Movie Review Black Los Angeles

BlackNLA Movie Reviews

*****THE REEL DEAL: Reviewz from the Street*****

by Edwardo Jackson

BIASES: Early 30s black male; frustrated screenwriter who favors action, comedy, and glossy, big budget movies over indie flicks, kiddie flicks, and weepy Merchant Ivory fare

LUCKY YOU (PG-13)

MOVIE BIASES: I love poker, I love Drew.
MAJOR PLAYERS: Drew Barrymore (Music and Lyrics), Eric Bana (Munich),
Robert Duvall (The Apostle), co-writer Eric Roth (The Good Shepherd), and co-writer/director Curtis Hanson (L.A. Confidential)

There's rarely a situation professional poker player Huck Cheever (Bana) couldn't talk his way out of - just so long as it doesn't involve his dad, L.C. (Duvall). Winning streaks turn cold and Huck's "eyes go quiet" when his estranged father ambles into the poker room, just as charming and as stubborn as his son. On the eve of the 2003 World Series of Poker tournament, as Huck balances the delicate romancing of a fresh-off-the-bus-from-Bakersfield lounge singer named Billie (Barrymore) with chasing (and losing) opportunities to earn his way into the $10,000 a seat tourney, he struggles to break a long losing streak of his own with his overcompetitive, tough love father.

Brimming with sly, comic touches, an engaging father-son story, and a backburnered love story, no wonder this hidden gem has sat on the shelf for some rumored two years as Warner Bros' struggled to figure out how to market it. "Lucky You" is smart (strike one), foremost a poker movie (strike two), and has a neat but unconventional, anti-Hollywood ending (you're out!). Its pedigree is impressive, as it
boasts not only the Oscar-winning director of "L.A. Confidential" but also Oscar-winning, literate screenwriter Eric Roth (Munich, Ali, Forrest Gump) along with a galaxy of poker stars (if that's your sorta thing: Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, Doyle Brunson, Jennifer Harman, Daniel Negreanu, to name a few) and a triumvirate of talented, lovable leads in Bana, Barrymore, and Duvall.

Although Drew's perkability is on scale with Mary Hart's legs in the early '90s (unofficially, Drew Barrymore IS the new Meg Ryan…of the early '90s) and should responsibly sucker those unsuspecting chick flickers who wish to drag their boyfriends out on a date, these ladies may be surprised to discover they have been duped into a poker movie of the highest order. While "Rounders" stays aloft in the pantheon of poker pictures, "Lucky You" is up there for its unobtrusive manner in
explaining the rules of Texas Hold 'Em while throwing you headlong into the intense skill and strategy of the game (weighted down only ever so slightly by the backseat love story). Bana flashes his confident American accent and easy charm as Huck while Duvall absolutely models his onscreen son with effortless charisma, twinkly
curmudgeonhood, and the competitive fire of a true poker ace.

Here is where my biases come into play: I LOVE poker. This whole movie was like a WSOP marathon at two in the morning on ESPN2 for me. However surviving some awkward moments and cornball humor, this is a sweetnatured film with plenty of comedy (Horatio Sanz as a rich gambling addict, Saverio Guerra as another gambling addict who wears BREAST IMPLANTS from a bet he took, for starters), poker, and a dash of Ryan-inspired Barrymore romance. Tossing it up against "Spider-Man 3" is a de facto admission of marketing defeat by Warners. Call their
bluff and get "Lucky."

@@@ REELS
(THREE REELS)
It's pretty hot – go give it a shot.

Like what you read? Agree/disagree with The Reel Deal? Think he's talkin' out his...HUSH YO' MOUF! (I'm only talkin' about The Reel Deal!) Email him at EJAce1@gmail.com!

