LUCKY BASTARD Is Graphic, Disturbing and Excellent
One of the great aspects of this film, thanks to writers Nathan (who directed) and Kendall is that they make the audience understand that the people who make porn are real people, with homes, bills, and kids to care for. Too often the media’s portrayals of those who work in this industry are dehumanizing. It also manages; in spite of what some feminists might claim, to actually empower the two main female characters.They are strong, don’t put up with nonsense and to them, having sex in front of a camera is merely acting.
—Brian Milinsky, Tail SlateA soulful lead performance by Betsy Rue, along with director Robert Nathan’s refusal to exploit LUCKY BASTARD’s racy milieu, ground this compelling found-footage thriller about a porn shoot gone wrong.
—Chuck Wilson, L.A. WeeklyLucky Bastard contains a number of standout performances, but it is the role of the morally compromised porn website owner, Mike as essayed by noted character actor, Don McManus that truly draws attention the actor’s incredible range. McManus creates a vile and empty reptilian businessman who eventually becomes a symbol of how far some industry players will go to draw and hook web viewers in search of gratifying their sometimes base carnal desires. It is a performance that deserves recognition and one hopes that the actor will receive kudos for literally inhabiting a character that truly is the real villain among others and literally steals this film and makes it his own!
—Oscar Benjamin, Examiner.comLUCKY BASTARD is a brave film that isn’t afraid to show it all, the ugly and the pretty of porn. In the opening minutes, the filmmakers tell us that porn sites have been pushing the envelope for years and that sooner or later that envelope will leave one hell of a paper cut. Well, this paper cut was pretty deep with LUCKY BASTARD and the film deserves props to trying something different with the found footage genre.
—“Ambush Bug,” Ain’t It Cool NewsLUCKY BASTARD is NC-17 rated and won’t be for everyone, though the picture ultimately isn’t gratuitous, especially considering the subject matter. In fact, outside of its porn story component, it’s a punchy, well-performed thriller that ultimately keeps your attention for all of its 90 minutes. A recommended view, especially for adventurous viewers.
—Andre Dursin, The Aisle SeatIt’s crude, appalling, highly offensive…and I absolutely loved that about it. Far more impressive was how clever the setup is, and how, by using amateur porn as its backdrop, instantly justifiable its own low-fi aesthetic becomes… This movie feels like it was made for $5,000, and by design looks so, yet never once left me bored or disinterested.
—Jake Dee, Arrow in the HeadAudacious and dark in just the right way. Within the “found footage” genre, with Blair Witch Project setting the bar high, this film has a lot of new things to say. It provides a number of intense original moments. There is an excellent horror/thriller vibe to this movie and Hellraiser editor Tony Randel can share some of the credit along with cinematographer Clay Westervelt and unit production manager Jim Wynorski.
—Henry Chamberlain, Comics GrinderThe sex in LUCKY BASTARD is not sexy—it is showy, obviously artificial, business-like, noisy—but not sexy. Betsy Rue’s Ashley pouts and bats her eyes at the camera, wiggles around seductively, but it’s so disingenuous that it’s more laughable than anything else. She is sexy, however, when Ashley jokingly sexy-talks about doing her taxes, doing laundry, and being a single mother—it’s her genuine moments, when she talks about what matters to her and how she feels about her job, that make her sexy. Overall, LUCKY BASTARD is a refreshing and complex look at the controversial world of adult film and a unique use of an overused film style.
—Bethany Lewis, Film SnobberyAn engaging story about the price of personal dignity and what it costs to buy and to relinquish… Aside from the flesh shots and the backstage pass to a porn production, writers Lukas Kendall and Robert Nathan tell a thrilling story that makes you think with your brain and not other parts of your body.
—Clara Armstrong, ForcesofGeek.comThe cast is very strong, with Paulson going from Everyman innocence to outrage fluidly. Rue is charming, smart and sympathetic. McManus makes Mike a very recognizable Hollywood type, glib and proficient, with glints of pain and weariness peeking through the smooth exterior…. For thriller fans who can take some tough fare—especially those with deep suspicions about “reality” programming—LUCKY BASTARD is a real find.
—Abbie Bernstein, Assignment XPuts an imaginative spin on what is too often a sloppy low-budget aesthetic, easily outstripping charges of empty gimmickry… Perhaps the highest compliment one can pay LUCKY BASTARD is to say that it’s effective and also quite believable for the story it chooses to tell—well sketched out, and sincere in its characters’ motivations.
—Brent Simon, Shock YaLUCKY BASTARD is the very rare cinematic and suspenseful found footage film…for its innovative use of the found footage conceit and its above-par indie acting, LUCKY BASTARD is worth a peek.
—Stacy Layne Wilson, Yahoo VoicesThere is not more that I can say other than the fact that I went in a skeptic and came out a believer.
—Victor Caro, Geek Grotto
LUCKY BASTARD is a “found footage” thriller about a porn website that invites fans to have sex with porn stars. An eager young man named Dave is given a chance to have sex with the fabulous Ashley Saint, but everyone gets more than they bargained for…to gruesome results. The film is captured by the “Lucky Bastard” porn cameras for a fresh take on the “found footage” genre.
