Lucky

So this is purely a suggestion if you find that you're Netflix and chilling and you're not sure what to watch next. AND I mean watching Netflix and chilling with some friends, family, etc. where you’re actually paying attention; none of that other silly shit that you hear now-a-days. If you're looking for dramatic relatable entertainment that forces you to care about the main character, puts you in touch with feelings that have been dormant, and leaves you feeling blessed as the credits start to roll. Then by all means, get Lucky.

Chatting up a client I was working with the other day, she mentioned a movie that she co-produced. Now being a new comer that’s trying to break into the film production business, of course I wanted to know what it was, how it was, how she did it, how she got in, where she went, who she knew, yadi yadi yada, but I had to slow my roll. Baby steps, Alaysia, before you scare her away, I kept repeating to myself. Well I was Lucky enough (you saw what I did there?) to get most of my questions answered willingly, and excitedly I might add. Her enthusiasm in talking about what she loved reignited the passion I had for the art form. That always happens when I meet someone who loves what they do. As she told me more about her film, I racked my head, trying to remember if I ever came across the movie poster in Netflix. One picture stuck heavily in my mind. Something green because my mind couldn’t stop thinking Luck of the Irish. But I tried anyway to describe the poster and the log line that I thought went with it. And I failed. Nowhere near what her movie was about. Just imagine falling up the stairs. That’s how I felt. But she kindly corrected me and later gave me her card. I watched the film that same night.

How Netflix defines Lucky: Vowing to make something of himself, a 10 year old South African orphan leaves the security of his remote village for the big city.

How Facebook defines Lucky: Lucky is a full-length feature dramatic film about a ten-year-old South African AIDS orphan who leaves his Zulu village for the city, only to find that no one will help him, except a formidable woman.

First off, I always think it’s amazing when an actor can act without using words. Sometimes people depend on the dialogue to communicate a feeling or action. But in the case of Lucky, Sihle Dlamini, who played the main character, as a ten year old orphaned boy named LUCKY, had times where his character couldn’t find the words to describe how he felt, didn’t have words at all, or couldn’t verbally communicate what he thought because of some barrier.

There were many barriers and obstacles in the movie. Age, ethnicity, language, wealth, education, relationships, family so much so that it made me as an audience member wonder how all of these issues would be solved, if they would/could be solved by LUCKY.

Not going to lie, it’s pretty hard to write about this movie without giving anything away. So I’ll sum up my feelings like this: I do not regret watching this film. I very much enjoyed it. I tend to shy away from dramatic movies that feel like non-fiction whether or not they are non-fiction. I don’t like it when films hit to close to home because it forces me to feel feelings. (Don’t let that go over your head) But sometimes I need to let myself go there. Lucky did that for me. Do yourself a favor and watch it.