Avis des utilisateurs

A good, solid 1940s gangster picture with the luck to have Cary Grant in it. I had never heard of this movie before I saw it on the shelf and decided to give it a try. What a great surprise! Grant's presence is at first strange because he's a heartless swindler and I'm not used to that from him, but he plays it like he's gone wrong somehow - like the world owes him a living because they're too shallow and stupid not to fall for him. I can't imagine this movie without him.

There are some great comedy touches, like how he is forced to learn how to knit in order to carry his plan off [later he has a classic Cary Grant moment in a banker's office commenting on a hand-knitted tea cozy].

And although the love story is a little sappy most of the way through, it's not out of place or unpleasant to watch. In fact, Dorothy undergoes a remarkable character change that comes as a nice surprise - Laraine Day is terrific portraying her.

There are even some great shots. The uses of light and shadow go beyond the classic black and white "look". In some places this movie is staged beautifully - the director has a remarkable eye and helps turn what could have been just a vehicle for Grant into a real work of art.

The videotaped print that I saw was badly in need of restoration, especially the first reel.

Cary Grant is "Mr. Lucky," a 1943 films also starring Laraine Day, Charles Bickford and Gladys Cooper. Grant plays a self-serving swindler named Joe who takes the identity of a dying man who's 4F so that he won't have to go into the service. The name he takes is that of a Greek man, Joe Bascopoulos, but the name will bring him more than just a 4F classification. Needing money to get his gambling ship started, he sees an easy mark in Dorothy Bryant (Day), one of the administrators of a War Relief Fund. He uses his considerable charm to persuade her to let him run a casino night as part of the organization's big fundraiser. The plan is to use cash boxes with false bottoms and take off with nearly all of the money. Just one hitch - Joe has fallen in love with Dorothy.

This is a slightly different role for Grant - he plays a real low-life and at that, one with no style. One of the running jokes is his rotten ties and inability to tie them right. Grant is perfect in the role, as well as incredibly handsome. But it's only a slightly different part - like Tyrone Power, who tried so hard to change his image in 1947 with "Nightmare Alley," Grant tried too, and like Power, was sabotaged by the producing studio. In Power's case (who actually would have done well had Zanuck let him have more traditional Cary Grant type roles), he was allowed to make the film and play a low character, but his studio, 20th Century Fox, did not publicize the film nor release it widely. In Grant's case, he'd happily accept a role - such as this one or his part in "Suspicion" - only to have the script changed so that he's not a total heel. It had to be frustrating for these actors who were capable of so much more than they were allowed to do.

Lovely Laraine Day is just right as the young, rich Dorothy who passionately believes in helping the war effort. Day had an air of sophistication that lent itself well to these wealthy society girl roles.

"Mr. Lucky" is beautifully photographed in black and white, with lots of interesting shadows and fog. The film also has some very funny moments - Grant learning to knit is just one.

This is a very good movie and somewhat of a departure for Grant, a cousin to his role in "Suspicion."

This is a very well-made and enjoyable film. While not exactly a wonderful film, it is very worth watching and an excellent example of Cary Grant's acting and charm. It's a wartime propaganda film that takes a different slant--instead of being heavy-handed and centering on war, it focuses on a con man who thinks he's slick for avoiding the draft--fighting is only for "suckers". As the film progresses, his unshakable bravado suddenly becomes shaken when he meets lovely Loraine Day. Somehow, she gets through to this charming jerk and he knows he can't continue as he's been doing. It's an interesting character study and a welcome change from the usual.

This is really a wonderful and somewhat surprising film. Grant plays against type, at least if you think his type is the suave, urbane lover boy who has never taken a false step...

The real surprise for me, though, is how strong Day is in this film. She is photographed beautifully; the cinematographer made sure she had a strong eye light in nearly every scene and she looks stunning. But more than that, she just seems totally on her game and involved. Perhaps some of that credits goes to Grant, who seems to be having fun with the whole thing.

