WiHM Special - Lucky (2021) by Natasha Kermani

Director: Natasha Kermani

Year: 2021

Country: USA

Alternate Titles: N/A

Genre: Slasher

Plot:

After barely surviving a brutal encounter, a woman finds herself repeatedly stalked and tormented by a malicious killer only to have no sympathy from everyone around her, forcing her to extreme measures as a way to figure out the secret behind the continued stalking before she finally dies.

Review:

There was quite a lot to like here. One of its brightest aspects is the outstanding social commentary present that brings about the systemic abuse women receive in today's society. Focusing on the bluntness of the rejection she faces at convincing everyone around her to believe the story as the trauma and concern she has is wholly justified yet never receives the appropriate reactions since it's coming from a woman. Seeing the arguments against taking her claims seriously draws painstaking realism as the encounters continue on serve as quite logical experiences for more to happen yet the fact that it's being brought up by a woman is enough to turn them down and react with disdain to keep showing up.

As well, since this one is based heavily on the concept of her being stalked and battered continuously, there's some great stuff with this aspect. Thein initial attack and confrontation around the house offers a thoroughly engaging brawl around the house as well as the ensuing battles the next few days which can offer plenty to enjoy as the brief-yet-brutal confrontations bring about some fun intrusion to the rest of the film. Battling a fine line between being thrilling while also telling the story about the abuse women face in their lives afterward is rather adeptly handled, overall leading to stellar social commentary alongside the genre thrills. Overall. these manage to hold this one up.

All of this is perfectly serviceable if the film didn't try going over-the-top in the final half that's rather hard to understand. Tackling the themes of female empowerment in your own hands and to not take systemic psychological, verbal, mental or physical abuse from any man who attempts to hurt them is a fantastically appropriate and timely story that gets slightly muddied here as the surrealism injected doesn't need to be there. This worked perfectly addressing the topic without adding these extra elements on top of it to distract the viewer especially during this section of the film where it needs the least amount of excess distractions. This, though, is entirely up to a viewer's personal preference how badly it'll affect them being the main issue here.

Overview: ****/5

A pointed social commentary on the plight women receive in today's culture that mixes enough slasher action to stay relevant for the genre, this works quite nicely for those that like those elements added together in their films. Give it a shot if you're interested in the setup or it looks like something you're in agreement with regarding its politics, while those who will be turned off by the concept might want to heed caution.

This review ran as part of our Women in Horror Month celebrations. Click the banner below to check out all of our reviews and interviews about the occasion: