Getting Lucky (1990)
dir. Michael Paul Girard, Vista Street Entertainment
The saying “They don’t make movies like that anymore” tends
to get tossed around a bit, usually wistfully. The supernatural teen sex comedy
is a genre that seems to have died out. I can’t imagine anyone getting nostalgic
for it.
Getting Lucky is
pretty much the typical example of the genre. A neebish fellow encounters a supernatural
being who helps him get laid or find true love. Bill Higgins (Steven Cooke) is
a nerd straight out of central casting. Thick glasses, crush of the
cheerleader, and a mortal enemy of the jocks. The cheerleader in question,
Krissi Shackler (Lezlie Z. McGraw) is, as typical of the genre, being pursued
by basketball stud Tony Chanuka (Rick McDowall).
While recycling, Bill stumbles upon a beer bottle containing
Lepkey the Leprechaun (Gary Kluger). Lepkey was cursed for his drunkenness to
remain inside an empty bottle until he granted three wishes. Bill only wants a
date with Krissi, a car, and enough money to go to college and med school. Lepkey
is a tad bit rusty on his magic though, so complications arise. A wished for
Ferrari results in a Pinto, etc. Most of the wishes also seem to result in
several cast members being seen undressed. The most infamous sequence (the
reason most people seem to recall this film) is a wish for a smaller
screwdriver resulting in Bill being shrunk and ending up in Krissi’s panties.
The jokes are telegraphed half an hour before they hit and
the characters act pretty much how most screenwriters thought their social
groups acted. Bill is straight-laced and gives long speeches about the environment,
Krissi doesn’t do much aside from being an object of affection/lust, and Tony
is a thuggish rapist.
In the end, is it any good? The effects are nice and the
actors all give it their best. The sub-genre of teens losing their virginity
with the aid of leprechauns and genies seems to have died out. Cheesy as hell, yes, but there is a certain earnestness about it that makes you at least appreciate the effort put into the film if nothing else.
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