Gamble on the movie, by all means: it has its low-key pleasures. But perhaps safer to fold, and hope Hanson deals us an ace again soon.
Lucky You (2007)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:11
Fresh:4
Rotten:7
Average Rating:4.7/10
Consensus: Lucky You tries to combine a romantic story with the high-stakes world of poker, but comes up with an empty hand.
Theatrical Release:22-06-2007
Synopsis: Director Curtis Hanson (L.A. CONFIDENTIAL, WONDER BOYS) raises the stakes and takes on Las Vegas in LUCKY YOU. Huck Cheever (Eric Bana) plays poker for a living, using every opportunity that arises... Director Curtis Hanson (L.A. CONFIDENTIAL, WONDER BOYS) raises the stakes and takes on Las Vegas in LUCKY YOU. Huck Cheever (Eric Bana) plays poker for a living, using every opportunity that arises in daily life to hone his skills and test the odds. He is fueled by both a compulsion to win and the desire to do better than his father, L.C. Cheever (Robert Duvall), who is a championship poker player. Huck's skills come naturally, but he lacks patience. When he meets Billie Offer (Drew Barrymore), an earnest, honest girl from Bakersfield pursuing her dream of being a singer, he sees the possibility of a real relationship for the first time. But Huck's habits are hard to break, and he'll have to make some changes if he wants to make this relationship work. Barrymore is sweet as Billie, but it is the relationship between Huck and his father that moves the story along. Huck harbors ill feelings towards L.C. from his childhood--feelings that are complicated by his burning desire to best his father at poker. Bana effectively shows the animosity Huck feels towards his father with subtle changes to his facial expression and body language, and Duvall actually makes the hard-nosed L.C. likable. Ultimately, the real star of this movie is poker. Throughout the film, it's the strategies and bets, the flops and the rivers, that draw the viewer in. Professional poker players served as consultants and extras in the film, lending authenticity to the World Series of Poker where father and son face off. Debra Messing plays Billie's sister, Horatio Sanz is Ready Eddie, who can turn any situation into a bet, and Robert Downey Jr. appears all too briefly as Huck's friend. [More]
Starring: Eric Bana, Drew Barrymore, Robert Duvall, Debra Messing
Starring: Eric Bana, Drew Barrymore, Robert Duvall, Debra Messing, Horatio Sanz, Jean Smart, Kelvin Han Yee, Charles Martin Smith
Director: Curtis Hanson
Director: Curtis Hanson
Screenwriter: Curtis Hanson, Eric Roth
Producer: Carol Fenelon, Denise Di Novi
Composer: Christopher Young
Studio: Warner Bros.
Reviews for Lucky You
In the past, poker-playing in the movies was likely to be something exciting but dangerous, not something to be dwelt on technically, and analogous to other criminal and self-destructive activities in the storyline.
Though Curtis Hanson captures the savage swings from high to low, he fails to when it comes to the addictive quality of poker
While fans of Eric Bana may get a kick out of his meaty, manly performance, Drew Barrymore is a huge mistake.
A ‘realistic’ Vegas movie that will set no-one’s soul on fire, but is further proof that Hanson can lend his talents to any style of movie.
Even though Lucky You is sometimes dull and generally thin, there is something winning about the movie's genial lack of ambition.
A solid piece of mainstream storytelling that works as a character study and a love story, even if you don't know a gut-shot straight draw from a nut flush.
After several delayed release dates, Warner Bros. finally lays down its cards with Lucky You, and it's a weak hand.
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