Luck
wogma rating: Watch if you have nothing better to do (?)
A few good action pieces & slick execution of a different-interesting plot isn't bad. But there's no way to duck the god-awful dialogues. And just as "Love isn't good enough for survival", just style doesn't a good film make.
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You aren't expecting reality when the film is titled Luck. To top it off the font chosen for the title has diamonds and the U jets out to make a horse shoe. There's still some hope that each character's life has a passable amount of luck. But almost ALL the characters have this insurmountable amount of luck except that it's not enough for them to have enough mullah. But that too has its purpose, you see. It's so that they can play the "biggest game". And thus starts the "reality show".
And this is only interval. Yes, the entire first half is shot like it is setting up the characters. And the second half is shot like it is setting up the situation, the story. I just hope the idea isn't to have a sequel "Lucky again". But for this one it means every character, every event, every frame is stylized. It all looks very smart. But an excess of anything is bad holds true here too. It gets tiring and overbearing.
It was likely, or at the very least there was a chance that this style would have worked if the film was shorter. But no such luck! (Damn! Can I please say 'No pun intended'?) The issue was that the individual episodes in the story were not predictable, though the overall story was. Not to mention the extremely cheesy and obvious one-liners which were also translated every once in a while. The voiceover in the first five minutes should be a good give away of the non-sense that is to come. Also looks like the challenge was to have the word luck or a synonym thereof in every second sentence. And unfortunately, the writer won!
An action flick, a supposed thriller - you don't really expect ace acting. And that's what you get - non-ace acting. It was disheartening to see Danny play second fiddle, especially when the last I saw him was in Frozen. The rest do their usual bit. Sanjay plays a don-like role. Imraan Khan continues from Kidnap and Chitrashi Rawat from Chak De! India. Shruti Haasan plays the sex appeal and I guess, it works. Acting I can't see. Ravi Kissen is the insufferable sleazy character. Do you feel love or hatred for any of the characters? Na-a-ah!
By the way, be warned this para is sort-of giving the movie away. But it is infuriating that a writer had a serial-killer character (possibly rapist) not only escape the death sentence but also be respectfully set free! (ba-izzat bari, my ....!)
Seriously, the premise and the broad sub-plots are very interesting indeed. The execution isn't all bad either. But the details in terms of characterizations or dialogues are the pits. And it makes you cry for sanity. And the climax is the mother of all ridiculous climaxes. Even for a film that is far away from reality, the climax seemed completely out of place.
- meeta, a part of the audience
Thumbs up, by Roshni Mulchandani, Bolly Spice : ...Luck is every Bollywood action fans dream come true... full review
Thumbs up, by Taran Adarsh, Bollywood Hungama : ...LUCK may not be high on story, but the concept and at least four stylised thrilling sequences make a big difference.... full review
Thumbs up, desi hits : ...Rensil D’Silva’s script has hit the bulls-eye as he manages to weave together a slick action thriller and a full-on entertainer. ... full review
Thumbs up, by Subhash K Jha, Now Running.com : ...Particularly riveting is Imran Khan's introductory episode where in a Harshad Mehta-like scam the boy's life and finances come undone because of his father's economic misadventures.... full review
Thumbs up, by Gohar Iqbal Punn, Radio Sargam : ...The sequence of revolver, the jump from the helicopter, the underwater scene with the sharks and the train scene in the climax – are the sequences, which will remain in your memory... full review
So-So, by Manish Gajjar, BBC : ...Director Soham Shah’s thriller scores highly on the brilliantly executed stunts against the stunning Namibian backdrop... full review
So-So, by Daliya Ghose, Bollywood Mantra : ...Soham’s skill in visualizing a film is top class but he fails to add more ingredients to his script.... full review
So-So, by Anupama Chopra, NDTV : ...Ravi Kissen is nicely hammy as a vicious serial killer ... full review
So-So, by Irene Nexica, Planet Bollywood : ...It would help if the characters were developed with enough depth that we actually care what happens to them... full review
So-So, by Nikhat Kazmi, Times of India : ...What's even more tiresome is the screenplay which relentlessly tries to define luck in a zillion ways and punctuates the end of every conversation with Good Luck! ... full review
Thumbs down, by Noyon Jyoti Parasara, AOL INDIA : ...does have a new story for Hindi films.... full review
Thumbs down, by Khalid Mohamed, aslibaat.com : ...Shah, obviously, doesn’t like foreigners. They die before you can go hai hai. ... full review
