The Song Sung Blue Film Review: A Neil Diamond Tribute Act Receives a Sweet Treat from Hollywood Thanks to Jackman and Hudson
This film presents a startlingly strange, certainly enjoyable true-life story emerging from the American entertainment world; an endearing hit whose feelgood flavour won’t prepare you for the way the plot frequently and brutally turns similar to a precarious carnival attraction. Personally, I found myself shutting my eyes with my jaw agape during several crucial moments, and was grabbing the chair ahead with both fists.
The Unbelievable True Tale
Mike and Claire Sardina, terrifically played by Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson, were a Milwaukee married couple with kids from previous relationships that during the 1990s created a cheesy Neil Diamond tribute act called Lightning and Thunder; they became an underground sensation in their home state and even opened for Pearl Jam, with the band's guitarist Eddie Vedder good-naturedly joined them on stage for an encore.
However, life was far from simple for the pair, and this movie contemplates how tough it is when misfortune's bolt hits repeatedly.
From Documentary to Drama
The film is actually based on a prior documentary film of the same title created in 2008 from filmmaker Greg Kohs about this stranger-than-fiction world, a movie that relied extensively on the couple’s family archive of homemade recordings. One could argue that the documentary focuses more intently on the delusional and absurd aspects in the lives of Mike and Claire.
Yet this is not the approach taken by this movie from writer-director Craig Brewer reinvents their story. He, Jackman and Hudson transform the mockery into laugh-with. Jackman absolutely crushes it portraying a Neil Diamond tribute artist, vocalizing in a remarkably similar manner, and appearing strikingly alike. He’s perfectly plausible as someone who isn’t supposed to be the major leagues but who undoubtedly possesses the talent (and the vocal cords) to headline a performance.
Notable Acting
Hudson likewise shines, performing her own vocals in the role of Claire, who before she joined Mike in the Neil Diamond tribute world had a thriving act performing as Patsy Cline. The film depicts her powerfully singing Cline's songs, although there is one iconic Cline tune that this film interestingly misses out.
Michael Imperioli plays a Buddy Holly impersonator called Mark, and Mustafa Shakir is a James Brown performer known as Sex Machine. The role of Claire's teenage daughter Rachel is played by Ella Anderson, and King Princess portrays Mike's daughter Angelina who is around the same age – with their developing friendship is another underplayed aspect of the film’s likability.
The Heart of the Story
Irony and satire have been meticulously excised from Mike and Claire’s heart-stoppingly eventful life stories, and replacing them Brewer substitutes those attributes that the couple themselves would have recognized: the fragility and isolation of trying to make it on the fringes of the music business, or indeed making it anywhere and in any business.
It is a tale of relentless perseverance and its bright hopefulness renders it a calorific Christmas treat.
The film "Song Sung Blue" is out December 25th in the United States and 1 January in Australia and the United Kingdom.