Lucky

I've been a follower of Harry Dean Stanton's work since seeing 'Paris, Texas' when it first came out in 1984. I'd seen him before in movies before, from 'Cool Hand Luke' onwards, but always in bit parts. 'Paris, Texas' was his first major lead role and he handled it beautifully. Harry Dean's not your usual clean-cut, square-jawed American leading actor though. He looks more like your average factory worker, asthmatic ranch hand or petty criminal. He's always managed to play that look to the maximum effect on screen, so much so that his appearances always tend to stick in the mind long after more conventionally pretty actors' performances have faded from memory.Given this past history, picking up this movie on blu-ray was a no-brainer. As expected, it was well worth the modest investment. The film is a labour of love, put together by devotees of Harry Dean's work. As such, it could have been an ego-boosting vanity piece. It's not. It's a sober, refreshingly and entertainingly honest look at the life of an old man as it draws towards its end. Lucky, the old man in question, is clearly based on Harry Dean himself, and the scriptwriters, Logan Sparks and Drago Sumonja, based much of their script on things Harry had said to them in conversation. Again, this could have been really self-indulgent. Again, Harry being Harry, it's not, because his view of life actually is genuinely interesting.A handful of savvy directors have seen and appreciated Harry Dean's work and so cast him in pivotal roles in their movies. David Lynch cast him in the pay-off scene at the end of 'Straight Story,' having already featured him in 'Fire: Walk With Me.' In 'Lucky,' Lynch appears as an actor and turns in a fine performance as what he is in life, one of Harry Dean's friends. Lynch's role here is suitably off-kilter and surreal, at once funny and genuinely touching. There's a real emotional heart to this film. The love that everyone involved clearly has for the lead actor shines through in every lovingly focused frame. Which reminds me, the cinematography and direction are damn fine too.Having heard a little about this movie, I still didn't know quite what to expect from it. It turned out to be a real treat, beautiful to look at on screen, blending the real and the surreal, funny and sad, angry and tender. A fitting swan song for a great actor. Speaking of which, in one particularly moving scene, Harry Dean sings.The extras are good too, giving insight into how and why the movie came to be made, interviewing lead players, looking back at Harry Dean's career. The man himself also treats is to renditions of some of his favourite songs. He has some fine busking chops if acting had let him down.Highly recommended to anyone who likes good, insightful films with genuine humanity at their core.

The pace is slow in a real life way and repetitive scenes of Lucky's routine add a subtle sense of dread that remind us of Lucky's fragile mortality and our own - Stanton is a fine character actor and we don't see enough character actors in leading roles. He gives presence to a man who spends a great deal of time alone and I enjoyed a moving scene at a birthday party the viewer suspects he will not attend. The movie is marketed as an atheist seeking enlightenment, and I did not find that to be a particularly prominent or explicit theme. Most movies fudge the issue of life after death and resort to platitudes about living on in one another's hearts. This movie does not do that, fortunately. It has its deeper moments, and Lucky seems to find meaning in his independence and self-sufficiency. I am not an atheist, but I have often thought that atheists do not believe in nothing - they believe in Life. Lucky is not without relationships - those daily micro-encounters of the elderly and the lonely of any age - but by the end of the movie, he does seem to have reached a more peaceful and socially connected place from which to face the end of his life. The rest of the cast are flawless and Yvonne Huff's performance was noteworthy. I was pleasantly surprised to see James Darren in the film. I felt very privileged to watch Stanton's last, unvarnished, and truthful character study. This will not be everyone's cup of tea and it will not give you answers, but it's a truly likeable movie.

A lovely little film that men are allowed to cry at. In fact men in particular, because this is about male pain. Harry Dean Stanton breaking the fourth wall at the end and going off to die (he didn't last till the premiere) is heartbreaking.

but i liked it

Fantastic movie by an iconic actor, the bonus on this blue ray is the documentary partly fictional which is a must see. Harry Deans finest movie and a legend.

This gem of a film is both a testament to the life of its star, Harry Dean Stanton, and a reminder to all of us about how precious small films made with more love than money are, both to our culture and to our own lives. I cannot recommend this film strongly enough providing you have an open mind, a working brain and a beating heart.

A modest but utterly charming and superbly made realist movie that is at the same time an existentialist parable. The late Harry Dean Stanton is sublime. His character Lucky shows us how to confront old age and death with courage, humour and dignity.

Item exactly as described, securely packaged and arrived in great time.