The Lucky Ones
Lionsgate | Release Date: September 26, 2008
7.2
USER SCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 18 Ratings
USER RATING DISTRIBUTION
Positive:
15
Mixed:
0
Negative:
3
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User Reviews

User scoreBy dateMost helpful
8
TimGOct 1, 2008
Top of the line acting...very insightful writing.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
7
ChadSOct 1, 2008
In the novel "Trespass", author Valerie Martin demonstrates her assertion that young Americans are less concerned with war than their kindred spirits from the Vietnam era, in a bar scene where the protagonist's father observes the In the novel "Trespass", author Valerie Martin demonstrates her assertion that young Americans are less concerned with war than their kindred spirits from the Vietnam era, in a bar scene where the protagonist's father observes the inelegance of war coverage being treated as a background visual while loud music throbs, and college-aged people hook up as they swill cheap beer. Although nobody is paying attention to the lonely television, at least somebody made an effort to acknowledge that life during wartime isn't business as usual. Perhaps it's the bartender, or the owner, who put the war on. That's better than the bar in "The Lucky Ones", where the college-aged patrons ignore, not the televised war, but the stars of that televised war, the veterans themselves, who are insignificant compared to the going-ons of some "American Idol"-type program. Unlike the people's choir in the title song from Neil Young's last album, the three girls that Colee(Rachel McAdams) tries to chat up aren't "living with war in [their] heart[s] everyday." The "I" on a girl's sweatshirt may stand for Indiana, but on a metaphorical level, the "I" represents the difference between soldiers and civilians. There's no "I" in the army; in a platoon, especially a platoon on tour, where soldiers meld into a "we" to keep themselves alive. The letter is so foreign to Colee, she asks. The acoustic guitar, the weapon of the folksinger(as Woodie Guthrie wrote, "This machine kills fascists.") is both a commodity and an object of sentiment in "The Lucky Ones". There's nobody around to write a protest song for the troops, so maybe Colee will have to write one herself. David Lowery(of Cracker, and the newly reformed Camper Van Beethoveen) was wrong, the world does need another folksinger. What it doesn't need is more "American Idol" winners. In "The Lucky Ones", we can see that the bravest thing a soldier can do, is reporting to duty, and getting on the plane.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
1
JasonP.Sep 26, 2008
Another lame hollyweird political film - this time with bad acting and bad directing. Two thumbs down.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
8
PatriciaBSep 29, 2008
Surprisingly good. It doesn't meander as critics claim; it simply chooses not to go in cliched directions and you may not know the significance of a certain scene until it pays off several scenes later. That's what I call Surprisingly good. It doesn't meander as critics claim; it simply chooses not to go in cliched directions and you may not know the significance of a certain scene until it pays off several scenes later. That's what I call refreshing. People should NOT think this is a political film. It's not. It does NOT take a position on the war. It simply has three soldiers as the leads. Their journey is funny and real, and deviates from well-worn paths in the best possible way.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
JohnTJun 1, 2009
If you cannot find the sincerity in this movie, you may have to check yourself. While it is not billed as the most "realistic" of welcome home veteran movies, it does an AMAZING job of hitting the right notes on the emotional scale. It is a If you cannot find the sincerity in this movie, you may have to check yourself. While it is not billed as the most "realistic" of welcome home veteran movies, it does an AMAZING job of hitting the right notes on the emotional scale. It is a more heartfelt Little Miss Sunshine with a bit of reality check in the middle. Obviously between the hard right and hard left, critics did not see fit to give it a good score. Watch this movie.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
8
BryanSJun 13, 2009
More subtle/less obvious than I expected, *for the most part* ... a couple scenes in the middle with odd clippy stereotypes -- not on the part of the main actors -- fell completely flat for me.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
WilsonSSep 27, 2008
This is a very funny movie with great performances from all three principals.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
7
JayH.Jan 23, 2009
The strong performances from the three leads makes this an interesting tale, very nicely paces and I never lost interest. Entertaining, touching and at times it's finny, Good job.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
MichelleSMar 14, 2009
I thought this movie was great, as long as you are not trying to get some deep meaning out of it. It was entertaining and that's all I expected out of it. I like that the story was different from other movies and I liked how the I thought this movie was great, as long as you are not trying to get some deep meaning out of it. It was entertaining and that's all I expected out of it. I like that the story was different from other movies and I liked how the characters slowly unfolded. The movie made me laugh and held my interest and it made me want to watch it again, so in my book that makes it good.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
3
TrailesqueMar 22, 2018
Three Iraq war vets, on their way back from the front, end up sharing a car for a long ride home. One is recovering from a back wound, another got his balls shot off, and the girl wants to bring a guitar back to the family of a young man whoThree Iraq war vets, on their way back from the front, end up sharing a car for a long ride home. One is recovering from a back wound, another got his balls shot off, and the girl wants to bring a guitar back to the family of a young man who died. I didn't make it all the way through. At first I thought this might be like "Planes, Trains & Automobiles" but no, it is a character-driven story in which the characters are not very interesting.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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