USA 2017
Opening March 8, 2018
Directed by: John Carroll Lynch
Writing credits: Logan Sparks, Drago Sumonja
Principal actors: Harry Dean Stanton, David Lynch, Ron Livingston, Ed Begley Jr., Tom Skerritt
Lucky (Harry Dean Stanton) is ninety-years-old and lives a life of routine which involves daily exercise, eating at the diner, walking to the local store, and ending the day at the bar. He is content, but when he unexpectedly falls one day, he finds himself facing the decline of his body and the eventuality of death. As he comes to terms with his future, he searches for meaning in this new stage of his life.
There are few films which are as successful as Lucky at tackling the issue of inevitability of death in such a beautiful, funny, and touching manner. Lucky is a man who has been blessed with good health throughout his life, and so he never had to think about the coming end. He is frightened by the concept and must work to figure out how he wants to live and what impact he wishes to make in his final years. With a gruff, cigarette smoking, atheist cowboy as the subject, Lucky brings a refreshing new perspective. Harry Dean Stanton truly shines as the title character (in one of his last roles before his death in 2017), and the emotional gravitas he brings to the characterization makes this performance perhaps the best of his career. While it is a difficult topic, Stanton’s performance and an outstanding screenplay by Logan Sparksand Drago Sumonja make this a film which should not be missed. ()