Fest Track On Sirk TV Film Review: GOOD LUCK, HAVE FUN, DON’T DIE [Berlinale - Berlin, Germany]

"Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die" [Berlinale Special Gala] is one of those really unique films with an interesting script that needed the right person to get the film made and secure the right cast. Gore Verbinski as a director has always done some interesting things but the tricky element is after a few films failed at the box office, trying to secure financing and talent (especially in the current age) can be tricky for even a proven director. That is why being able to make this more high concept film (including the amount of special effects) for the price they did and still have the film be as good relatively as it is is pretty spectacular. The cast is known but not too well known but it works right in tandem with what the story needs to be. Sam Rockwell is the cornerstone as the man from the future sent back to help fix some elements that went wrong. The timing of the script is perfect for this exact time. It does have a darkness that maybe would have been hard to do at a studio. Constantin Films bankrolled the film completely so there is an organic feel to it and some artistic license. Verbinski doesn't let up on what he is good at and some of the images he creates (especially towards the end) are inherently cinematic. There are also places (like one shot near the end) which aren't as necessary...but everyone holds their own, especially the actors. There are some derivative story points (most specifically "The Terminator) but in would-be time travel movies that is an inherent touchstone in certain ways.

The film is undeniably held up by Sam Rockwell. His energy and the way he makes the dialogue move is infectious (and a blend of say "Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind" and what he did in "Moon"). There is a lot of technical (per se) dialogue on his part that has to be hit and yet it is crystal clear and gets the joke through and through (without risking the stakes). This is beautifully done considering the outfit he has to wear (and the beard) the whole way through. Like other films of this kind, it is a mission to get to the end. In this the goal is tracking down a 9 year old hacker about to give AI sentience. It is an broad element which becomes more explained as the other members of the team he selects come into play through their flashbacks. The basis is that Rockwell's character is transported to a Norm's Diner in LA from the future and has to pick six team members to help him accomplish his goal: to get a USB drive with safety protocols into said kid's computer before the end of the night deadline and without dying...or he needs to start all over again. Haiey Lu Richardson plays Ingrid, a girl who has an interesting aversion to technology. As the story jumps back and forth and we see her flashback, her path becomes more fortuitous but also the one most wrought with pain and loneliness in more ways than one which does make the eventual play quite rewarding (without giving anything away).

Rockwell's character shows his flashback in an apocalypse as a young boy and again, for a film that has a lot of wacky comedy, it really sets the pain without making it melodramatic. You understand why he sees things a certain way but also how a weird confluence of events only makes more sense after the fact. Michael Pena and Zazie Beetz play Mark and Janet, two schoolteachers who had a really weird day at school (his first as a substitute). This is the part of the film that drags a little bit but its point of exposition are key to the rest of the film so their structural placing as well as its societal context is necessary. The other person in the mix is Susan (Juno Temple -- almost unrecognizable under a wig and a different accent). She is the heart of the movie in a certain way because she is the lightning rod to spark while Hailey shines. The film also introduces the scapegoat through her even if she is not completely aware. Temple plays it completely straight which again gives the film more weight. Verbinski's direction is pinpoint with many of these actors. Some of the periphery characters and their reasons keep the pace moving. Some of them work. Some of them are a little wacky and too weird...and also the film doesn't try to explain exactly why some of these things occur. The point is that it works until the end with very few hiccups. "Good Luck" is Verbinski's most original film in years and really works in many ways because it feels independent but with the sense of those mid-range science fiction movies of yesteryear without pandering to nostalgia and just having fun with it. A-

By Tim Wassberg