Thumbs down, by Baradwaj Rangan, Blogical Conclusion, The New Sunday Express : ...with every other utterance bearing fortune-cookie philosophy about the phenomenon of luck... full review
Thumbs down, by Anand Vaishnav, Buzz18 : ...Despite a sketchy role, Imran manages to stand up against a line up of veteran actors. ... full review
Thumbs down, by Udita Jhunjhunwala, DNA : ...Shruti Haasan has a long way to go and much to learn, especially in dialogue delivery.... full review
Thumbs down, by Aniruddha Guha, DNA : ...Shah also happily steals dialogues from action films of the 1980s and 1990s, which used to be a rage among frontbenchers. ... full review
Thumbs down, by Rajeev Masand, IBN Live : ...there's more bak-bak than dishoom-dishoom, even though it pretends to be an action-adventure. ... full review
Thumbs down, by Gaurav Malani, indiatimes : ...The opening and ending action sequences by Allan Amin are convincingly choreographed but the intermediate stunts appear too artificial. ... full review
Thumbs down, by Satish S, J.A.M : ...We've seen enough brainless action thrillers, but nothing I assure you, falls so flat on its face.... full review
Thumbs down, Movie Talkies : ...Soham lacks in more than one quarter with "Luck", and the much publicized "shark tank" act looks faker than even the most outdated part of "Jaws"... full review
Thumbs down, by Mr. Inketi, Mr. Inketis Weblog : ...Sanjay Dutt repeats his bhai act for the nth time, but still the masses like him enough to throw out an applause ... full review
Thumbs down, by Jahan Bakshi, Now Running.com : ... unintentionally hilarious 'punchlines' that masquerade as smart dialogue. ... full review
Thumbs down, by PFCDesktop, Passion for Cinema : ...Biren Mohanti the editor and Amar Mohile the background scorer seem to have done more work than Soham Shah the director.... full review
Thumbs down, by ~UH~, Passion for Cinema : ...Honestly, the first half of the movie is taut with the production quality no less than any Hollywood action flick. But post interval the typical Hindi cinema masalas starts pouring in... full review
Thumbs down, by Padmaja Thakore, Passion for Cinema : ...The very idea of luck is amorphous and undefined. If it just means cheating death, Imraan would not be on the initial list. ... full review
Thumbs down, by Great Bong, Random Thoughts of a Demented Mind : ...A disco Pathan-suit wearing Mussa (Sanjay Dutt) whose luck is evidenced by his surviving running across railway tracks blindfolded during office hours and in walking free after getting booked under TADA.... full review
Thumbs down, by Raja Sen , Rediff : ...Several of you are curious about debutant Shruti Haasan, and all I can say is that Kamal's daughter deserved a better launch vehicle... full review
Thumbs down, by Janhvi Patel, StarBoxOffice : ...The pace isn’t fast enough for a thriller... full review
Thumbs down, by The Thirdman, Upper Stall : ... The script gives the actors no scope and neither are they able to rise above the script.... full review
Twitter reviews for this movie are not available.
This page has additional observations, other than the ones noted in the main review.
Warning: this section has some details that could distort your experience while watching the movie. I strongly recommend reading this only after you have seen the movie or if you have decided not to see it.
Plot Summary
People with extremely good luck from around the world are chosen for a reality show with the sole aim of making money on betting for the survivor. Believe me, it sounds interesting here...
What Worked
- The camel race scene
- The underwater scene
- The fight on the train.
What did not
- Are women allowed to roam in capris and race camels in Pakistan?
- Don't you need more height than 2000feet to use a parachute? Especially considering these people must not have all been experts.
- How come all the participants know how to use a gun, to swim, use a parachute?
- Is the deployment system of a parachute at the back?
- South Africa has no laws against murder? Or gun shots?
Nitty-Gritty
- How come Imraan Khan and the villain's keep are exchanging introductions after having driven a lot away from th pick-up point?
- Swimming in a pool with untied long hair - so not happening.
Parental Guidance:
- Violence: Tons of it. Mention of a serial killer.
- Language: Mostly clean. One rape scene.
- Nudity & Sexual content: Bikini clad women.
- Concept: Greed for money satisfied through cheating and gambling.
- General Look and Feel: Slick and neat.
![[Wikipedia page of Luck]](/static/images/icons/wiki_small.png){kind=icon}
![[IMDB Page of Luck]](/static/images/icons/imdb_small.png){kind=icon}
![[Soham Shah twitter account]](/static/images/icons/twitter_small.png){kind=icon}
Comments (2)
My bad luck that I watched this one by paying for the ticket
A superb film that i had ever watched in my life.Its an outstanding film so my dear friends plzzz don't miss it & i also loved the acting of Sanju Baba & Imran
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