Luck

Jesus. Hell of a show. I am in. And so many pieces moving around. Very excited to see what the season brings. And Hoffman bringing is A game. Holy crap. 

I felt like Michael Scott describing The Wire:

"Great show.  I didnt understand a word of it."

And see, i was completely in it. I have been around horse racing, but not so much where I would call myself an expert. But I got everything they were talking about. Although, and why do shows like this do this, it made me want to go back to the track. 

It was damn exciting seeing Hoffman act like that. I mean to really be bringing so much to it. 

Did Dustin Hoffman hit the gym?   He looks like he's on roids (along with the rage) in this.   It's an embarrasing question but who is his character anyway?   Someone in organized crime?   He obviously took the fall for alot of folks and can't get involved with certain deals but that's all I got.  

I love how the shoe just drops you into that world with no preparation and asks you to catch up.   It's the same thing Mann did with "Miami Vice" the movie.   I imagine HBO might put together something explaining who the characters are and what the plot is.   We'll see.    Right now, I'm on board due to Hoffman being on his A Game and the cast.    I have faith that it will get better due to the talent behind it.

ETA:   Putting down that horse was one of the most painful scenes I've seen on TV.   Was there some CGI used to keep the horse's eye open like that?

Very good show. The cinematography during the horse riding scenes is terrific. Will be interesting to see if the show can build an audience. I'm in for the duration.

Surprised how few people seem to have watched this or be talking about it. I figured this one would be on everyone's mind with all the talent around it.

I commented in an older thread that got resurrected briefly. Thought this was fantastic; it's by far my most anticipated new show coming, and the pilot lived up.

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Originally Posted by Trav McGee 

I commented in an older thread that got resurrected briefly. Thought this was fantastic; it's by far my most anticipated new show coming, and the pilot lived up.

Apart from the new Game Of Thrones it's mine too. Can't wait to see it when it hits NZ screens in 2018.

Some info from the TCA's.

Officially starts tonight. Just wanted to remind everyone.

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Originally Posted by The Closer 

I felt like Michael Scott describing The Wire:

 

"Great show.  I didnt understand a word of it."

John Ortiz is killing me.  The cajun jockey didn't help matters either.  

I'm trying to get into it but I think it's going to require at least one more viewing and maybe a program to explain some of the specifics/lingo.

I got a lot more intrigued after hearing an interview with David Milch on Fresh Air/NPR

It would seem that a good deal of "Luck" may be autobiographical....

I said this on Facebook: Maybe it's because he's been out of the game for a while, and maybe it's because, in his absence, we got guys like Terrence Winter, Vince Gilligan, Matthew Weiner, and Beniof/Weiss all stepping up to one degree or another, but man, I forgot just how superior David Milch is, to, well, everyone. He's playing all-time ball; many of these guys are probably content to craft the best TV show they can make. Milch wants to make something that stands alongside the great works of literature. There's him, and then there's everyone else. 

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Originally Posted by Bucho 

 

Apart from the new Game Of Thrones it's mine too. Can't wait to see it when it hits NZ screens in 2018.

bro, get SoHo, it's on in a couple of weeks (maybe even next week I think).  They've been pimping it heavily and I am really looking forward to it.

I skipped the preview weekend.  I didn't want to wait a few months for the second episode.  Lost isn't the right word...I would use very intrigued.  This is how Mann makes his movies, and Milch plays long ball, so I got what I expected.  Exceedingly well-directed, as expected for the pilot.  The cast is unifomrly exceptional, though it appears we will be working out motivations, intrigue, and relationships through the season.

I'm fine with that.  Hope it did well in the ratings.  Slow burn doesn't work like it used to for many folks.

I caught the preview, but thanks to my faulty memory, rewatching over the weekend reminded me how good this was. It's literally Milch meets Mann, with everything that implies. I find it funny how Mann's taste in music seemed to stop evolving around the time Audioslave got together. The backing music all fit around that time period, with the subdued cues sounding like Sarah McClachlan backing tracks.

It's so nice to hear Milch's writing again; There's a moment where the horse trainer played by Ortiz alludes to Porky Pig when he's dressing down the jockey, and only later do you realize that he's referring to Richard Kind's stuttering character. A joke is introduced, and you don't even realize it was a joke until 20 minutes later.

