Film Review: Lucky Strike

Lucky Strike
Director: Rod Davis Lurie
Perfection Hunter
In Theaters: 06.26.2026

“I think World War II is my favorite war.”

That hilariously irreverent line, spoken by the late, great Phil Hartman in Small Soldiers (1998) pops into my head anytime I watch a film set during the second World War, which (let’s face it) was a sequel that vastly improved upon the original: more production value, cooler designs and far scarier villains are just a few of the reasons why it still ranks as Hollywood’s favorite major military conflict. In Lucky Strike, we get the chance to tag along on a mission into enemy territory with the sons of two of the most decorated war movie heroes of all time.

Lucky Strike follows U.S. Army Captain John Castle (Scott Eastwood, Pacific Rim: Uprising, The Outpost) during the brutal winter of December 1944 as the German Army launches its surprise Ardennes offensive, later known as the Battle of the Bulge. After a “no guts, no glory” briefing from their commanding officer, Colonel Neale (Colin Hanks, King Kong, Jumanji: The Next Level), Castle and his unit soon find themselves overwhelmed and scattered after Castle is wounded and isolated deep behind enemy lines. Armed with little more than a newly issued SCR-300 field radio, Castle embarks on a desperate trek across occupied Belgium, attempting to evade SS patrols and survive the freezing wilderness while relaying intelligence on advancing German Panzers. Along the way, he encounters civilians, fellow soldiers and deadly enemies, forcing him to rely on ingenuity, deception, endurance and sheer dumb luck. 

Lucky Strike is more in the vein of the Clint Eastwood war films of the late 60s and early 70s  than the more grim realities of Tom Hanks in 1998’s Saving Private Ryan. Though the film is inspired by true events, seasoned director Rod Davis Lurie (The Contender, The Outpost) sets out with the goal to make a tense survival adventure film, while wanting us to be able to unreservedly root for Castle and the home team, secure in the belief that there’s not much gray area as to who qualifies as the bad guys are or why this war had to be fought. The title Lucky Strike is a play on words, referring both to Castle’s ultimate good fortune and to the American soldiers’ cigarette brand of choice, which figures into the story more directly than you might expect, teetering on the edge of feeling like a product placement gimmick. The movie works quite well, however, stripping down the Battle of the Bulge to its most elemental form: one man in hostile territory, facing the constant threat of death around every corner. Rather than focusing on sweeping battlefield spectacle, the film embraces the tension of a survival thriller. The frozen forests and war-ravaged villages of occupied Belgium become a gauntlet of uncertainty where every encounter carries some degree of danger. 

Lurie keeps the momentum of the story moving, building tension by focusing on Castle’s isolation and the ever-present possibility of discovery by the enemy. The result is a lean, engaging war drama that often feels more like a cat-and-mouse thriller than a conventional combat film. Lurie has a way of delivering mid-budget films that look like they cost more money than they actually did, and his sharp eye for framing and staging counts for an awful lot here. A former critic himself, Lurie is a passionate storyteller and cinephile who clearly loves what he does, and it shows.

Eastwood works quite well as the heroic, archetypal hero, following in the footsteps of his father in Where Eagles Dare and Kelly’s Heroes, convincingly portraying a tough, determined soldier pushed to his limits by exhaustion, and he carries the film with a certain badass action star presence, but it’s an emotionally flat performance. For my money, a more vulnerable protagonist, struggling to keep a cool head while fighting back abject panic, would have made for a more engaging and immersive film. The second-generation Hanks delivers a solid effort, but has very little screentime, amounting to an extended cameo. Lucky Strike delivers plenty of striking imagery, including a gorgeous opening sequence shot in pristine black and white. The postwar framing device of Castle going to visit Mrs. Caldwell (Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, The Help, If Beale Street Could Talk), the mother of a deceased soldier, is well-meaning but unnecessary, and introducing our hero none the worse for wear in a post-war segment doesn’t help with the narrative’s sense of suspense over whether he’s going to make it out in one piece.

All things considered, Lucky Strike is an effective and entertaining wartime adventure in the old-fashioned tradition that I grew up watching, and it plays well on repeat viewing. What it lacks in depth, it largely makes up for in spirit, and Lurie’s enthusiasm and skill make it an assignment that’s worth taking. —Patrick Gibbs

Read more film reviews by Patrick Gibbs:
Pat Scola Hits A Bullseye with The Death of Robin Hood
Film Review: Toy Story 5

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