Lucky You

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ICUR M. @icurmtheaded Mar 7, 2026 The drama excitement of other poker adjacent films, the characters' depth as to whom or what they portraying and the Vegas ambience are lacking in what could have been a smart story without mob violence as the driving narrative. See more Blu B @RT43513976 Mar 24, 2025 When it was over I just kind of went "Huh.." that's this film in a nutshell. It leaves no impression on you. It's so easygoing the entire way like Pocket Money (1972). The acting is alright and so is the music. Bana & Barrymore aren't bad together but there really isn't any tension or anything. Duvall is also alright. Everyone is just easygonig despite trying. Everything else isn't good. The ending is just 30 minutes of a Poker Tournament. Problem is besides Bana & Duvall we don't know any of the other people, it just gets repetitive showing round after round, and if you don't understand Poker your honestly lost. This does try to explain with Barrymore playing but it's not done well. The other big issue is the romance and Poker storyline feel like two completely seperate films. They never really tie in at all. This would've been better if it just focused on Duvall & Bana. If you legit took out the romance almost nothing changes. It's so easygoing the entire way and it feels almost like a 90's type of vibe than anything. Than there are scenes like on the golf course and buying the camera to start which make no sense and don't come back to anything. Visually it's just boring direction and just feels so meandering at times. I can maybe see a big poker fan getting more into this but most people should skip this. If you wanna see how you do Poker right in a movie watch The Sting. See more Louise C @RT69763679 Jul 23, 2023 I enjoyed watching 'Lucky You', seeing Eric Bana in a different role from my previous experience of him on screen. The RT ratings seem harsh from where I'm sitting. This film is not in the top league, but for what it is, a very well presented film. I bought this on DVD and always look at the Extras, The amount of work that was put into research and training for the poker scenes merits a mention. Rating this a 7. See more Matty @RT57269482 Feb 4, 2023 Underrated Eric Banner classic! See more Mar 20, 2020 This movie is seriously embarrassing to the game of poker See more Jan 14, 2020 I truly cannot understand the disdain the film received. Hanson's film is a throwback to a time when subtlety and small, personal stories were celebrated in Hollywood, and you don't even have to go back to the Golden Age era to find it. The Curse of Star Wars has made younger filmmakers and audiences less patient and more demanding of in-your-face storytelling. This is why we're plagued with the preponderance of comic book flicks. Hanson's choice to fill in just enough details on the basic of Texas Hold'em gave the audience enough of an anchor about what transpires without giving them a TED Talk or a Daniel Negreanu master class. Anyone who's ever taken a screenwriting class knows Eric Bana's character follows the pattern of a flawed hero whose defects hold him back from success (poker), love (Billie) and family`(his father). Barrymore's "Drew" is the catalyst character who helps Huck grow. Anyone who punishes Lucky You for not being a Poker Heist film or terrorists taking over the WSOP, or Huck coming to terms with his transgender issues, does a disservice by reviewing the film they expected (or wanted) and discounting the one the director actually told. I liked Lucky You as much as I enjoyed In Her Shoes, which is another personal story well told by Curtis Hanson. This film illustrates the downside of art critics and film critics especially. Both the Hollywood Reporter and Variety reviewers decided they hated it, and two days late most major media outlet reviewers excoriated it. (I wonder how many of them actually saw the film or merely kept the Variety review in mind when they watched it?) Let it be remembered that Sideways—a very enjoyable and painfully funny Alexander Payne movie—was the darling of all the critics who predicted it would sweep the Oscars. It didn't. Not even close. This is what can happen when too many critics end up patting themselves on the back. Ignore the negatives and see the movie. It's a delightful tale. See more Read all reviews

Lucky You

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