OxfordPress.com

Grade: C

Verdict: Not so lucky.

Details: Starring John Travolta and Lisa Kudrow. Directed by Nora Ephron. Rated R for profanity, sexuality, some drug use and brief violence. One hour, 48 minutes.

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Review: A gamble that doesn't pay off, "Lucky Numbers" is romantic-comedy director Nora Ephron's attempt to move into the comic-noir territory of the Coen brothers. In particular, "Fargo," with a touch of Sam Raimi's "A Simple Plan" thrown in. The new movie is also John Travolta's bid to win back viewers burned by his epic turkey "Battlefield Earth." Both director and star crap out.

Travolta plays Harrisburg, Pa., weatherman Russ Richards, a media personality so popular he has his own parking spot and reserved table at Denny's, and his mug beams from billboards all over town. He's got a cool car, a great house - and a load of debt from his latest venture, a snowmobile dealership. Problem is, Harrisburg is going through a very green winter. And the bank is foreclosing on his home.

Confessing his problems to strip-club owner Gig (Tim Roth in a small but reliably strong turn), Russ hits on the idea of rigging the state lottery with the help of girlfriend Crystal (Lisa Kudrow), the Vanna White-lite who draws the numbers from the hopper nightly at the news station.

Let's just say things don't quite run as smoothly as planned. Soon Russ and Crystal are contending with a thug (Michael Rapaport), the station manager (Ed O'Neill) and other assorted scumbags who want a slice of the $6 million jackpot.

Unfortunately, as the plot twists and double-crosses add up, the tone of the flick goes haywire. What starts off as a perky comedy begins to rack up a body count, and Ephron seems unsure if she's making a farce or a tragedy. It doesn't help that "Lucky Numbers" wraps up with a tidy happy ending that seems to belong in another movie.

In the early scenes, as the big fish in this little pond, Travolta is a wonderful mix of fake smiles and piled-on smarm. But once the real plot kicks in, he recycles the same shtick, going through the movie in a panicked sweat and losing our interest. Kudrow, who can put an oddball spin on the plainest line of dialogue, is predictably funny here, but the plot reduces her character to an amoral airhead. In her ruthless desire to get rich, Crystal is in a way the most admirable (if evil) character, but the movie decides to punish her for it.

Faring worst of all is Bill Pullman in the underwritten part of a lazy, none-too-bright cop who winds up on Russ and Crystal's trail. Each of his scenes bogs down the momentum; there's nothing quite as sorry as a character who's supposed to be funny, and isn't.

The movie isn't an embarrassment and has bright spots. But it pretty much squanders the talents of everybody involved. For the record, it was originally called "Numbers." Adding "Lucky" to the title seems like an example of wishful thinking.

— Steve Murray, Cox News Service