Also, I'm not sure where I read this, but someone made the point that Dustin Hoffman on this show looks exactly like Ric Flair does now.

And already, HBO has greenlit a second season. That bodes mighty well.

Did I hear right that there are only 9 episodes this season?  An unusual number.

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Originally Posted by Schwartz 

Did I hear right that there are only 9 episodes this season?  An unusual number.

I found that curious as well, and wondered whether it was related to budget or on-set issues. The second season will apparently have 10 episodes.

Full confession: I totally thought Jason Gedrick was actually Matthew Settle, best known as Spiers from Band of Brothers and Rufus from Gossip Girl. I remember sort of liking him on Murder One, but he's really grown into that face. He was one of my favorite parts of the show. 

Mangy, my guess is that it's financial issues -- for their big shows like this or Game of Thrones, I think nine to ten is about all they can do both logistically and financially. 

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Originally Posted by First Class 782 

I skipped the preview weekend.  I didn't want to wait a few months for the second episode.  Lost isn't the right word...I would use very intrigued.  This is how Mann makes his movies, and Milch plays long ball, so I got what I expected.  Exceedingly well-directed, as expected for the pilot.  The cast is unifomrly exceptional, though it appears we will be working out motivations, intrigue, and relationships through the season.

 

I'm fine with that.  Hope it did well in the ratings.  Slow burn doesn't work like it used to for many folks.

Intrigued is exactly how I feel.  I'll watch anything with Farina and Hoffman.

I really, really enjoyed this.  I'll see how it progresses through the season but Luck now has at least 2 more episodes from me.  The horse racing scenes are spectacular, and even though they telegraphed the number 8's injury, it was still brutal.

As a native and resident of Louisiana, I feel compelled to say that jockey came off about as cajun as Rene from True Blood.

I thought he was supposed to be British until Richard Kind told us where he was from.

Other than that, I'm curious, if confused, regarding this show. Mann can burn it as slow as he pleases, he's earned the right.

By the way, I have it on good authority that the horse breaking its leg on the track actually happened.  That wasn't a special effect folks.

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Originally Posted by Spook 

By the way, I have it on good authority that the horse breaking its leg on the track actually happened.  That wasn't a special effect folks.

I find that extremely hard to believe. You have it on good authority from where/who?

Ok.  So I've watched the Pilot three times now and I'm starting to get the gist of exactly what went down.  

Still have a few questions.  Why did that guy give his picks to the security guard? Was it to repay his poker debts? Apparently he's going  to the guard for 'juice' which I assume is extra cash to bet with, and the guard apparently gives out loans and had changed his policy to a minimal one grand loan with 3 points interest.  But I'm not sure I understand the exchange of the 100 bucks when he writes down the winning picks.  

Also, from what I understand Ace has the two horses fronted by Farina's character.  The tan one that couldn't shit and the dark one that is the 'peach' Nick Nolte talks to.  The one no one is supposed to talk about how good it is.  So, which horse broke its leg?  One not owned by Farina? Or the one that finally took a shit?  I'm still a little confused, in that regard.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andy Bain 


bro, get SoHo, it's on in a couple of weeks (maybe even next week I think).  They've been pimping it heavily and I am really looking forward to it.

Oh yeah, good call Andy. Monday nights 8:30, starts Feb 13.

Ace owns the one horse which couldn't shit. Neither of them was the horse which broke its leg. Both of those horses are still being worked out.

He didn't want a thousand. He wanted a few hundred. So in exchange for a hundred he gave him his picks.

We're not shown the owner of the horse who broke its leg.

Nolte owns the other horse all by himself (I believe).

Jerry (the gambler) went to the guard, who is also a laonshark, to ask for the usual 300 he borrows. But since he's always late paying it back, the guard doesn't want to lend it to him (and changes his policy to one grand). He does however, give him one-hundred for his pick-six bets. But he didn't end up using it, because he figured betting the single horse in the fourth was crazy. If he had ended up using it, it would have split the two million, which is why the other gambler (in the wheelchair) is mad at him.

Holy hell. For a show with a first episode that was a study in subtlety and understatement, they took a hard turn away from that in episode two. It was like a dump truck backed in and just unloaded a fuck-ton of exposition.

