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The Lucky Ones
User Score
7.7 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 10 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 10
  3. Negative: 1 out of 10

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  1. TimG
    Oct 1, 2008
    8
    Top of the line acting...very insightful writing.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  2. ChadS
    Oct 1, 2008
    7
    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 said yes
  3. JasonP.
    Sep 26, 2008
    1
    Another lame hollyweird political film - this time with bad acting and bad directing. Two thumbs down.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  4. PatriciaB
    Sep 29, 2008
    8
    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 said yes
  5. JohnT
    Jun 1, 2009
    10
    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 said yes
  6. BryanS
    Jun 13, 2009
    8
    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 said yes
  7. WilsonS
    Sep 27, 2008
    9
    This is a very funny movie with great performances from all three principals.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  8. JayH.
    Jan 23, 2009
    7
    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 said yes
  9. MichelleS
    Mar 14, 2009
    10
    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.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
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Critic Reviews

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Metascore
53 out of 100

Mixed or average reviews - based on 25 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 25
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 25
  3. Negative: 2 out of 25
  1. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Sura Wood
    50
    This moderately engaging, offbeat film requires a patience that audiences haven't demonstrated recently for stories concerning the fate of soldiers at home or abroad.
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  2. Variety
    Reviewed by: Todd McCarthy
    40
    It's hard to find the genuine heartfelt moments in The Lucky Ones.
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  3. ReelViews
    Reviewed by: James Berardinelli
    63
    The weakest aspect of The Lucky Ones is by far the conclusion, which is flat and contrived.
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