No luck for poker drama "Lucky You"
Movies, like poker, can result in some unexpected combinations. Who knew, for example, that the director of "L.A. Confidential" and the screenwriter of "The Insider" and "Munich," working together, would add up to a losing hand?
Curtis Hanson's Las Vegas drama "Lucky You," which he co-wrote with Eric Roth, was shot in 2005 and has been sitting on the shelf for some time, passing up several release dates in 2006 and now opening in a sure suicide slot: opposite "Spider-Man 3." But the film, now that we finally see it, seems dated far beyond its actual birthday. Though it's set in the year 2003, it feels much older, from the oddly '70s/'80s costumes to the creaky dialogue to the way that a main character, for a trip from Bakersfield to Vegas, brings travelers' checks. (Right, I forgot — there were no ATMs in 2003.)
There's certainly potential in the idea of "Lucky You," and the Hanson of "L.A. Confidential" and "Wonder Boys" could surely have made much of the lollipop lights, stale air and faded dreams of Las Vegas. (Just a taste of this comes through in a great throwaway moment early on, when an anonymous actor tells a friend that he's climbing the Vegas ladder: "I'm a Nubian slave at the Luxor now.") Early in the movie, we meet main character Huck (Eric Bana), in a pawn shop, trying to hock a friend's camera and his mother's wedding ring. He's a star poker player whose personal life is a shambles, and he's desperately trying to put together some cash to enter the World Series of Poker.
What does Huck need? Why, Drew Barrymore, of course, with her adorable way of talking through a smile. She's Billie, a would-be singer from Bakersfield, and she's got a special charm that attracts Huck, who promptly seduces her and relieves her of her cash. This movie is no love story, and Bana and Barrymore (who gives a disappointingly self-conscious performance) have little chemistry. Rather, it's a series of poker hands, sucker bets, familial clashes between Huck and his poker-champ dad L.C. (Robert Duvall) and scenes in which characters make obvious statements to each other. "I think everyone's just trying not to be lonely," says Billie to Huck, apropos of nothing. Maybe better to be lonely.
There's suspense to some of the poker scenes (Hanson and Roth elaborately strive to explain these to us, but card novices may still be confused). Most of them drag on far too long, particularly the final championship — there's only so much drama you can wring out of people looking at their cards. Jean Smart, however, gets a chance to show off a nice variety of poker faces.
Robert Downey Jr., blessedly, shows up uncredited for a scene as a pal of Huck's who's eking out a living by manning a handful of 1-900 lines — all at the same time, sitting at a bar — and he saves the movie for a moment; Downey can tell an entire story in a couple of lines. (You wish "Lucky You" was following this guy instead.)
Ultimately, "Lucky You" isn't awful, but it certainly isn't very good, and like the bland "In Her Shoes," it doesn't begin to explore Hanson's real talent for atmosphere and character. Call this one a loss, and let's hope for a better hand for the filmmakers next time.
Moira Macdonald: 206-464-2725 or mmacdonald@seattletimes.com
Movie review
Showtimes and trailer
"Lucky You," with Eric Bana, Drew Barrymore, Robert Duvall, Debra Messing. Directed by Curtis Hanson, from a screenplay by Eric Roth and Hanson.
120 minutes. Rated PG-13 for some language and sexual humor. Several theaters.