🔗 Share this article

Here is a remarkably odd, certainly enjoyable real-life tale from the heartland of American showbusiness; an endearing hit with its uplifting tone does little to warn you for the way the narrative repeatedly and savagely twists like an unsafe fairground ride. Personally, I found my eyes closed and mouth open during several crucial moments, and was grabbing the chair ahead tightly with my hands.

The Unbelievable True Tale

Mike and Claire Sardina, superbly portrayed by Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson, were spouses from Milwaukee who had children from previous relationships who in the 90s formed a kitschy homage performance to Neil Diamond named Lightning and Thunder; they grew into an underground sensation within their state and even opened for Pearl Jam, whose guitarist Eddie Vedder amiably accompanied them on stage for an additional song.

However, life was far from simple for the pair, and this film broods on the difficulty that arises when the lightning of ill fortune strikes more than once.

Adapting a Real Story

The film is actually based on an existing documentary of the same title created in 2008 by Greg Kohs concerning this surreal reality, a film that was heavily reliant on the couple’s family archive of home video. It’s fair to say that the documentary puts more emphasis on the delusional and absurd aspects in the lives of Mike and Claire.

But that’s not how this film from writer-director Craig Brewer reimagines their tale. The director and stars transform the mockery into laugh-with. Jackman delivers a masterful performance portraying a Neil Diamond tribute artist, sounding almost like him, and appearing strikingly alike. He is entirely believable as someone who isn’t supposed to be the major leagues but who clearly has the chops (and the vocal cords) to carry a show.

Notable Acting

Hudson likewise shines, doing her own singing as Claire, who before she joined Mike in the Neil Diamond tribute world enjoyed a successful career as Patsy Cline. The film depicts her belting out Cline numbers, even though one particular iconic Cline tune that this film interestingly misses out.

Michael Imperioli plays a Buddy Holly impersonator called Mark, while Mustafa Shakir appears as a James Brown act known as Sex Machine. Ella Anderson plays Claire’s teen daughter Rachel, and King Princess is Mike’s daughter Angelina of about the same age – and their burgeoning friendship is another underplayed aspect of the film’s likability.

The Heart of the Story

Irony and satire have been surgically removed from Mike and Claire’s dramatically packed life stories, and in their place Brewer substitutes those attributes which the pair personally would have recognized: the fragility and isolation involved in striving for success in the margins of the music industry, or for that matter succeeding in any field and in any business.

It is a tale of relentless perseverance and its cheerful optimism makes it a calorific Christmas treat.

The film "Song Sung Blue" releases on 25 December in the United States and 1 January in Australia and the United Kingdom.