''Lucky Break'' (released in the United States as ''Paperback Romance'') is a 1994 Australian

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typica ...

film directed by

Ben Lewin Ben Lewin (born 1946) is an Australian director. Early life and education Ben Lewin was born in Poland. As a child, he emigrated with his family to Melbourne, Australia. At the age of six, he contracted polio which has caused him to use cru ...

, about a woman with

polio Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe s ...

who breaks her leg and is treated normally for the first time in her life. Actress

Rebecca Gibney Rebecca Catherine Gibney (born 14 December 1964) is a New Zealand actress known for her roles on Australian television in ''The Flying Doctors'', ''Halifax f.p.'', ''Packed to the Rafters'', ''Winter (TV series), Winter'' and ''Wanted (2016 Aus ...

was nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role by the

Australian Film Institute The Australian Film Institute (AFI) was founded in 1958 as a non-profit organisation devoted to developing an active film culture in Australia and fostering engagement between the general public and the Australian film industry. It is responsib ...

in 1995 for her role in the film.

Cast

Gia Carides Gia Carides (born 7 June 1964) is an Australian actress. She portrayed Liz Holt in ''Strictly Ballroom'', Susy Connor in ''Brilliant Lies'', and Cousin Nikki in ''My Big Fat Greek Wedding.'' Early life Carides was born in Sydney, Australia, t ...

as Sophie *

Anthony LaPaglia Anthony LaPaglia (, ; born 31 January 1959) is an Australian actor. He is best known for his role as Jack Malone in the television drama ''Without a Trace'' (2002–2009), for which he received a Golden Globe Award in 2004. LaPaglia won a Prim ...

as Edward 'Eddie' Murcer *

as Gloria Wrightman *

Robyn Nevin Robyn Anne Nevin (25 September 1942) is an Australian actress, director, and stage producer, recognised with the Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards and the JC Williamson Award at the Helpmann Awards for her outstanding contributions to Austral ...

as Anne-Marie LePine *

Marshall Napier James Marshall Napier (22 October 1951 – 14 August 2022) was a New Zealand-born character actor, playwright and graphic artist. He is known for a succession of strong supporting roles in Australasian films and television shows. He has also h ...

as George LePine

Reception

The film received rave reviews but did not do well at the box office, opening tenth in Australia with a gross of $114,950 in its first week. It went on to gross just $197,540 in Australia. On

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, the film has a score of 33% based on 9 reviews, with an average rating of 5.4/10. David Stratton of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' wrote "''Lucky Break'' adds a few new wrinkles to the venerable and resurgent formula of romantic comedy. Writer/director Ben Lewin comes up with some oddball ideas again, but his screenplay lacks the wit and zaniness that might have propelled this modest offering into wider distribution".

References

External links

*
''Lucky Break''
at Oz Movies 1994 romantic comedy films Australian romantic comedy films Films directed by Ben Lewin 1990s English-language films 1990s Australian films {{1990s-romantic-comedy-film-stub