Lucky Numbers

Director Nora Ephron, whose past credits are a mixed bag (Michael, Sleepless in Seattle, the dreadful You’ve Got Mail), tops herself with this dark comedy about a Harrisburg, Penn., weatherman (a funny John Travolta) who rigs the state lottery. Based on an actual scandal in the early 1980s, the film is often very funny and surprisingly dark, considering Ephron’s usually sweet-hearted entertainment. The tone of the film is likely to turn off mass audiences, and that’s a shame. There’s much to be enjoyed here, including good performances from Tim Roth, Lisa Kudrow and Michael Rappaport. Bill Pullman, who excels at playing major idiots, is hilarious in a small role as a police officer who doesn’t like his job all that much. Not bad.