Edwardo Jackson is the author of the novels EVER AFTER and NEVA HAFTA, (Villard/Random House), a writer for UrbanFilmPremiere.com, and an LA-based screenwriter. Visit his website at www.edwardojackson.com




			BlackNLA Movie Reviews ***THE REEL DEAL: Reviewz from the Street*** by Edwardo Jackson BIASES: Early 30s black male; frustrated screenwriter who favors action, comedy, and glossy, big budget movies over indie flicks, kiddie flicks, and weepy Merchant Ivory fare LUCKY YOU (PG-13) MOVIE BIASES: I love poker, I love Drew. MAJOR PLAYERS: Drew Barrymore (Music and Lyrics), Eric Bana (Munich), Robert Duvall (The Apostle), co-writer Eric Roth (The Good Shepherd), and co-writer/director Curtis Hanson (L.A. Confidential) There's rarely a situation professional poker player Huck Cheever (Bana) couldn't talk his way out of - just so long as it doesn't involve his dad, L.C. (Duvall). Winning streaks turn cold and Huck's "eyes go quiet" when his estranged father ambles into the poker room, just as charming and as stubborn as his son. On the eve of the 2003 World Series of Poker tournament, as Huck balances the delicate romancing of a fresh-off-the-bus-from-Bakersfield lounge singer named Billie (Barrymore) with chasing (and losing) opportunities to earn his way into the $10,000 a seat tourney, he struggles to break a long losing streak of his own with his overcompetitive, tough love father. Brimming with sly, comic touches, an engaging father-son story, and a backburnered love story, no wonder this hidden gem has sat on the shelf for some rumored two years as Warner Bros' struggled to figure out how to market it. "Lucky You" is smart (strike one), foremost a poker movie (strike two), and has a neat but unconventional, anti-Hollywood ending (you're out!). Its pedigree is impressive, as it boasts not only the Oscar-winning director of "L.A. Confidential" but also Oscar-winning, literate screenwriter Eric Roth (Munich, Ali, Forrest Gump) along with a galaxy of poker stars (if that's your sorta thing: Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, Doyle Brunson, Jennifer Harman, Daniel Negreanu, to name a few) and a triumvirate of talented, lovable leads in Bana, Barrymore, and Duvall. Although Drew's perkability is on scale with Mary Hart's legs in the early '90s (unofficially, Drew Barrymore IS the new Meg Ryan…of the early '90s) and should responsibly sucker those unsuspecting chick flickers who wish to drag their boyfriends out on a date, these ladies may be surprised to discover they have been duped into a poker movie of the highest order. While "Rounders" stays aloft in the pantheon of poker pictures, "Lucky You" is up there for its unobtrusive manner in explaining the rules of Texas Hold 'Em while throwing you headlong into the intense skill and strategy of the game (weighted down only ever so slightly by the backseat love story). Bana flashes his confident American accent and easy charm as Huck while Duvall absolutely models his onscreen son with effortless charisma, twinkly curmudgeonhood, and the competitive fire of a true poker ace. Here is where my biases come into play: I LOVE poker. This whole movie was like a WSOP marathon at two in the morning on ESPN2 for me. However surviving some awkward moments and cornball humor, this is a sweetnatured film with plenty of comedy (Horatio Sanz as a rich gambling addict, Saverio Guerra as another gambling addict who wears BREAST IMPLANTS from a bet he took, for starters), poker, and a dash of Ryan-inspired Barrymore romance. Tossing it up against "Spider-Man 3" is a de facto admission of marketing defeat by Warners. Call their bluff and get "Lucky." @@@ REELS (THREE REELS) It's pretty hot – go give it a shot. Like what you read? Agree/disagree with The Reel Deal? Think he's talkin' out his...HUSH YO' MOUF! (I'm only talkin' about The Reel Deal!) Email him at EJAce1@gmail.com! Edwardo Jackson is the author of the novels EVER AFTER and NEVA HAFTA, (Villard/Random House), a writer for UrbanFilmPremiere.com, and an LA-based screenwriter. Visit his website at www.edwardojackson.com © 2007, Edwardo Jackson