Melbourne IFF 2025: Lucky Lu (dir. Lloyd Lee Choi) | Review
Director Lloyd Lee Choi’s answer to The Story of Souleymane takes a roller coaster ride into the volatile moments of an Asian immigrant in New York City, where misery comes in multiple directions yet hope and responsibility serve as an armor.
Lu Jia Cheng walks fast and crosses the road swiftly, scanning every corner of the street with urgency. He pants heavily, wandering lane after lane without pause, never stopping to catch his breath. He doesn’t even remove the helmet he is wearing, determined to detect the most important asset that has provided the funds for his entire plan today. Little did he know the day had only just begun to ring the bells of doom.
For starters, after wowing audiences in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, actor Chang Chen steps into this film as Lu, a food delivery man who stumbles into a series of unfortunate events over two consecutive days in New York City, while also waiting for the arrival of his wife, Si Yu (Fala Chen), and daughter Yaya (Carabelle Manna Wei) after five years apart. At first glance, the film shares strong thematic ties with The Story of Souleymane by Boris Lojkine, representing the unyielding toils of immigrants in an unfamiliar world. However, director Lloyd Lee Choi shifts the focus toward an Asian perspective, blending into the Chinese community and rooting the turmoil in familial relationships. What follows is an emotional rollercoaster through a slow but potent screenplay that culminates in profound chaos, revealing the working-class dilemmas of immigrants striving for a satisfactory life. A troubling ache throbs through Lu’s perseverance, as every facet of his suffering—facing different human structures and characterizations—is felt intensely, almost like a human study of survival.
The cinematography by Norm Li C.S.C. exposes a chilly New York City in its coldest form, with a sky-blue palette that somehow conceals an undercurrent of desperation through the fog. It seems the director wants to highlight the uproar of immigrant lives through visuals, where time itself becomes their teacher, delivering unending trials that slowly reveal the need for true friendship, honest relationships, family bonds, and blessings as hopeful alternatives to move forward. Yet, the film also questions one’s accountability, showing how every decision made in the past carries a vulnerable effect on the future.
While the title may seem sarcastic in light of its true intentions, Directors’ Fortnight selection Lucky Lu merges delicate filmmaking and earnest performances into a heartfelt experience. By combining two of his previous shorts (Same Old and Closing Dynasty, which were selected for the 2022 Cannes Film Festival and 2023 Berlinale, respectively) into his feature debut, Lloyd Lee Choi reminds us that responsibility and fortitude are invisible forces capable of changing anything—even when luck plays its part viciously. The phrase “Only the bold and brave win the day,” which motivates Lu, seems to serve as the backbone for every working adult seeking escape from despair. Yet the film’s true magic lies in the father-daughter bond between Lu and Yaya, built on love, warmth, and tenacity—where for some, this is a single day, and for others, it is a lifetime.
