Life takes a sudden turn for May, a popular self-help book author, when she finds herself the target of a mysterious man with murderous intentions. Every night, without fail he comes after her, and every day the people around her barely seem to notice. With no one to turn to, May is pushed to her limits and must take matters into her own hands to survive and to regain control of her life.

LUCKY is a dark horror-comedy released on Shudder which tells an important story by way of metaphors. In other words, keep an open mind and try not to take the actions literally. I realize it won’t be for everyone since we weren’t even in agreement here at Heaven of Horror.

One of us “just” liked it and one of us was even more into it – I’m the latter. Possibly because I’ve actually had nightmares similar to what the main protagonist (played wonderfully by the film’s writer, Brea Grant) lives through.

Even though the story features a stalker, you should think of this movie less as Single White Female realism and much more like an episode of Black Mirror. While watching this movie, it might be good to keep that in mind.

We’ve already reviewed quite a few movies starring Brea Grant. No matter how I felt about the movies, I always liked Brea Grant in them. If you like her in this, you should check out Beyond the Gates (2016) and After Midnight (2019).

Personally, the most memorable scene for me deals with the title of the film. Our main protagonist, May (Brea Grant), is told by her literary agent that she is lucky that she got another book deal. He actually says this as a compliment, but May catches him off-guard when she states very plainly that she isn’t lucky, she worked damn hard to be where she is. She deserves the results of that work without being called lucky.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the point of this entire movie, which plays on rather perfectly as a slasher horror-comedy.

And there is plenty of slasher moments. A nightly intruder attacks May every single night. And every single night (after the first one), she is ready for him. She kills him every night – in various ways – and he just vanishes. Leaving her to clean up the bloody mess.

Hopefully, just by reading this description, you’re catching on to the metaphorical meaning of these events.

While we didn’t agree on how much we liked Lucky, we did agree on the fact that we related all-too-easily to the main point of this movie. And yes, it is one of feminism and trying to get by as a woman in the world as it is. If you take offense with stories dealing in this array, then don’t expect to care for or understand any of what this movie is about.

Also, if you can’t relate to the metaphors and symbolism, then you’re probably one of two things; A man, or a woman who has actually been lucky (so far anyway).

Look, I’m not saying all men are terrible. Quite the opposite, I think most men are great. In fact, I know many men who are much better feminists than many women I know. The story in Lucky focuses on the men, who go out of their way to tell women how they should act and behave.

You know, the kind who will gladly attack women every chance they get. They may be a smaller minority, but they make up for the majority when it comes to commenting on women. Often on social media or via backhanded comments, so they won’t have to actually deal directly with possible consequences. These microaggressions make up the background for this story.

Watch Lucky (2020) on Shudder

Natasha Kermani is the director of Lucky and I think she did a stellar job. A sharp style is clear throughout the movie and enables you to really focus on what it’s really all about. Natasha Kermani previously directed quite a few episodes of various TV series and the feature films Shattered (2017) and Imitation Girl (2017), which she also wrote.

For her latest movie, the star of the movie, Brea Grant, is the screenwriter. This is the third feature film screenplay by Brea Grant that has been produced. She debuted with Best Friends Forever in 2013 which she co-wrote and directed as well as starred in. More recently, she wrote and directed 12 Hour Shift (2020) – read our review of that one here >

I realize I’ve only mentioned Brea Grant as far as the cast is concerned, but that’s just because she is the absolute star of this movie. There are many other actors in Lucky and they do excellent jobs. All of them – and you’ll see a few familiar faces from indie horror movies along the way.

Overall, I felt the metaphorical vibe of Lucky played out really well. Still, I can agree with my viewing partner (and editor) that it felt a bit too long. Also, I know many viewers will want a more definitive ending. And you won’t get it. Lucky is all about representing the real-life experience of being a woman and since that is neverending, this story can’t end in the classic sense.

Lucky premiered at the SXSW film festival in 2020 and will be out on Shudder from March 4, 2021.