Today’s quick review: Pure Luck. When his accident-prone daughter Valerie (Sheila Kelley) goes missing in Mexico, Mr. Highsmith (Sam Wanamaker) hires Raymond Campanella (Danny Glover), a rough-and-tumble private investigator, to get her back. But when Campanella comes up empty, Highsmith pairs him with Eugene Proctor (Martin Short), an accountant who’s just as unlucky as Valerie, in the hope that the two of them will blunder into the missing girl.
Pure Luck is a comedy that pairs a tough detective with an unlucky amateur on the hunt for a missing woman. Using the string of accidents that seem to follow Proctor around as a guide, Campanella and his witless partner try to pick up the trail of Valerie, who experienced similar misfortunes weeks ago. Pure Luck uses this premise to set up a coincidence-laden investigation and plenty of slapstick, but its humor ultimately falls short of its goals.
Pure Luck’s main strength is that it has an inventive premise that it’s willing to run with. Proctor’s bad luck dogs him wherever he goes, turning ordinary activities into painful ordeals. His suffering has a silver lining, however. In addition to his sunny attitude and talent for surviving blows to the head, Proctor has a knack for stumbling onto improbable leads. This turns the movie into an amusing puzzle that runs on both good and bad luck.
Unfortunately, Pure Luck’s premise isn’t enough to make up for its mediocre execution. Danny Glover and Martin Short don’t have the chemistry they need to make their pairing work, and the movie doesn’t invest enough in either character to make their relationship a meaningful part of the story. Pure Luck does get some mileage out of Proctor’s misfortune and Campanella’s disbelief in his partner’s incompetence, but the comedy never quite comes together.
Pure Luck is a decent pick for those in the mood for a light comedy with a bit of slapstick. Its creative situations give the movie an identity of its own, while its acting and its writing avoid any major mistakes. But the movie is missing the comedic spark it needs to get the most out of its premise, leaving it a comedy whose ideas are better than their execution. Those looking for a sharper buddy comedy should look elsewhere.
For a similar comedy pairing with much stronger acting and writing, try the original version of The In-Laws. For a comedy about a similarly incompetent man thrust into a dangerous situation, try The Man Who Knew Too Little. For a trio of Americans’ bumbling adventures in Mexico, try Three Amigos. For better slapstick, try The Naked Gun trilogy.
5.8 out of 10 on IMDB. I give it a 6.0 to 6.5 for a promising setup with mixed follow-through.