🔗 Share this article

This film presents a startlingly strange, undeniably entertaining true-life story from the heartland of American showbusiness; an endearing hit whose feelgood flavour won’t prepare you for the way the plot repeatedly and savagely twists like an unsafe fairground ride. I actually had my eyes closed with my jaw agape during several crucial moments, and was grabbing the seat in front of me with both fists.

The Unbelievable True Tale

Mike and Claire Sardina, terrifically played by Jackman and Hudson, were a Milwaukee married couple who had children from previous relationships that during the 1990s created a cheesy Neil Diamond tribute act named Lightning and Thunder; they became a cult hit in their home state and even opened for Pearl Jam, with the band's guitarist Eddie Vedder good-naturedly joined them during their performance for an additional song.

But things were far from simple for the pair, and this movie contemplates the difficulty that arises when the lightning of ill fortune strikes more than once.

Adapting a Real Story

It is in fact adapted from a prior documentary film of the same title from 2008 from filmmaker Greg Kohs concerning this surreal reality, a movie that relied heavily reliant on the couple’s family archive of home video. It’s fair to say that the documentary focuses more intently on the unrealistic and ridiculous elements in the lives of Mike and Claire.

But that’s not how taken by this movie from director Craig Brewer reinvents their story. He, Jackman and Hudson turn the laugh-at 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 an individual not destined for in the big league but who clearly has the chops (and the pipes) to carry a show.

Standout Performances

Hudson is also excellent, doing her own singing in the role of Claire, who before she joined Mike in the Neil Diamond tribute world had a thriving act as Patsy Cline. The film depicts her powerfully singing Cline's songs, although there is one Cline standard is curiously omitted from this movie.

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 teen daughter Rachel, and King Princess portrays 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 meticulously excised from Mike and Claire’s dramatically packed life stories, and in their place Brewer installs those qualities that the couple themselves would have been aware of: 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 within any profession.

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

The film "Song Sung Blue" is out on 25 December in the US and January 1st in Australia and the UK.