Lucky

I watched this movie with three of my friends, and only one of them fell asleep during it, so that’s a good sign right off the bat. And he was sleepy anyways. The other two, who aren’t “film people”, whatever that means, really liked it, and I did too. There’s one scene in particular that really stuck with us. One of my friends said, “It made me feel like really weirdly emotional”. My dream is to one day make a movie that elicits that same reaction. It’s a montage, and it’s the song that’s paired with it, Johnny’s Cash’s version of “I See a Darkness” by Will Oldham, that makes it so moving. One of my teachers in film school was very adamant about the use of the music in film, preaching that like every aspect of a film, it needs to be motivated by the story, and this example certainly checks that box. Some “film people”, snobby film people in my opinion, would say that songs take away from movies, that cinema is a visual medium and music is lazy storytelling or something. Personally, I love when films utilize music. If you know me you know that Good Will Hunting is one of my favorite movies. Looking back, I can point to it as one of the first movies that I connected to in a way that made me want to pursue film, and the primarily Elliot Smith soundtrack was a big part of that. Yeah, I know I’m from Boston.

Lucky (2017) is a dramedy, which is my favorite genre. There’s just something special about a movie that can make you laugh and cry. Directed by John Carrol Lynch, it’s another debut that does not disappoint. The music, lighting, and Harry Dean Stanton’s acting all come together to tell the captivating story of Lucky. He is a perfectly constructed protagonist; he’s flawed, but likable, like most of us, and he’s going through some shit, like most of us. He’s a 90 year old war vet, but somehow there’s something about his story that resonated with a bunch of Gen-Zers/Millenials (Which one am I? Someone please let me know), and I think it will with you too. Check it out on Hulu!