Lucky

The great strength of the Fantasia festival is to unearth genre films that not only deserve to be discovered but also show true originality. Lucky is like the successful mix between a traditional slasher and an episode of the fourth dimension. The result is a disturbing thriller on the borderline of fantasy that succeeds in creating a disturbing atmosphere and plays with the nerves of the spectators. Natasha Kermani's third film after Shattered (2017) and Imitation girl (2017) benefits from a masterful script by Brea Grant (who also plays the lead in this film).

May Ryer (Brea Grant) is a writer who seems to be losing momentum and whose latest book sold poorly compared to her previous successful books. Her marriage is also on the rocks and she seems to be struggling to find the inspiration to write a book. Things will get even worse when a mysterious psychopath returns night after night to the house where she lives with her husband Ted (Dhruv Uday Sing) to try to kill her. Ted's bizarre behavior and this killer who acts like a real ghost will turn May Ryer's life into a real urban hell.

Lucky could have gone unnoticed as his subject reminds of many slashers and knowing that most of them are rarely successful. It is thus almost impossible to surpass John Carpenter's Halloween (despite more or less convincing sequels) which has imposed itself as the model of the genre. Yet Lucky deserves to be discovered not only because of Brea Grant's presence and his involvement as a screenwriter but also because of the care taken in the photography and the way he gave the film a perfect rhythm and many twists and turns. The result is a gripping film that perfectly knows how to startle us with several successful scenes and, above all, leads us to a conclusion of formidable effectiveness.

Lucky
Directed by Natasha Kermani
Produced by Chelsea Davenport, Patrick Ewald p.g.a., Robert Galluzzo, Kimberly Hwang
Written by Brea Grant
Starring Yasmine Al-Bustami, Brea Grant, Kristina Klebe, Kausar Mohammed, Dhruv Uday Singh, Hunter C. Smith
Music by Jeremy Zuckerman
Cinematography: Julia Swain
Edited by Chris Willet
Production company: Epic Pictures
Running time: 81mns

Viewed August 23, 2020 in VO (screener press Shudder)

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