Film

The movie cash-in on the poker craze only needed a few good hands, but Lucky You has an ace up its sleeve in Hanson, one of the most reliable craftsmen in Hollywood. If the result isn’t the masterpiece he was due to deliver—he’s been touch and go since L.A. Confidential and Wonder Boys—it is polished and satisfying, overcoming the inane metaphors of the script (by Hanson and Eric Roth) with committed performances, expected cameos (Phil Hellmuth, Johnny Chan, technical adviser Doyle Brunson) and several miracle cards on the river.

The contrived poker-as-life theme is beautifully established in the opening scene, in which Huck Cheever (Bana) teaches a pawnshop owner (Somerville) how to sucker a customer into a bad deal. In Vegas, anyone is up for a buck, any time: Huck’s acquaintances carry decks of cards in one pocket and 200 grand in the other; bets extend to plastic-surgery dares and physical-endurance tests. Into this world of fast cash walks aspiring singer Billie (Barrymore), the rare person whom Huck fails to properly read. Huck is preparing for a showdown with his father (a commanding Duvall), who used to gamble with the family money. Like Altman’s California Split, Lucky You explores the antisocial element of compulsive poker—as Huck is fond of saying, “You can’t have sympathy and win.” The final hand may lack plausibility, but it does have a pleasing classicism: All the cards fall into place and nothing is left to chance.