HBO will debut its new original series, Luck starring Dustin Hoffman and Nick Nolte tonight, January 29, at 9pm. But before I share some of my thoughts on the show, I think that we need to establish the fact that at this point whether HBO creates a series or a movie it’s pretty much guaranteed that it will have great performances and a strong story.
And so we have Luck and it’s definitely another HBO-quality show. I mean just the headlining cast should be enough to get you curious. That said the story might not appeal to everyone. What HBO does well is taking a very niche universe and bring it to screen, however because it is so specific it might not appeal to people not interested in that type of story.
In the case of Luck, it would be horse racing. I’ll admit that I not only have never seen a horse race, but don’t know anything about them, so when I watched the first episode I was a bit lost with what was happening. You are immersed in the world of horse racing and if you are a fan, then you might love the show because you’ll be able to relate to everything happening. On the other hand if like me you don’t know anything about horse racing, Luck might be a little harder to get into.
Luck follows quite a few characters including Chester “Ace” Bernstein (Hoffman) who just got released from three years in federal prison. His driver and bodyguard, Gus Demitriou (Dennis Farina), is not only there to take him home but also happens to be the front owner of a $2 million Irish Horse that Ace bought. That Irish Horse is being taken care of by Peruvian Turo Escalante (John Ortiz), a talented but unlikeable trainer and his veterinarian girlfriend Jo (Jill Hennessy).
We also meet veteran trainer-turned-owner Walter Smith (Nick Nolte) who sees potential in his “Big Horse,” but he seems wary of something we’re not yet aware of.
And finally, we are introduced to four gamblers, Marcus (Kevin Dunn), Renzo (Ritchie Coster), Jerry (Jason Gedrick), and Lonnie (Ian Hart), who decide to pool their resources together to score a Pick Six winners contest based on Jerry’s hunch.
After watching a few episodes there is a part of me that wants to know what happened to these characters, so I’ll probably end up watching the whole season just to find out how it all ends. I guess I can’t resist a character study after all even if I don’t understand most of what’s going on.
I would describe Luck as Boardwalk Empire for horse racing. It has a similar feel and pace, so if you are a fan of the latter and don’t mind the world of horse racing then you’ll love Luck.
I should also mention that Luck has some impressive guest stars including Patrick J. Adams (Suits), Joan Allen, W. Earl Brown, Bruce Davison, Spencer Garrett, Barry Shabaka Henley, Ted Levine, Jurgen Prochnow, Alan Rosenberg, Mercedes Ruehl, Chantal Sutherland and Sir Michael Gambon.
All and all, Luck grew on me and I say give it a shot, it might surprise you. Finally, I should mention that HBO will allow you to watch the second episode a week early through HBO GO. You will find the episode available on HBO GO simultaneously in line with the premiere of episode 1 at 9pm (ET/PT).
Don’t forget to watch Luck when it premieres tonight, January 29, at 9pm on HBO.
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