🔗 Share this article

Here is a startlingly strange, undeniably entertaining true-life story emerging from the American entertainment world; an endearing hit whose feelgood flavour won’t prepare you for how the narrative repeatedly and savagely twists like an unsafe fairground ride. Personally, I found myself shutting my eyes and mouth open at certain key points, and was grabbing the seat in front of me with both fists.

The Stranger-Than-Fiction Story

The couple Mike and Claire Sardina, superbly portrayed by Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson, were spouses from Milwaukee who had children from prior unions that during the 1990s formed a cheesy homage performance to Neil Diamond called Lightning and Thunder; they grew into a cult hit within their state and even opened for Pearl Jam, with the band's guitarist Eddie Vedder amiably accompanied them on stage for an additional song.

But things were far from simple for the pair, and this movie contemplates how tough it is when the lightning of ill fortune strikes more than once.

From Documentary to Drama

It is in fact adapted from 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 reimagines their tale. The director and stars transform the mockery into shared amusement. Jackman delivers a masterful performance as a Neil Diamond impersonator, sounding almost like him, and looking almost like him. He’s perfectly plausible as someone who isn’t supposed to be in the big league 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 world of Neil Diamond homage had a thriving act as Patsy Cline. She is shown powerfully singing Cline's songs, even though one particular iconic Cline tune that this film interestingly misses out.

Actor Michael Imperioli portrays a Buddy Holly impersonator called Mark, while Mustafa Shakir appears as a James Brown act known as Sex Machine. The role of Claire's teenage daughter Rachel is played by Ella Anderson, and King Princess is Mike’s daughter Angelina who is around the same age – and their burgeoning friendship is another underplayed aspect of the film’s likability.

The Heart of the Story

Sarcasm and mockery have been meticulously excised from the account of Mike and Claire's heart-stoppingly eventful life stories, and in their place Brewer installs those qualities that the couple themselves would have recognized: the vulnerability and loneliness involved in striving for success in the margins of the music industry, or for that matter making it anywhere and within any profession.

This is a never-say-die story and its bright hopefulness renders it a calorific Christmas treat.

Song Sung Blue releases December 25th in the US and 1 January in Australia and the UK.