Ron

Unavailable on DVD, but found on VHS at Blockbuster, "Mr Lucky" is a Cary Grant vehicle, even more than a morale boosting, "keep the homes fires burning" war movie. Grant gets to play a wide range of roles here: fashion plate, grifter, romantic lead, war hero and (most notably) knitter of sweaters. Look, I've seen them all: North By Northwest, Bringing Up Baby, To Catch A Thief, and on and on.This has many moments that match the very best that Cary Grant had on offer. Most notably, there's an extended sequence of Grant riffing in Cockney to Laraine Day. Now Cary Grant liked to identify himself as a Cockney (which is usually termed as an East Londoner), but here he gets the rare opportunity in his movie career to play one (also in Gunga Din), and when asked where he picked up the rhyming slang that makes Cockney so annoying (charming to Americans) he says: Australia ! Ah Hollywood... You've also got to admire the sartorial splendor which Cary maintains throughout the film, even though he 's supposedly a poor kid from the wrong side of the tracks who left home at nine. Apparently there's a finishing school on Skid Row, and Cary was voted Best Dressed. Of course, one of the perverse running gags of "Mr Lucky" is that our hero wears absurdly garish ties, and does not know how to tie a Windsor knot. All he needs is Laraine Day to bring him the appropriate conservative necktie to complete him. Bless him he fights her off ... On a fifth viewing (over a lifetime), I have to admit the last twenty minutes drips with melodramatic sentiment out of step with our modern times (hey, I still tear up-don't tell anyone) but this is still a classic: funny, fast paced, easy on the eyes, and with a great supporting cast.

Poor boy turned suave gambler Cary Grant (as Joe Adams) evades service in World War II by assuming the identity of a deceased sailor classified "4-F" (unfit for military service). Then, he joins a New York women's group supporting the war effort from the home front. There, he learns to knit, and flirts with sophisticate Laraine Day (as Dorothy Bryant). At first, Ms. Day is wary of Mr. Grant, who uses slight-of-hand to fill the war relief group's coffers. But, Day falls in love with Grant, unaware he is planning to bilk the ladies' war relief organization.

RKO put a lot into "Mr. Lucky", and it pays off handsomely. Aside from a violent streak (once slugging his leading lady), Grant turns out to be much less of a heel that you're led to believe; and, he is thoroughly charming. The direction (H.C. Potter), camera-work (George Barnes), design (William Cameron Menzies), and supporting cast are outstanding. The film is bracketed with a moody atmospherics.

The ending could have been better. But, mainly, "Mr. Lucky" is great for watching Grant work wonders with his conflicted character. Grant is so convincing that, when he looks in his car's rear view mirror, you're almost sure the car's mirror hasn't actually been removed by the studio (they blocked actors' faces and were too reflective). There was no mirror there, or was there?

******* Mr. Lucky (5/28/43) H.C. Potter ~ Cary Grant, Laraine Day, Charles Bickford, Gladys Cooper

This is a great Cary Grant movie, that never takes it self to seriously. The plot is easy to follow, and the acting is well done. The love story is really secondary to the entire gambling story, and that's where this movie is really good and funny. There have been some comments that the chemistry between the Grant and Day is not great, but I think otherwise. The love story is really the back story, setting the stage for the ending, and keeping the movie light hearted and often times funny. This movie also has a lot of subtle humor, and you need to have somewhat of a "different" sense of humor to appreciate it all. However, this is a great sit down, popcorn, easy to enjoy Cary Grant flick.

Atypical Cary Grant film starts out with dark tone.Movie also has the theme of the responsibility of serving during wartime.;this is pieced together with the familiar gambler trying to fleece beautiful woman plot device.It makes for a very good film despite going back and forth.There is some role reversal as Grant rejects the girl, played by Laraine Day, because he thinks she is only interested in him for his money instead of the other way around.Day does very well in Myrna Loy.,Irene Dunne type role.Film features some dialogue written in the form of made up words,the combination of two regular words.Film is somewhat similar to Grant's "None but the lonely heart".

Mr. Lucky (1943)

A less celebrated Cary Grant film featuring a strong and smart leading woman, Laraine Day. It is more or less made along formula lines, with the raft of supporting characters that work for and against the leads. It's a romance with comedic elements all along, which is Grant's natural niche.

There is some added interest in that this is a war film, though the support efforts (fundraising and such on the home front) are only a superficial backdrop at first. Eventually the personal tragedy strikes closer to home due to Grant taking on someone else's identity, and this helps complete his transformation to being an actually good guy, which we suspected all along.

The writing here is routine stuff, and the rise and fall of the drama also something a bit pat. But Grant is good as usual, and Day a good balance to him when she is present (this is Grant's film up and down).

Note that this is a typical war film in that the main characters have to come around and join the effort one way or the other. And they do. (This isn't because the BMP insisted, as an arm of the gov't, but more because this was the prevailing mood of the public, the people buying the tickets.) But either way, you see it coming and you're glad, mostly, that things work out well. Watch and see. Lightweight entertainment well done.

