DVD Review: Just My Luck

By Patrick Luce Aug 19, 2006, 16:57 GMT

Ashley Albright (LINDSAY LOHAN) is the luckiest woman in the world, a personto whom all the good things in life have come far too easily.  She can picka lottery ticket at random and hit the jackpot.  In New York, the world¹sbusiest city, Ashley never has to wait for a cab. And she has a terrific jobas an account exec at a prestigious public relations firm. Everything goesAshley¹s way. And now, ...more

Just My Luck follows just about every romantic comedy cliché that has been made. At times, it seems like one long music video featuring Lindsay Lohan than an actual film.

The movie, which might appeal to its target age audience, lacks any truly funny moments, and Lohan fails to prove she can really carry a “grown-up” movie on her own.

The film was directed by Donald Petrie (who brought us the comedy classics How To Lose A Guy in 10 Days and Miss Congeniality) and saw the story and script go through about five different writers before making it to the screen (never a good sign). Along with Lohan, the film stars Chris Pine, and the band members of the rock group McFly. At times, Just My Luck seems like one long infomercial for the band.

Lohan stars as Ashley Albright – a Manhattan socialite that always has luck on her side. She never gets caught in the rain, accidentally receives dresses owned by celebrities that happen to be in her size, and is always up front when new job opportunities arise. Everything in Ashley’s life is perfect until she kisses Jake Hardin at a masquerade ball.

Jake (Pine) is a loser who works at a bowling alley, but dreams of being a music promoter. He already manages a band called McFly, and he knows they could be “the next big thing” if he can just get their demo CD in the hands of the right record label honcho. Jake is always on the losing end of luck, and even carries a backpack around equipped with everything needed for any emergency.

Everything changes for both of our characters when they share that magical kiss. Ashley’s luck is somehow transferred to Jake, and his bad luck is equally passed to Ashley.  Suddenly all of the doors seem to be opening for Jake and slamming shut for Ashley. This sends Lohan on a mad quest to find the stranger she kissed at a party, and somehow get her luck back. The two continue to cross paths throughout the film, but Lohan has no clue that Jake is who stole her luck.

Ashley is always lucky

It is safe to say the two fall in love, Lohan discovers the truth, and have to come up with a way to deal with luck.Like I said, this film is extremely predictable and cliché so I am sure you can figure out where the plot is going without me going into any more detail.

The movie will manage to entertain its targeted audience, but may be more than a little disappointing for anyone wanting more than the occasional laugh or cool performance from McFly.

Just My Luck does have some good slapstick comedy moments spread throughout the story - such as Lohan doing battle with a washing machine or scrapping dried gum which then falls in her mouth. However, it is not enough to make you want to forgive its lacking plot and less than stellar acting from Lohan.

Since the plot is so predictable, you never really care about the characters or what they are going through. At times the film is just downright dumb, and it is clearly made for the teen audience. While I enjoyed some of Petrie’s other recent comedies (Welcome to Mooseport is hilarious), it seems this film just never manages to offer any reason to watch it.

The DVD comes loaded with special features that fans of the movie and McFly will enjoy. They include deleted and extended scenes, and a fairly standard behind the scenes look at the making of the film. There is also a behind the scenes featurette with McFly and shows how they shot the concert ending to the film using real McFly fans.

Never kiss a stranger wearing a mask

While Lohan fans will no doubt be pleased with Just My Luck, I wouldn’t really recommend it to anyone wanting a funny movie or something that can entertain from start to finish. The film quickly runs out of steam, and there are not enough laughs to help you forgive its many faults and clichés.

Just My Luck is now available at Amazon. It is available for pre-order at AmazonUK for a Nov. 13th release. Visit the DVD database for more information.