turn into full-on soap opera mode. And not fun sudsy soap stuff, but dark, tiring, endlessly melodramatic stuff.While every other story slowly looses steam the more complicate and convoluted it becomes, it is single-handedly with the Sean/Zoe storyline where the show jumps the shark. The unexpected turn it takes is pretty damn horrifying and effectively jars it out of our fantasy land. The promise that is made in the light-hearted Pilot is not fulfilled; "Windfall" makes for a terrible wish-fulfillment show.Am I wrong to ask that this show be a light-weight wish-fulfillment series? Normally, this is where I would tell someone to meet the show on its level and not demand it be what you want. But we've been down the relationship melodrama road a thousand times before. A married women is secretly in love with another married man. A son angry with his overbearing father runs away and gets in over his head. It's hard to shake the "90210" feel of the show, which ironically comes the least from the appearance of Luke Perry. Perry's character seems to be the only one who enjoys the money and is one of the show's bright spots. The guy is unusually laid back even when learning his wife is in love with another man.What "Windfall" doesn't seem to get is that the wish fulfillment angle is the most original option to take this story. Maybe "Windfall" as a comedy about people misusing and abusing of money and fame (wait, that was pretty much "Arrested Development"). Or maybe just "Windfall" as a more intelligent drama. The age-old hypothetical of choosing between love and money is boiling under the surface here - and the show is unwilling or unable to dig deep to get to it.Why? Might I propose the reason is to fill a TV mandate that demonizes money and fortune in order to play up the importance of the concept of love. Watch any scripted show at any time and more than likely you will see a depiction that money is inherently the root of all evil and love is inherently the source of all happiness. The fact that the money only allows these characters the opportunity to make all their selfish desires come true seems lost on them and muted by the show as one-by-one they seek to solve their problems by giving the money back.Really anything would be better than the slow death-crawl that befalls this series. The show appears bored with itself. The cast appears to all but detest each other. The show is depressing. I'm all for an intelligent, insightful show about the heavy price of fame and fortune, but this will just make you want to chase a bottle of Xanax with a bottle of Jack. "Windfall" just may have sacrificed any chance of pure entertainment to spend an entire series lecturing to us.* ½ / 4

abdaughtry I can't imagine what kind of show the first reviewer on here likes, but I watched Windfall and was hooked immediately. It is no train wreck - it simply has many story lines for a variety of colorful characters. There is humor and drama. After each of the first two shows, I couldn't wait till the next one to see what would happen. Everyone I know who's watched this is also hooked on it. And I think the acting is fine - perhaps the critics could show the credentials that qualify them to criticize this great ensemble group. Also - there's no way they used Luke "Dylan" Perry from 90210 to get viewers. The only reason I tuned in was for Jason Gedrick, who is a far bigger star than anyone else, including Luke, although he didn't star in a television show that was watched by millions of adolescents. I will continue to watch it for all the other characters, as well. The fact that everyone else is unknown is just one more refreshing reason to watch and enjoy this show. NO ONE gets excessive screen time over anyone else. It is a show about many characters and many stories.