🔗 Share this article

This film presents a remarkably odd, undeniably entertaining real-life tale from the heartland of American showbusiness; a lovable crowdpleaser with its uplifting tone does little to warn you for the way the plot frequently and brutally turns similar to a precarious carnival attraction. I actually had myself shutting my eyes with my jaw agape during several crucial moments, and was grabbing the seat in front of me tightly with my hands.

The Stranger-Than-Fiction Story

Mike and Claire Sardina, terrifically played by Jackman and Hudson, were a Milwaukee married couple with kids from previous relationships that during the 1990s formed a kitschy Neil Diamond tribute act named Lightning and Thunder; they became an underground sensation in their home state and even performed before Pearl Jam, with the band's guitarist Eddie Vedder amiably accompanied them during their performance for an additional song.

However, life was not easy for them, and this movie contemplates the difficulty that arises when the lightning of ill fortune hits repeatedly.

From Documentary to Drama

It is in fact adapted from an existing documentary bearing the identical name created in 2008 by Greg Kohs concerning this surreal reality, a film that was extensively on the family's personal collection of homemade recordings. 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 reinvents their story. He, Jackman and Hudson transform the mockery into laugh-with. Jackman absolutely crushes it as a Neil Diamond impersonator, sounding almost like him, and looking almost like him. He is entirely believable as someone who isn’t supposed to be in the big league but who clearly has the chops (and the pipes) to carry a show.

Standout Performances

Hudson is also excellent, 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 belting out Cline numbers, although there is one iconic Cline tune that this film interestingly misses out.

Actor Michael Imperioli portrays a Buddy Holly impersonator named Mark, and Mustafa Shakir is a James Brown act called Sex Machine. Ella Anderson plays 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 contributing to the movie's charm.

The Core Narrative

Sarcasm and mockery have been meticulously excised from the account of Mike and Claire's heart-stoppingly eventful life stories, and replacing them Brewer substitutes those qualities that the couple themselves would have been aware of: the fragility and isolation of trying to make it on the fringes of the music business, or for that matter succeeding in any field and in any business.

This is a tale of relentless perseverance 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 United Kingdom.