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.
Director Hanson isn't one to steer away from such a character, as he proved with Cameron Diaz's Maggie in In Her Shoes, yet Huck doesn't engage us like Maggie. He's aloof and remains that way. He's not someone we want to root for, not even when he's playing poker.
Poker is a big part of this film, so having an unlikable protagonist means there is no one to guide us through the half-hearted poker playing. When at the table, Bana and Duvall are surrounded by real life poker stars who bring the lack of charisma we should be used to after suffering though decades of sports-star cameos. Brief appearances from Hanson's 8 Mile stars thankfully add some life to a game that lacks any cinematic potential.
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