In my opinion, "Mr. Lucky" is one of Cary Grant's finest pictures. Grant (Joe Adams) Stars as a Gambler looking to make a buck. Joe is a man with no scruples. He is willing to walk over anyone for a chance at a quick score.

However his cold hearted ways begins to melt when a beautiful woman comes into his life. Laraine Day, (Dorothy Bryant) gives a strong performance as a volunteer for a war relief organization. She offers Grant a chance to help raise funds for the group when he suggests a casino night.

However Joe intends to use Dorothy as a pawn in a fixed game. That idea quickly changes when he falls for Dorothy. Joe must choose between his loyalty to his gang or his love for Dorothy.

Mr. Lucky is a wonderful mix of comedy and drama. One of the best moments is where Joe is learning to knit. Very funny! This is a picture that display's Mr. Grants full range of talents.

The cast included Charles Bickford, Gladys Cooper, Alan Carney, Henry Stephenson, and Paul Stewart. It was expertly Directed by H.C. Potter. The wonderful black and white cinematography was by George Barnes.

I highly recommend this picture.

Fun Facts. -Laraine Day was on loan-out from MGM. -Mr. Lucky was RKO's second biggest hit of 1943 -Writer Milton Holmes said Mr. Lucky was inspired by a real event in 1936. A nightclub owner put on a gambling benefit at the Beverly Hills Hotel to raise money for a church.

The story here was just a little too boring and the humor just not funny enough. It added up to a film that was too boring to watch. That was further surprising because the cast was good: Cary Grant, Lariaine Day, Charles Bickford and Henry Stephenson. Grant may be the only big "star" in that group but I've always found Bickford and Stephenson to play interesting guys and Day had to have about the prettiest eyes I've ever seen. They just sparkle and it makes her face mesmerizing at times.

Unfortunately, that wasn't enough to make me impressed over this film. It's simply too dated, humor-wise. I don't know how it was received in 1943, whether audiences laughed a lot at this but, unlike dramas, westerns, crime movies, etc., comedies can look very dated very quickly and today's audiences would not laugh at this.

This tale of a bad guy redeemed by the love of a good woman could easily have come across as cliched and corny, but is done with such style and class it somehow works. Cary Grant again shows his mastery of moral ambiguity - he can change from heel to hero with the arch of an eyebrow. Laraine Day was never a particularly distinctive actress, but shows here why she deserves to be better known. Backing them is one of those large ensembles of veteran character actors that make movies of this period such a delight. Tight, unobtrusive direction keeps everything moving at a brisk pace The story is presented as an extended flashback, apparently for the sole purpose of allowing an obligatory and rather awkward happy ending. If you can remember to stop watching as the flashback ends, it makes for a more satisfying movie. Well worth your time.

Awesome cast and awesome movie...one of Cary's best. My daughter has used this particular movie to rate her boyfriends: if they did not like this movie, she would dump them. One of my favorite things about this movie is the lingo used. Briny marlin - my darlin, bottle and stopper -copper, lady from bristol - pistol. long and linger - finger. The supporting cast is wonderful. When they are learning how to knit and a crowd gathers it is hilarious. I love how he uses the coin with a hook on it to win the blankets for the war relief and then tells Lorraine Day when she finds it and tells him to show her again, he never takes advantage of a friend. Good morals in this movie - do the right thing, and all turns out well.

Joe "the Greek" Adams (Cary Grant) is a gambler looking out for himself. He's trying to dodge the draft by posing as his dead underling Joe Bascopolous. He's also trying to get his gambling boat running. He cons war relief Captain Veronica Steadman into organizing a charity casino but socialite Dorothy Bryant (Laraine Day) is suspicious.

Cary Grant starts as the heel but his charms are soon overwhelming. That's what the movie needs and that's what the audience gets. It's all about his charms. It makes it easier for Laraine Day and the viewer to fall for the con man. It also makes his conversion believable and satisfying. The other big point is that this is a wartime propaganda film. Even a selfish cad like Joe can be reformed to support the greater good.

I just caught Mr. Lucky on TCM and agree this film rates about 7.5 out of 10. What would have otherwise been a discordant mix of comedy & drama are harmonized by the genius of Cary Grant. And this is a Cary Grant in a period of his acting life when he seems deeply aware of & willing to play out the dark, cynical side of life – as in his brilliant & underrated portrayal of the cockney lad Ernie Mott in 1944's None But The Lonely Heart (directed by Clifford Odets!). What's particularly fascinating is Grant's character portrayals in both Mr. Lucky & None But The Lonely Heart is that they start out being cynical in the sense of guys who are prematurely disappointed in the future. He lives like a dog that will succeed by biting and out-foxing everyone. Then he is humanized – without loosing his cynical edge. On the contrary we see here a key into the elegance that was Grant. He lives by denying & accepting society; this suave, cool-hearted knave. You can see that he denies society for the very reason that he is convinced that it will not fail. He accepts life's contradictions. He gets on with it. Most important of all: he is loyal to the few good things in life. In short, we were fortunate to have Grant and '43's Mr. Lucky and '44's None But the Lonely Heart – these Grant-branded jewels cast in timeless celluloid.

