The Lucky One, based on a Nicholas Sparks novel, is
exactly what you expect from the trailers "“ a cookie-cutter romance. Efron
plays Logan, a Marine recently returned from Afghanistan who randomly decides
to seek out the girl from a picture he found while on his tour of duty. Efron
did an amazing job with some pretty weak material, so I can't fault him very
much in the role. Taylor Schilling portrays Beth, the woman in the photograph
who has some terrible personal circumstances that include a jerk for an
ex-husband, a sick grandmother, a young son, and a brother who has recently
been killed serving as a Marine.
The best parts of this film
are the secondary characters: Beth's son, her grandmother, and Logan's dog. They
provide some much needed levity and comedy, particularly Blythe Danner as the
grandmother. Pretty much any time she was in a scene, I ended up laughing,
which almost makes up for a majority of the film.
The plot has a lot of layers
to it that were hinted at but not really expounded on, such as the inherent
closeness of a small Southern town and the PTSD that Efron's character clearly
struggles with in the first 10 minutes of the film but mysteriously vanishes
with no explanation. The Lucky One ends
up feeling as if the director couldn't figure out what to cut from the novel's
plot and tried to do everything, including some somewhat awkward and overdone
sex scenes. They were almost laughable given the music, lighting, and film
style used.
About halfway through the
film, I kept looking for signs that the film would end. Despite being on par
with other romance genre films, it still felt like the story would never
conclude. The Lucky One has some
moments that I enjoyed. And then there are moments that I wish I had never seen.
Depending on your taste, this may be one to enjoy at home with some wine and
friends to mock it with.
