Lucky

Originally released in 2018, Ghanaian Crime caper Lucky makes its debut for the American audience and proves to be full of heart. Following a student struggling to get some cash for his rent and an upcoming date, the film is full of antics, expressive acting and even a few jokes that successfully land and delight viewers with their over the top humour and characterisation. However, despite the obvious passion from its cast and crew, this is overall a movie that’s unfortunately limited and at points even proves to be incoherent.

Lucky Barima Mensah (Kumi Obuoabisa), a handsome and broke university student, finds himself in a tight spot. After scoring a date with the hottest girl on social media (Jane Efya Awindor), he must find a way to make money – and fast. With the help from his friend Wadaada (Solomon Fixon-Owoo Jr.), he sets out to sell a MacBook; however, when gangsters, guns, his ex and even a vindictive taxi driver are thrown into the mix, the protagonist’s fortune soon runs out. Written by Fofo Gavua, Joewackle Kusi and Kumi Obuoabisa, the flick’s narrative is straightforward and should be easy to follow – in theory – but due to the multitude of production issues, Lucky’s narrative is near impossible to appreciate fully.  

With an array of technical problems, odd editing choices and multiple time skips, it can be a struggle to piece together and thoroughly enjoy the comedy. From sound being inaudible to suddenly spiking in a single shot, to a lack of subtitles – as characters settle on one language for an entire scene – viewers are left utterly confused at points while watching the story unfold, trying to understand the plot’s progression. What further adds to the feature’s somewhat baffling narrative is its variation in acting styles. Certain characters are extreme stereotypes (like the materialistic women in the titular character’s life) while others (like the protagonist himself) are more centred in reality and muted in their comedy, making the pacing jarring and overall style, at times, border on surreal.  

Despite the array of problems, there is obviously a story here begging to be realised. In the few moments when things make sense, Lucky shines as a movie full of character; however, with core elements – like sound – missing, this picture unfortunately never fully finds its stride or captures its audience.

Emma-Jane Betts

Lucky is released digitally on demand on 10^th May 2021.

Watch the trailer for Lucky here: