Lucky You ...

If you haven't seen this movie yet, then the title is truly apropos. ... Lucky You!

To be completely truthful I don't know where I stand on this movie. As a flick, it pretty much sucked. As a poker movie, it pretty much sucked. But there were moments that entertained me, like the degeneracy that is prevelant in Vegas, especially in poker.

As for the acting, I was surprised by the cast: Robert Duvall, Drew Barrymore, Debra Messing, Robert Downey (though he was on screen for less than 10 minutes in just one scene), Jean Smart, Horatio Sanz and of course Eric Bana. These are some pretty big names in the business (frankly I think this movie is WAY beneath Duvall and Barrymore) so it shocks me that they would take these roles based on this script. Then again, there's only so much an actor can do with lines like "Never chase what you can't catch." But the funniest line in the movie came when someone was giving Bana advice and he said he was too sympathetic: "If you're looking for sympathy you can find it in the dictionary somewhere between sh*t and syphilis."

I'll take a moment here to discuss Barrymore. She served as the "public common denominator" in this movie. She was the one who had to represent the "ignorant" crowd so Bana could make her understand that poker is skill, etc. Again, I think she should have said "No thanks" when they offered her this part, but then again, she has made bad career choices before (Can you say Firestarter?).

But, there's one side of me that loved this movie, and that's my poker snob side. There were things that made me smile, like John "The World" Hennigan playing the part of a badass, or just seeing all of the poker players I know or have spoken with, etc. It's kinda cool seeing these people up on the big screen and knowing just a short while ago they were just nobodies making a living at poker. Now they're bonafide celebs, so from that standpoint it was enjoyable.

I know what you're all wondering: How much poker was there and how believable was it? Well, there actually was a decent amount of poker, and Eric Bana's character, Huck Cheever, throws in enough cliche "poker" lines ("Money is just a way of keeping score.") during his everyday dialogue to remind you the writers did their homework to try to keep it as legit as possible without losing the audience.

Were there any Hollywood hands? Really just one, and yes it was a straight flush, but I won't tell you when it comes in case you plunk down $10 to see this thing. Were there unbelievable things? Absolutely, and too many to list here. But I will give them this: They clearly cared enough to consult these players to make sure pretty much everything was authentic, like super satellites, betting (no string raises, etc.). You could nitpick some things, but for the most part it was techincally sound.

Was it corny and predictable? Yep. Does it have a happy ending? What do you think?

Oh, and I think there are parts Scott would like, such as when Duvall and Bana play GUTS, or the prop bets that come up occasionally.

Quick points:
-- I was EASILY the youngest person in the theatre, though I did go to a matinee.
-- Don't show up for a movie early these days because they run actual commercials now, and it's ridiculous.
-- A LOT of poker pros were in Lucky You, and quite a few had actual lines: Barry Greenstein, Ted Forrest, Jennifer Harman, Jason Lester, Sammy Farha, Chau Giang, John Murphy, David Oppenheim, Minh Ly, Marsha Waggoner, Daniel Negreanu, Erick Lindgren, Antonio Esfandiari, Slim Preston, Matt Savage and more (but the other people mostly just were seated at tables that the camera picked up during scans, so it could have been footage from an actual tournament).
-- The moment where I had to bite my tongue came pretty early on when I saw Hasan Habib at the table and I wanted SO BADLY to yell HASAAAAN HAAAABIB!!!!!! Jeanne laughed when I said that to her and we both knew NO ONE in that theatre would know what the hell that meant. And IMDB doesn't even know who Habib is because they don't have him listed in the credits!
-- Speaking of these players, I can't understand why some got to play themselves and others didn't. Harman, Hennigan, Oppenheim and Savage had fake names, which made no sense. How does it hurt the film for Matt Savage to be called Matt Savage instead of Gil Edwards?

Overall, Jeanne and I didn't think much of this flick, and I won't buy it on DVD when it comes out. She summed it up perfectly for me "There wasn't enough of anything in it" to make it enjoyable or memorable. I give it a 6-2-offsuit. You can make a straight with these cards, but do you really want to play them?

-- Chris

Comments

[Godard]

No wonder the Cineaste retired his blog. Nice review!

[Paboo]

Great review. Read some other bad reviews about Lucky You as well. I think it's a must pass movie.

Just read a Great review about "The Grand". I think you've got to see it and review it for the nation.

Paboo

[blazman]

"If you're looking for sympathy you can find it in the dictionary somewhere between sh*t and syphilis."

Oh please stop, not more of these witty one liners, my side is splitting right open!! Oh stop before I injure myself!!

[ChicagoMike]

I too have heard a few good things about "The Grand". I can't recall the name, but a few years back there was a movie that spoofed the whole dog show circuit thing, and they are saying that "The Grand" is right up there with it.

[Loren Finkelstein]

Are you high? For 1 thing Firestarter was a phenomenal movie. Bad career choice? Pshaw. Hell, even if you didn't like it, she was 9. Hardly making her own choices at the time.

[Chris Cosenza]

Sounds like someone has a crush on Ms. Barrymore. LOL!!! I could have gone off on her life choices instead, but I chose Firestarter as a lukewarm compromise. Would you have felt better if I said Boys on the Side? LOL!!!

[Tucman]

Has anyone seen the movie about Stu Ungar's life? It starred Michael Imperioli of "The Sopranos."

I will watch "Lucky You," but only when it reaches my cable channels. I think it would be fun to watch poker players trying to act.

[Chris Cosenza]

Scott and I both own High Roller, and it was horrendous.

[nate_46]

Yeah High Roller was pretty bad, but Firestarter... How could you not like it? Drew Barrymore as an adult.... "I'll buy that for a dollar!"

I think I will go see the movie just because I haven't seen a non animated movie in the theaters since the Titanic. Will I enjoy it? Maybe, but I will enjoy getting out even more :).

Very good review Chris. Ever thought about starting a movie review podcast? You are really good with details.

[Gabriel]

It can't be a great movie if the best line in it was stolen straight from Major Payne.

[Chris Cosenza]

LOL!!!!

[mark]

Over the weekend I watched two movie review shows, Ebert and Roeper and whatever that late night NBC equivelant is. Both shows have 2 reviewers and both shows had one reviewer that gave Lucky You a positive review. I was surprised, since I've only heard negative things from the poker community about it. Maybe this movie will at least bring some new blood into the poker world, since some non players seem to like it.

[Chris Cosenza]

That's funny, because the ONLY thing I liked about it was the poker players being in it. As just a straight movie fan I thought it was lame. LOL!

[Michelle from Tampa]

I just watched this on DVD, and I thought this movie was kinda weak as well, and I have a higher threshold for crap in movies than does my husband (who refused to watch the DVD with me). I agree with your comment from way back in 5/11--as a movie alone, it was a piece of garbage. Eric Bana did an amazing job in "Munich" but didn't reprise his great acting chops in this flick.

And I love Mr. Cranky's comment (see link at my name) about the "poker date night" when Bana is teaching Barrymore the ropes of Texas Hold'Em: "I just love moments in movies that resemble instructional videos." LOLOL...