Lucky (2011) Reviews

• 'Adults have to lie sometimes. That's how they survive.'

  gradyharp2013-05-15

  Film Movement continues to bring brilliant little films of deep significance to our attention. LUCKY originated as a 2005 short film about a lad named Lucky whose parents succumbed to AIDS. Writer/Director Avie Luthra has expanded the message of this story into a full length film and cast it with South African and Indian actors, committed to having the dialogue in Zulu, Hindi, and English (which adds enormously to the film's treatment of isolation) and has discovered a gifted child actor in Sihle Dlamini who portrays the role of Lucky. Recently orphaned 10-year-old South African Lucky (Sihle Dlamini) observes his beloved but estranged mother returned to his Zulu village in a coffin and being without family he leaves his village to make his own life in the city, having promised his mother in a touching scene at the gravesite that he will make himself better, become educated and make her proud. He makes his way to the nearest big city, lives on the streets, until he locates his uncle (his mother had let him know that should anything happen, her brother would take care of him) who is an irresponsible, womanizing, wayward man who has spent the money Lucky's mother left with him for Lucky's school. Desperately disappointed he seeks help where he can find it and encounters Padma (Jayashree Basavaraj), an elderly Indian woman whose concept of caste means she cannot touch Black people or anything that the Blacks have touched. Padma speaks Hindi and Lucky speaks Zulu so verbal communication is out of the question until Padma engages a genuinely warm taxi driver (James Ngcobo) with whom she can converse in English and translate for her. Lucky has a tape recording his mother left him, and when he finally is able to listen to it he discovers the last words of his dying mother reassuring him of her love. Padma has the taxi driver translate the tape for her and this gains Padma's empathy. The three work together to place Lucky in school, find the man ((Vusi Kunene) who had lived with his mother – a tender but lonely man who tends to the dead - and ultimately through the kindness of strangers Lucky achieves his primary goal: he wants to attend school and find people who will care for him emotionally. Lucky questions everyone's motives and responses and it is from the taxi driver that he discovers that 'Adults have to lie sometimes. That's how they survive.' In his search for his dream, marked by greed, violence, and belonging, Lucky shows how a child's spirit can bring out decency, humility and even love in adults coping with life in the new South Africa. Beautifully written, filmed and acted, this is an exceptional film that deserves the widest possible audience. Grady Harp, May 13

• Excellent, unusual film from South Africa

  Red-1252012-10-09

  Lucky (2011/IV) written and directed by Avie Luthra, is a difficult--but excellent--film from South Africa. Sihle Dlamini plays Lucky, a ten-year-old boy who is forced by grim circumstances to leave his village and travel to the city. Life was hard in the country, but life in the city is harder. The only relative Lucky has is his uncle, who barely tolerates him. Lucky wants to go to school, recognizing this is the only path out of poverty and despair. His uncle has other priorities. Lucky's only ally is an older Indian woman, Padma, played by Jayashree Basavaraj. This is definitely not a feel-good movie. Not only does Padma mistrust Lucky, but her caste apparently forbids her to touch him, or to touch anything he has touched. It's definitely an unlikely friendship, and director Luthra doesn't soften the difficulties with a love-conquers-all approach. The sad thing is that Lucky doesn't demand much or even expect much from relatives or from society. His wish is simple. He just wants to go to school.

• Difficult to Watch

  steven986642016-06-18

  This story of a little boy, abandoned, left alone is hard to watch. The ups and downs of humane actions on his behalf drives the plot. We think he is saved, but he is not. We feel inspired, then not. The flip flop of emotion is constant. So is the persistence of this little boy. He just never gives up! I feel inspired by the boy. If you get your kids to watch this, they'd probably learn a lot, but with the subtitles and small amount of English language its probably hard for kids to watch. One thing that is somewhat hard to believe, is the folks driving the boy all over the country at all hours. I find it inspiring, but unbelievable. The real conditions of the world are shown. The shack, the apartments, and all. I also found it very interesting how the grandma got custody to take care of the boy gathering a pension of sorts for it. Unbelievable!

• Emotional to say the least!

  afrocubanmommi2017-06-13

  I must tell you from the first tear, I knew that this film was going to break me, and then the beauty and strength of that child, I tell you I was done. Thank you for showing the village life, and thank you for showing the truth about families not having enough money to send their children to school. Without saying a word, that illness sat right there on screen and looked us in our faces!

• Lucky

  ajrg-17-3816392013-08-30

  Very good movie. If you like movies about strength in the face of adversity, foreign films, and bigger than life messages, the tension in this lasts all through the movie. It is like the South African film 'Yesterday". I would not recommend it to the sock 'em action film crowd. The story is about a child from a small village in South Africa that looks like hell, filled with old people in falling down huts. After becoming an orphan he goes to the city; and it is a large city, in order to go to school and be a success. But when he gets there he finds he has to enlist the help of some worthless or reluctant adults to achieve his goals.