Director Neil Burger keeps things light, and the actors are more than engaging. ... But there's something centrally pat and predictable about the coincidence-laden story.
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09/25/08
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The Lucky Ones (2008)
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Reviews Counted:68
Fresh:24
Rotten:44
Average Rating:4.9/10
Consensus: The Lucky Ones features heartfelt performances, but is undone by the plot's overwrought parade of coincidence and contrivance.
Synopsis: Neil Burger's follow-up to his accomplished period piece, THE ILLUSIONIST, is an affecting naturalistic modern drama. THE LUCKY ONES concerns three Iraq War soldiers who have just returned to the... [More]
Starring: Rachel McAdams, Tim Robbins, Michael Pena, Molly Hagan
Director: Neil Burger
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Reviews for The Lucky Ones
Top CriticDirector and co-writer Neil Burger's drama uses the war as a springboard to tell a darkly funny, and sometimes profoundly moving, story of the men and women who are the warriors.
09/26/08
If not for the warmth and likability of its characters and those playing them, The Lucky Ones would be a tiresome formula picture.
03/18/09
...benefits substantially from the strength and charisma of its three leads...
09/27/08
A refreshing departure from the normal 'soldier's story' movies we've seen in recent years.
09/24/08
Rachel McAdams keeps reminding me how good she is in every role she takes. In this movie, she just glows energy. Acting is one thing. How do you project energy? Through joy, anger and curiosity, she projects this vibe and she is the backbone of the film.
09/26/08
By structuring this as a comic road movie, writer-director Neil Burger manages to examine the emotional isolation of returning vets without sinking into a bog of despair.
09/26/08
Of its genre, it's uncommonly good, and it's also the cheeriest movie about Iraq war vets I've yet seen.
09/26/08
The direction is functional, workmanlike; Burger never steals the spotlight from his characters.
09/29/08
McAdams and Peña are affectingly vulnerable, while Robbins convinces as a family man with strong paternal instincts.
09/26/08
The dialogue is often sharp and funny and the performances nicely pitched.
09/26/08
Ultimately I was left without any clear notion as to what was being said through the film and why.
09/30/08
With a smooth, light touch, The Lucky Ones focuses on the idea that the present and the people who factor into it are all we really have.
09/26/08
What gives these episodes cumulative impact is the group portrait that emerges of a well-meaning country in a state of drift.
09/26/08
Like its lead characters, Lucky is wounded, lost, and impractical, but it has a messy, winning humanity and an agreeably leisurely pace that almost redeems it.
09/26/08
The Lucky Ones isn't dull, and the actors do quite nicely, especially McAdams, who's feisty, gorgeous, and as mercurial as a mood ring.
09/24/08
Top CriticThe drama's one glaring weakness is that its contrivances are far too obvious...Despite that, the unexpectedly light, sometimes humorous story is still enormously affecting.
09/17/08
A thoughtful study on the way foreign wars can reverberate here at home.
09/25/08
Even when it feels contrived, The Lucky Ones is enhanced by Mr. Peña, Ms. McAdams and especially the terrific, always surprising Mr. Robbins, in performances so likable and well timed they carry you aloft, like a flag.
09/24/08
Top CriticWhile their circumstances may be forced, the three characters feel like real, complex, likable people. That's a real rarity in a film about veterans, no matter what the ideology is.
09/26/08
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August 24, 2008:
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