It's entertaining enough to sit through, and it offers a light on a problem that would forever plague it's leading man, but let us face facts: MR. LUCKY was a World War II moral boosting propaganda film, and as such it is dated. It is set in a mindset for 1942/43 when the actual destiny of the war effort was unresolved, and an Axis victory was still possible. Keeping that in mind we can forgive the character change that the script forces - but posterity lost a second chance of seeing Cary Grant play a rat.

After his quasi-rat wastrel Johnny Aysgard in SUSPICION, Grant made the film TALK OF THE TOWN with Ronald Colman and Jean Arthur. His character of Leopold Dilg is suspected of arson/possibly felony murder, but we realize that he is being railroaded by Charles Dingle on those charges. A few years passed and in 1943 Grant agreed to play Joe Adams, gambler and con man, who decides to get involved in the charity racket to make a real killing. And I am sure that Grant chose the part because Joe was a rat - as bad and violent in his way as Johnny was in his.

We see this in Joe early on - he has to raise some capital for his scheme, and goes to collect the money that is owed to him. As always Grant is dapper and soft spoken, but here he demonstrates what is underneath all this: his Joe gets the money by beating up the man who owes it. To make the scene more effective, we never see Grant beat the man, but the scene is shot from the legs down, where the man is whimpering on the ground and willing to give up the money. It was a unique moment in the film, only duplicated towards the end when Grant kicks his partner in the face in a final confrontation about the swindle. That is shown performed by Grant - far more visibly than the first scene.

Yet the effect of this violence is shattered by changes in the screenplay. Grant's Joe meets the capable and suspicious Dorothy Briant (Laraine Day) at the organization that is creating the charity. She is antagonistic to him at the start, but subsequently they fall in love. At the same time one of her assistant/friends is "Swede" (Charles Bickford), and he starts working on Joe's conscience regarding the war effort and the need of the money for the purposes it is supposed to push. So when Grant beats up his partner he is actually doing it to prevent their plans for the theft of the charity money to come to fruition.

Again the studio (RKO again) and the actor's agent refused to countenance a negative image for Grant. So we have to be satisfied with two scenes where Grant uses his muscles to beat people up. One should be thankful for small favors - Grant would try again in 1944 when he appeared in NONE BUT THE LONELY HEART to play a criminal type, but there too the screenplay would prevent him from playing a total rat again.

"Mr. Lucky" fits in a group of Cary Grant films that cover multiple genres. As a result, audiences get to see the wider range of Grant's talent - beyond comedy and romance. It escapes me why the studio and some written sources tout this as comedy romance. While it clearly has some of the former - but only some, in a couple of short antics and a sprinkling of witty and pithy dialog, it has nary a line or thread of romance. What it does have Instead, is a deep love story that is ever so slowly developed. Besides that drama, the film has elements of mystery, a caper and crime, and even some historical and patriotic notes.

One can understand why so many viewers don't consider this film as good as the rollicking comedy romances that Cary Grant made. It can't hold a candle to the humor of "The Awful Truth," or "My Favorite Wife," or a number of other great Grant comedies. But neither can any of those complete comedies compare to "Mr. Lucky" for the drama or depth of a love story. Or, for its elements of suspense and intrigue. So, one can see why people expecting another classy Grant comedy might score and review "Mr. Lucky" solely on that basis.

But, for those who enjoy a different story, with a different Cary Grant portrayal - yet, still very much, Cary Grant, this is a superb film. Just as in "North by Northwest" of 1959, "To Catch at Thief" of 1955, "People Will Talk" of 1951, and "The Talk of the Town" of 1942, Grant's character is stretched beyond the image of a very funny playboy.

Grant plays Joe Adams, who owns a floating casino that makes trips up and down the U.S. Atlantic Coast. of the U.S. He poses as one of his crew, Joe Bascopolous, who has just died. The dead Joe had been classified 4-F by the draft board due to a weak heart. But Adams has been ordered to report to the draft board. So, he switches IDs. Then, while searching the city for the money to bankroll his next gambling foray, Joe bumps into Dorothy Bryant (Laraine Day) who is a volunteer leader in the British War Relief Society (BWRS). From there on, this story takes off in all directions.

