Plays like a British rendition of After Hours with a meaner, more satirical outlook on various aspects of society, at double the length no less! Instead of taking place over the course of one night, O Lucky Man! occurs over what seems like a couple of days and an entire lifetime, never choosing to explain exactly how much time has transpired as we trace the life of Mick Travis.
It's a sardonic film at its core, but there's still some joy to be had here, such as the lovely musical segments that bookend (almost) every situation Mick gets into — acting as a Greek chorus commentating on the themes and story. There's some quirky metafictional elements present aswell, with a common throughline being the idea of self-invention and reinvention, in this case many actors playing multiple different roles — or constantly reinventing themselves to fit whatever situation Mick finds himself in. It's not overtly surreal, but a lot of the situations Mick lucks himself into are very strange, bordering on illogical nonsense — the medical research center being a highlight of the absolute absurdity to be found here (parodied in one of the stranger Seinfeld episodes 'The Bris').
Not without its flaws, for one the film features an egregious case of blackface (you could make the case it's another metafictional element satirising traditional blackface performances, I wouldn't agree with you in the slightest but hey whatever) and its ambitious scope can get a little tiresome, clocking in at a hefty 3 hours. I feel like I've witnessed an entire life crumble apart after it's all said and done and, despite being much looser and unfocussed compared to If...., its sprawling nature works in favour with its commentary on how capitalist society chews up and spits out the innocent optimists.
Deliriously morbid when it wants to be, cutesy and quirky at times aswell, O Lucky Man! is a singular vision of '70s capitalist England that is equal parts timeless and unfortunately dated as hell.
Plays like a British rendition of After Hours with a meaner, more satirical outlook on various aspects of society, at double the length no less! Instead of taking place over the course of one night, O Lucky Man! occurs over what seems like a couple of days and an entire lifetime, never choosing to explain exactly how much time has transpired as we trace the life of Mick Travis.
It's a sardonic film at its core, but there's still some joy to be had here, such as the lovely musical segments that bookend (almost) every situation Mick gets into — acting as a Greek chorus commentating on the themes and story. There's some quirky metafictional elements present aswell, with a common throughline being the idea of self-invention and reinvention, in this case many actors playing multiple different roles — or constantly reinventing themselves to fit whatever situation Mick finds himself in. It's not overtly surreal, but a lot of the situations Mick lucks himself into are very strange, bordering on illogical nonsense — the medical research center being a highlight of the absolute absurdity to be found here (parodied in one of the stranger Seinfeld episodes 'The Bris').
Not without its flaws, for one the film features an egregious case of blackface (you could make the case it's another metafictional element satirising traditional blackface performances, I wouldn't agree with you in the slightest but hey whatever) and its ambitious scope can get a little tiresome, clocking in at a hefty 3 hours. I feel like I've witnessed an entire life crumble apart after it's all said and done and, despite being much looser and unfocussed compared to If...., its sprawling nature works in favour with its commentary on how capitalist society chews up and spits out the innocent optimists.
Deliriously morbid when it wants to be, cutesy and quirky at times aswell, O Lucky Man! is a singular vision of '70s capitalist England that is equal parts timeless and unfortunately dated as hell.
