Lucky Chances

I can't believe some reviewers have given this mini series such low ratings! True the movie doesn't hold a torch to the book, but that being said, I don't think anyone who's ever read ANY book first and then seen the movie version afterwards can say they didn't leave anything out. To be honest, I read the book a long time ago & thoroughly enjoyed it. When they showed the mini series on tv, I was also a little disappointed that so much had been left out but as with any book turned movie there are always things either left out or changed. They would have had to make the mini series much, much longer than it was. (Which would have been fine with me!) And let's not forget it was made in 1990. Just keep an open mind & don't expect the movie to be 100% identical to the book! While I agree some of the casting was hit or miss, IMHO, Vincent Irizarry was fantastic as Gino, Sandra Bullock as Maria, Michael Nader as Enzio, Phil Morris as Steven, & Nicolette Sheridan, while I never envisioned her to play the part of Lucky, she IS beautiful and she totally nailed the sexy, smoldering thing that Lucky always seemed to have going on. Now can we please talk about Tim Ryan as Lennie Golden for a moment? Holy moley, he looked as well as played that part to the tee - perfectly! He has that boyishly handsome charm about him & that sexy smile and laugh of his made me wish I was Nicolette Sheridan every time she made out with him! Talk about "lucky!" 😄 I was so bummed out that Tim didn't play Lennie in the sequel, Lady Boss. The other guy didn't hold a candle to him! I came on this site to see what else he's played in so I could see more of him. Bummer he doesn't play in more movies so I can lust over him longer than just short clips! 😁 It's too bad Jackie Collins has passed on since she was always one of my favorite authors. It would have been nice to see a lot more of her books turned into movies!

Chances and Lucky are great reads, but to say that the miniseries doesn't do it justice is a HUGE understatement. It's not the worst thing ever made. I just wish that the powers that were had been a little more faithful to the book, at least in the casting part. I mean, blonde, blue-eyed Nicolette Sheridan as Lucky, YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING! That also goes for Sandra Bullock being cast as Maria and Shawnee Smith being cast as Olimpia. The casting director was either drunk or in a hurry. The closest that the casting people got was with Gino, played by Vincent Irizarry. There were also a lot of plots that were skipped, like Dario's homosexuality, Carrie's abuse and rape as well as how and why she came to be a prostitute, the stories of Gino's abusive father, and the list goes on and on. I would pay anything to see a "CORRECTLY CASTED AND NON-POLITICALLY CORRECT" remake of this movie, whether it be on the small screen or on the big screen, preferably on the small screen, or otherwise many subplots may have to be sacrificed due to time. Let me know if it ever happens.

Calling all soap opera fans: check out Lucky Chances, a double-feature miniseries combining Jackie Collins's two novels Lucky and Chances. The series continued, but this is a very satisfactory five hours. It follows the Santangelo family through decades and generations, and although you get a five-minute opening with Nicolette Sheridan, it's a pretty linear story once we go back in time and see her father, Vincent Irizarry, as a young man before she was even a twinkle in his eye. This is soap at its best. There is a glamorous setting, with exceedingly wealthy mobsters who have the world at their fingertips. The women are beautiful, with big hair and slim bodies they frequently show off in bikinis and lingerie. The men are hunky, great lovers, and sweep women off their feet with silk sheets, champagne, and unforgettable nights. Scandals, murders, secrets, blackmail, infidelity, forced marriages, power, seduction, and revenge all run rampant through the three episodes.

I love this genre, and I've already bought a copy of Miss Collins's novels. Soap operas are my favorite genre of fiction to read. So, yes, it's cheesy, ridiculous, and silly. But I loved every minute of it.

Lucky/Chances is a good movie based on a good book. I read the books first prior to watching the movie and it does follow the book closely with a few minor chnages. Vincent Irizarry could not have made a better Gino and Nicollette Sheridan was perfect to play Lucky. The acting may have been a tad bit over-the-top, but many of Jackie Collins' books are and that's probably why the movie was done that way. I'd personally love to see a silver screen version of this book so that more details of the story could be shown (there was a lot that couldn't be shown on t.v.).

I can't tell too much about this one. Yes it's a good movie, but not more. I've read the novel, but there isn't a big difference between book and movie. The book is little boring and in the movie plot is usual and actors' play was highly mediocre. So, this movie fits for review only once.