Mr. Lucky

This is really a wonderful and somewhat surprising film. Grant plays against type, at least if you think his type is the suave, urbane lover boy who has never taken a false step...

The real surprise for me, though, is how strong Day is in this film. She is photographed beautifully; the cinematographer made sure she had a strong eye light in nearly every scene and she looks stunning. But more than that, she just seems totally on her game and involved. Perhaps some of that credits goes to Grant, who seems to be having fun with the whole thing.

Ron

Unavailable on DVD, but found on VHS at Blockbuster, "Mr Lucky" is a Cary Grant vehicle, even more than a morale boosting, "keep the homes fires burning" war movie. Grant gets to play a wide range of roles here: fashion plate, grifter, romantic lead, war hero and (most notably) knitter of sweaters. Look, I've seen them all: North By Northwest, Bringing Up Baby, To Catch A Thief, and on and on.This has many moments that match the very best that Cary Grant had on offer. Most notably, there's an extended sequence of Grant riffing in Cockney to Laraine Day. Now Cary Grant liked to identify himself as a Cockney (which is usually termed as an East Londoner), but here he gets the rare opportunity in his movie career to play one (also in Gunga Din), and when asked where he picked up the rhyming slang that makes Cockney so annoying (charming to Americans) he says: Australia ! Ah Hollywood... You've also got to admire the sartorial splendor which Cary maintains throughout the film, even though he 's supposedly a poor kid from the wrong side of the tracks who left home at nine. Apparently there's a finishing school on Skid Row, and Cary was voted Best Dressed. Of course, one of the perverse running gags of "Mr Lucky" is that our hero wears absurdly garish ties, and does not know how to tie a Windsor knot. All he needs is Laraine Day to bring him the appropriate conservative necktie to complete him. Bless him he fights her off ... On a fifth viewing (over a lifetime), I have to admit the last twenty minutes drips with melodramatic sentiment out of step with our modern times (hey, I still tear up-don't tell anyone) but this is still a classic: funny, fast paced, easy on the eyes, and with a great supporting cast.

I just caught Mr. Lucky on TCM and agree this film rates about 7.5 out of 10. What would have otherwise been a discordant mix of comedy & drama are harmonized by the genius of Cary Grant. And this is a Cary Grant in a period of his acting life when he seems deeply aware of & willing to play out the dark, cynical side of life – as in his brilliant & underrated portrayal of the cockney lad Ernie Mott in 1944's None But The Lonely Heart (directed by Clifford Odets!). What's particularly fascinating is Grant's character portrayals in both Mr. Lucky & None But The Lonely Heart is that they start out being cynical in the sense of guys who are prematurely disappointed in the future. He lives like a dog that will succeed by biting and out-foxing everyone. Then he is humanized – without loosing his cynical edge. On the contrary we see here a key into the elegance that was Grant. He lives by denying & accepting society; this suave, cool-hearted knave. You can see that he denies society for the very reason that he is convinced that it will not fail. He accepts life's contradictions. He gets on with it. Most important of all: he is loyal to the few good things in life. In short, we were fortunate to have Grant and '43's Mr. Lucky and '44's None But the Lonely Heart – these Grant-branded jewels cast in timeless celluloid.

This is a very well-made and enjoyable film. While not exactly a wonderful film, it is very worth watching and an excellent example of Cary Grant's acting and charm. It's a wartime propaganda film that takes a different slant--instead of being heavy-handed and centering on war, it focuses on a con man who thinks he's slick for avoiding the draft--fighting is only for "suckers". As the film progresses, his unshakable bravado suddenly becomes shaken when he meets lovely Loraine Day. Somehow, she gets through to this charming jerk and he knows he can't continue as he's been doing. It's an interesting character study and a welcome change from the usual.

My main reason for seeing 'Mr Lucky' was for Cary Grant, who gave so many great performances even when the film wasn't as good. Especially because he apparently considered it one of his favourites of his films/roles because of his character being closer than most of his roles at the time to the real him, which did surprise me considering to me and most other fans his role here is a departure type of role. There are some other talented names in the cast and although his output was not huge HC Potter was no slouch in the directing department.

Is 'Mr Lucky' one of Grant's best? No in terms of overall films and he has given better performances as well. It was still very charming and enjoyable, deserving of more attention, and it does boast one of Grant's better attempts at going against type. It is among Potter's better faring films too (and of the films seen most of them are good, 'Second Chorus' being an exception), and mainly because the cast are so good. How could they not be considering their calibre?

Visually, 'Mr Lucky' looks attractive. Some lovely stylish shots that capture Larraine Day and her eyes in full photogenic glory and the use of light and shadow has a good deal of atmosphere. Roy Webb's score is both sumptuous and moody, without being overwrought or intrusive. Potter directs with skill, and doesn't allow the comedy to get overdone or the romance to get sickly sweet.

There is a nice balance of subtly witty comedic moments, thought-probing intelligence, some never too dark tension and heartfelt drama in the script, without an overload of either of them. The story is mostly very charming and warms the heart without going too heavy on the froth, the romance doesn't distract and mostly it's not too sappy. The characters are nicely written and worth caring for, that's including the not initially likeable title character.

Although his role here was atypical for the time, Grant's charm and sophistication really shines. Day looks wonderful and has a sparkling personality without over-doing it. Charles Bickford and Gladys Cooper, both always solid, are sterling support.

Only the rather too melodramatic final 15 minutes or so disappoints a little, as well as the momentum bogging down a little in the middle.

Concluding though, very nicely done and well worth watching if you love Grant. 8/10