The film opens on the docks at night and the story unfolds in flashback, told by Charles Bickford who plays Hard Swede. A tremendous supporting cast includes Gladys Cooper as Captain Veronica Steadman, Alan Carney as Crunk, Paul Stewart as Zepp, Henry Stephenson as Mr. Bryant and Florence Bates as Mrs. Van Every.

Kudos must go to Milton Holmes for his most interesting story and to him and other writers for a dynamic screenplay. All of the production values of this film are high, including direction, camera work, music, sets, art, costumes and editing.

"Mr. Lucky" has a lasting attribute in an historical aspect. The time is 1940-1941 before the U.S. has entered WW II, which began in October 1939. Much of the story takes place in and around the New York Fifth Avenue headquarters of the British War Relief Society. To my knowledge, this is the only movie made that shows the efforts and organization of the BWRS. It was the coordination entity for American humanitarian war relief support for Great Britain. It pooled the efforts of various drives for relief supplies for England. It sent shipments of food, clothing, medical supplies and financial aid across the Atlantic. Ships carrying BWRS supplies were at risk of being sunk by German U-boats, just as were those that the U.S. was sending with military armament and supplies.

A couple of reviewers have seen this as a propaganda film, but other than the story setting of the early war, it hardly has any information or details about the Axis powers other than the mention of U-boats sinking convoys. That's nothing more than historical fact and news of the time. However, a twist at the end of the film might be considered a patriotic note.

This is a superb film, with a top notch cast in a story that should grab the heart of any red-blooded American, and anyone and everyone else - on both sides of the pond. It probably won't interest many youngsters.

The story was later picked up and made into a TV series by the same title that ran on CBS in 1959 and 1960. It had 34 episodes in a half-hour program. The star was a little-known actor of the day, John Vivyan, who is little remembered today.

Here are some favorite lines from the film. For more dialog see the Quotes section under this IMDb Web page of the movie.

Dorothy Bryant, "You ever kill anybody?" Joe Adams, "I'm too good a shot."

Joe Adams, "Never give a sucker an even break, but don't cheat a friend."

Joe Adams, 'I don't know what to make of a dame like you." Dorothy Bryant, "Neither do I."

Cary Grant plays a gambler and con artist who dodges the draft and takes on a dead man's identity. Under this new identity, he tries to rip off a war relief charity. But falling in love with pretty Laraine Day and getting a letter from the dead man's mother in Greece stirs his conscience and makes him want to do the right thing.

Wonderful wartime dramedy with Runyanesque touches. Love the rhyming "Australian" slang and the knitting gags. Cary Grant is terrific and has great chemistry with charming Laraine Day. Gladys Cooper, Alan Carney, Henry Stephenson, and Charles Bickford are all good support. This is a very underrated movie in Cary Grant's exceptional career. Most lovers of older films can probably name a dozen classics of his they cherish but many have probably never heard of this one. Definitely recommended, especially for Grant fans.

As Leo Durocher noted, rotten guys wind up with the best looking women - or something to that effect. It has been said of this minor film effort that Cary Grant had no on-screen chemistry with his co-star, the gorgeous Laraine Day...hmmn...trying to think of one of his films, in which he did have chemistry, biology or any other natural science, with his female counterpart. Maybe he should have been in some westerns with Randy Scott and we would have seen the missing rapport. Day's eyes are like shimmering jewels - I wonder what she saw in old Leo? A few distracting head-scratchers: why does the G.O. priest not find it strange that Joe's mother would write to him in Greek if Joe can't read the language? Why does Joe flee from the gambling parlor with the stolen loot if he only wants to make sure that it is returned to the charity? Why does Dorothy need to show him how to knot his tie? The muddled character development makes for some unneeded confusion.

As big Cary Grant fans, we were interested to see him in a film that's a little off the beaten path for him. "Mr. Lucky" definitely had its share of amusing moments, especially when Grant's character and Crunk (Alan Carney) took up knitting. Laraine Day, while not as well known as some of Grant's other leading ladies, gave a touching performance as a woman in love who wasn't always quite sure of her guy. It was interesting to see how the two of them changed as they got to know each other better. Grant had a wedding ring on through the entire movie, so we started out believing he was married. But it later became apparent that he wasn't.

This film isn't on the same level as some of Grant's other films, but it's definitely an enjoyable way to spend an evening.