Dustin Hoffman is out for revenge in HBO’s ‘Luck’
If like me, you are not a race track enthusiast, the terms "breezing," "condition book," "maiden," "pick six," and "post position" will sound Greek to you. You will also probably not have much enthusiasm for the pilot episode of "Luck," an HBO miniseries that premieres on Feb. 20 at 10 p.m.
HBO Asia's Karen Lai gave members of the press fair warning during an advanced screening at the Manila Polo club. Ms Lai explained that the director, Michael Mann is known for his character-driven movies like "Ali" and "Collateral". So if you're expecting something like "Seabiscuit," then you might get disappointed with the initial episode.
I found myself dozing off a few times after a hearty lunch but I'm a big fan of Dustin Hoffman, who plays the lead character so this series may start out slow but things should start picking up as "Luck" races for the homestretch.
To liven up the press briefing, HBO arranged for Mark Lopez, Sports and Athletic Director of the Manila Polo Club to give us a primer on horses. From him I learned the following trivia: Race horses can only run continuously for eight minutes so the race track oval was designed to accommodate the animal's capability; A thoroughbred is tall, has a long neck, muscular and runs straight, making it ideal for racing. In contrast, an equestrian horse is smaller and can move in all directions. A horse can live for as long as 25 years.
After the screening, the organizers took the group to the stables where we were asked to bet which of three horses would win a mini-race. There was no money involved, of course. Media people who chose the winners were given promo items from HBO. Afterwards, those who wanted to mount the horses for a short ride were asked to sign a waiver absolving HBO of any liability if anyone got injured.
Back to "Luck." Hoffman plays Chester "Ace" Bernstein, who has just been released after spending three years behind bars. He seeks revenge against the people who put him there. His loyal assistant, Gus Demetriou, played by Dennis Farina has been taking care of Ace's investments in race horses. We also meet four degenerate gamblers who plan to make a killing at the tracks through the Pick Six bet which could earn them as much as two million dollars. Also in the cast is Nick Nolte as "the old man" who has secrets from a troubled past.
The pilot episode is mostly expository and introduces viewers to life at the tracks and the characters that will get involved in complications in succeeding episodes: horse trainers, the veterinarian, the jockeys. Expect more action in future episodes to be directed by Phillip Noyce ("Salt," "Clear and Present Danger"), Mimi Leder ("Deep Impact," "The Peacemaker") Allen Coulter ("The Sopranos") and Brian Kirk ("Game of Thrones).
To wrap things up, here are the definitions of terms I mentioned earlier:
Breezing: A workout in which the horse is asked to run at full stride for a specific distance as part of fitness training.
Condition Book: A book published by the Racing Secretary, usually every ten days to two weeks, offering different categories of races in which the trainers may enter their horses.
Maiden: A horse that has never won a race. Maiden Special Weight races are "allowance" type races and are for horses which may not be claimed. In Maiden Claiming races, the horses may be claimed.
Pick Six: A wager where a bettor picks winning horses in a series of six consecutive races. Bet must be placed before the start of the first race in the series. Variations are Pick Three, Four or Five, all of which are extensions of race track standard, the Daily Double, which originally required picking the first two winners of the day.
Post Position: Pre-assigned position from which a horse will leave the starting gate, determined in a random draw by the Racing Office staff when the horses are entered.
