Someone forgot to tell Curtis Hanson that he was directing a competition film. I should probably clarify that. Someone forgot to tell Hanson that he was directing a competition film about poker.
Yes, poker. Lucky You is an epic failure from a cast, director, and writer (Eric Roth), all whom would have bankability written all over them in any other circumstance . Not here, though.
Instead of a dramatic film that happens to take place in the world of high stakes poker or a film about a poker game with a romantic and dramatic subplot, we are presented with a movie about both and neither. Take actor Eric Bana s character Huck. Huck isn t a good guy.
He spends his life playing poker, borrowing money from friends to play poker and pawning his personal property to play poker. One person he won t take a handout from, even to play in the World Series of Poker, is his father (Robert Duvall). Huck s daddy issues aren t terribly interesting, so enter Billy (Drew Barrymore).
She adds a romantic storyline to a film that doesn t need one. With both female troubles and family issues, Huck seems like a character due for a major change. In its own contrived way, the film tells us Huck does make a transformation.
But after watching Huck act like a single-minded, hard-headed ass for an hour and a half, it s not easy to appreciate the change.
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