The Show Must Go On In "Don't Say Good Luck"

Sunny Sandler, daughter of Adam Sandler, stars in a new Netflix film directed by Julia Hart, and it has caught the attention of many younger audiences as they watch this heartfelt coming-of-age story. The film’s relatability of just being a normal teenage girl also tells a devastating reality that many cannot fathom facing. The storyline showcases a deeper meaning of the classic theatre kid saying, “the show must go on”, and emotionally captures the struggles that happen on and off the stage. 

Don’t Say Good Luck follows a young girl in high school, Sophie, who happily gets cast as the star in her school’s play, Waitress, but unfortunately ends up facing many challenges beyond just her role. In the beginning, we are quickly introduced to the loving, close relationship between Sophie and her mother (Melanie Lynskey), which becomes pretty much the main focus of the film. During Sophie’s audition process for the play, we learn that the mother’s cancer has unfortunately come back, which ends up taking a massive mental toll on Sophie. She does end up successfully earning the lead after receiving the news, and the film continues on with her trying to balance both priorities: her mom’s health and her big role in Waitress. 

Of course, a big aspect of the film is the play that Sophie leads in, but the heart of it belongs to the heartwarming mother-daughter dynamic that is displayed throughout. Being the eldest and only daughter in the family, it only makes the relationship with the mother even more special and strong. We see this in important scenes like Sophie’s mother helping her with her southern accent for her role, and Sophie reciprocating the love by building a homemade production of the play in their own backyard since her mom couldn’t see it live. The film made it very easy for the audience to feel every ounce of sadness towards the two characters when they are going through their difficult hardships.

We also see a lot of underlying issues in Sophie’s life and how she faces those challenges when they come to the surface. One of them is her best friend, Carolyn (Scarlett Estevez), who starts to distance herself a bit without realizing it, and begins to pursue a love interest. The plot starts to come to a realization that the world keeps spinning for others even when it feels like it has stopped for you, and that is, unfortunately, what the relationship between Sophie and Carolyn portrays. There are moments when Sophie does confide in Carolyn for support and comfort when everything starts to change due to the return of her mother’s cancer, but it comes as a brutal reality check to Sophie that her best friend is changing as well. They thankfully ended up realizing that even though things may be different, their love for one another will always remain the same. 

Don’t Say Good Luck will pull at your heartstrings, but it’s also just a simple movie that demonstrates love in all different aspects during the hardest times. It reminds us to keep moving forward with our passions, never give up on friendships, and love your family to the fullest. And it’ll definitely feel like you’re reliving some tragic, embarrassing high school moments, but once again, the show must go on.