“Lucky” — Episode Three Recap: Read the Room
“Read the Room,” episode three of Apple TV+’s Lucky, picks up with a flashback. Before John (Timothy Olyphant) was arrested, he was running an oil racket with Priscilla (Annette Bening). In the flashback, we see Priscilla and Dutch (Clifton Collins Jr.) nearby, watching as John slides some money to a government employee to get an approval they certainly don’t deserve. Lucky (Anya Taylor-Joy) is there as well, waiting in John’s car. She’s frustrated that her dad brought her here and she doesn’t trust Priscilla, but John is confident they can keep getting away with this. Unbeknownst to anyone, FBI Agent Rand (Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor) is on a stakeout.
Back in the present day, Lucky finds herself at Priscilla’s home. She stowed away in Dutch’s truck bed and managed to avoid being noticed when Dutch pulled up to the compound. While hiding out, she sees Dutch torturing a man they believe can point them in the direction of Cary (Drew Starkey). Not only is Priscilla’s desire to find Cary personal, as he’s her son, it’s also professional. She’s not at the top of the food chain. The ten million dollars Cary stole belong to someone else. Someone who doesn’t care that Cary is Priscilla’s kid.
Courtesy of Apple TV+
The rest of “Read the Room” is much like the previous two episodes. Lucky is still on the run, using everything her father taught her to evade the FBI. Because of her stowaway move, she’s managed to get some distance between herself and Agent Rand. We find out that the reason Agent Rand is so interested in catching Priscilla is that they have a history. Arresting Priscilla was supposed to be a “career-making” move for her, but the charges didn’t stick. To finally bring Priscilla down feels like a point of pride for Agent Rand, one she will not let go.
The meat of “Read the Room” happens in the episode’s final moments. Everyone is chasing Cary for one reason or another, but money is the main motivator for most. Lucky also wants answers as to why he ran out on her. While we don’t get those answers in this episode, the final scene sees the two come face to face again. Lucky has discovered that the money is in a Bitcoin wallet, and it seems like Cary is the only one with the passphrase.
For those who have read the book the series is based on, one huge plot point of the novel has yet to become relevant. Without spoiling it, this as-of-yet unknown turn of the screw plays a major role in the book. With three episodes done and only four to go, it’s a little odd this hasn’t come up yet. As of now, Lucky has been a whole lot of running without much character development. It remains engrossing to see Bening as a mob leader and Taylor-Joy does a lovely job shape-shifting to whatever the situation calls for, but Lucky needs to start putting a little meat on its bones so the audience has something to sink its teeth into.
Follow me on BlueSky, Instagram, Letterboxd, TikTok, YouTube, & Facebook. Check out Movies with My Dad, a podcast recorded on the car ride home from the movies and I Think You’ll Hate This, a podcast hosted by two friends who rarely agree.
Support Your Local Film Critic!
~
Support Your Local Film Critic! ~
Beyond the Cinerama Dome is run by one perpetually tired film critic
and her anxious emotional support chihuahua named Frankie.
Your kind donation means Frankie doesn’t need to get a job…yet.