So the first episode was "Let's let Mann do his usual obtuse angle, then we'll actually hook them in the second episode." Haven't watched it yet, and normally I LOVE Mann, but that first half hour where Hoffman vanishes after the opening scene was rough. No one to hang on to, no idea who these characters are, if you don't know anything about horse racing, major chunks are like watching a foreign film without subtitles, and Nolte being almost unintelligible...but Hoffman meeting with his old pal at the winery and the horse's leg break made me want to keep coming back. But the vague shit was weak, son.

Mann love aside, I'm kind of glad to hear that they're giving viewers more of a hook in the next episode.

This is a great show, but man....it makes me NEVER want to get into gambling. It's depressing watching those guys sweat like that.

Loved the pilot, and this week adds Ted Levine (!!) and Dennis Dun (!!!) to the incredible cast.

Agreed on Kevin Dunn, though I have a strong feeling Dennis Franz was offered the role first.

As for the shorter season, I think it will help the show be tighter and more cinematic.

Someone help me out here.  Leon the jockey was freaked out because his horse died in the last race.  So he doesn't let Escalantes horse go all out.  But then he does?  What exactly was happening there? 

Yeah, I'm out.   I don't like any of the characters, it's plodding as hell and the whole thing just seems like so much fucking work.  I really wanted to like this, but it just didn't grab me.  

I'm only ten minutes or so in on the second episode, but Jesus this is a good show. I fucking love the characters and the dialogue and the photography. Hoffman is doing some really interesting character work. I'm very much "in."

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Originally Posted by BorisTheCheese 

Someone help me out here.  Leon the jockey was freaked out because his horse died in the last race.  So he doesn't let Escalantes horse go all out.  But then he does?  What exactly was happening there? 

He's freaked out b/c yes, his horse died in the last race, and he was concerned over Escalante's horse (which he also rode in the last episode) b/c Escalante tried to make everyone think it was injured by putting those bandages on it's legs (though really it was fine). Richard Kind picks up on the jockey's fear and tells him he's only putting himself at risk by stressing out over things he can't control (and also b/c he's wise to Escalante's game).

I don't think he was intentionally holding the horse back in the first part of the race, as much as he got stuck b/t two other horses. He's yelling at the horse to slow down and pulling its reins during the race only to get out from b/t the other two, so it can edge around them and then blast past them into first place.

I don't find the world of Luck to be any more difficult to understand than the worlds of Deadwood, Treme, Game of Thrones or The Wire. Yes, there's plenty of lingo and occasional actions that confuse me, but I'm still compelled by the world and the storytellers enough to guide me through the rough patches. In the aforementioned shows, my patience was rewarded, and I'm confident this show will do the same.

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Originally Posted by TCD 

Holy hell. For a show with a first episode that was a study in subtlety and understatement, they took a hard turn away from that in episode two. It was like a dump truck backed in and just unloaded a fuck-ton of exposition.

That early scene in the car between Farina and Hoffman was absolutely stultifying with the shoehorned exposition.  "Hey, it sure did suck how you went to jail for something that wasn't your fault."  "Yes, and the first such instance blah, blah, blah "

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Originally Posted by Ratty 

That early scene in the car between Farina and Hoffman was absolutely stultifying with the shoehorned exposition.  "Hey, it sure did suck how you went to jail for something that wasn't your fault."  "Yes, and the first such instance blah, blah, blah "

I dunno, I sort of liked it. It was a huge exposition dump and a huge no-no in terms of proper screenwriting form and such, but the dialogue and performances make it seem so casual that the exposition actually became entertaining in itself. It was like watching a really interesting person tell a story.

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Originally Posted by JMulder 

 

I dunno, I sort of liked it. It was a huge exposition dump and a huge no-no in terms of proper screenwriting form and such, but the dialogue and performances make it seem so casual that the exposition actually became entertaining in itself. It was like watching a really interesting person tell a story.

 

Yeah, but the problem is that it's two guys telling each other a story they both know the other one already knows. And the real shame is that I found Hoffman's character much more interesting when his motivations were unclear. Now all the cards have been laid out on the table and the mystique is gone.

But I still like the show. The pedigree is undeniable, and it's got enough going in other plot threads to make up for the clumsy way Hoffman's was handled. Also, it's good to see Jason Gedrick getting some decent work and episode two provided some solid MILF nudity, so I'll stick with it.

I couldn't get into this. im sad.