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Here is a startlingly strange, certainly enjoyable real-life tale from the heartland of American showbusiness; an endearing hit whose feelgood flavour does little to warn you for how the plot repeatedly and savagely twists like an unsafe fairground ride. Personally, I found my eyes closed with my jaw agape at certain key points, and was grabbing the chair ahead tightly with my hands.

The Stranger-Than-Fiction Story

The couple Mike and Claire Sardina, superbly portrayed by Jackman and Hudson, were a Milwaukee married couple with kids from prior unions who in the 90s formed a cheesy Neil Diamond tribute act called Lightning and Thunder; they grew into a cult hit in their home state and even performed before Pearl Jam, with the band's guitarist Eddie Vedder good-naturedly joined them on stage for an encore.

But things were not easy for them, and this movie contemplates how tough it is when misfortune's bolt strikes more than once.

From Documentary to Drama

The film is actually based on a prior documentary film bearing the identical name created in 2008 from filmmaker Greg Kohs concerning this surreal reality, a movie that relied extensively 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 of Mike and Claire’s life.

But that’s not how this film from director Craig Brewer reimagines their tale. He, Jackman and Hudson transform the mockery into shared amusement. Jackman absolutely crushes it portraying a Neil Diamond tribute artist, sounding almost like him, and looking almost like him. He’s perfectly plausible as someone who isn’t supposed to be the major leagues but who clearly has the chops (and the pipes) to carry a show.

Standout Performances

Hudson likewise shines, doing her own singing in the role of 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, although there is one iconic Cline tune that this film interestingly misses out.

Michael Imperioli plays a Buddy Holly tribute artist named 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 is Mike’s daughter Angelina of about the same age – and their burgeoning friendship is another underplayed aspect contributing to the movie's charm.

The Heart of the Story

Irony and satire have been surgically removed from the account of Mike and Claire's dramatically packed life stories, and replacing them Brewer installs those qualities which the pair personally would have recognized: the vulnerability and loneliness of trying to make it in the margins of the music business, or indeed making it anywhere and within any profession.

This is a tale of relentless perseverance and its bright hopefulness makes it a calorific Christmas treat.

Song Sung Blue releases December 25th in the United States and January 1st in Australia and the UK.