Song Sung Blue is the joyous and emotional film event of the holiday season led by the spectacular performances of Kate Hudson and Hugh Jackman, that armed with a soundtrack of Neil Diamond’s greatest hits and a heartwarming true story, is guaranteed to have audiences on their feet dancing and singing along in theatres around the world!

 

Every year, there is always one crowd pleasing film that is equally as heartwarming as it is heartbreaking, and this year that film just happens to be accompanied by a soundtrack featuring the greatest hits of Neil Diamond. His songs are woven into popular culture, and there is not a person alive who does not feel the urge to sing “ba ba ba” or “so good, so good, so good” when “Sweet Caroline” comes on, but there was one Neil Diamond tribute band that caught the heart of Wisconsin. Telling the real life love story of Mike and Claire Sardina, better known as Thunder and Lightning, Craig Brewer brings their life and music talents to the big screen so that the rest of the world can discover their beautiful story… if they hadn’t already discovered it in the documentary of the same name. With the electrifying pairing of Kate Hudson and Hugh Jackman whose singing abilities light up the screen in the musical numbers and an incredibly moving true story that deserves to be told to the masses, Song Sung Blue will both heal audiences souls while also tugging on their heartstrings in a beautiful story of love, family and the uplifting power of music that hits all the right notes.

 

In an era of filmmaking dominated by musician biopics, it's nice to see a music film featuring the songs of one of the greatest American singer-songwriters not be a jukebox biopic. Instead, Song Sung Blue tells the real life story of Mike and Claire Sardina, the two singers of a Neil Diamond tribute band, and while Brewer’s screenplay does not stray far from the chronological true story blueprint, the results are crowd pleasing. The film’s first half has an infectious atmosphere that sweeps the audience up in Mike and Claire’s romantic and musical connection, their huge dreams as performers, and the music of Diamond, creating a toe-tapping good time that is bolstered by the use of colour and comedy. But, as life intervenes and derails the trajectory of Thunder and Lightning, Brewer’s screenplay unpacks the heavier dramatic material with compassion as Mike and Claire’s relationship is put to the test, reflected in the shift to a muted colour palette for the film and absence of lively sound that dominated the film’s first half. While Brewer ensures that this portion of Mike and Claire’s love story is not quickly brushed by, giving the time for this darker chapter in their life to breathe on screen, he keeps their resilience as a couple at the forefront that builds into the uplifting final act. Even with the film ending with an emotional sucker punch that will devastate viewers, Brewer fills Mike and Claire’s story with life, passion and joy despite its ups and downs, creating a film that older audiences are going to instantly fall in love with.

 

Though the story has all the elements of a crowd pleaser that ensure that audiences are going to fall in love with this film, Song Sung Blue’s secret weapon is the casting of Hudson and Jackman. Both of them are accomplished singers, Jackman with his musical theatre background including films like The Greatest Showman and Les Misérables and Hudson with her music career and guest starring on Glee, and together they capture magic during the film’s musical moments. Each Neil Diamond song that they perform has an infectious energy that will have audiences tapping their toes and dancing along in their seats, bolstered by Hudson and Jackman’s harmonious vocal pairing that when combined with the catchy and unforgettable lyrics of songs like “Sweet Caroline”, “Cherry, Cherry”, “Brother Love’s Travelling Salvation Show” and “Forever in Blue Jeans,” it feels like these Diamond songs were written for Hudson and Jackson. Combined with the dazzle induced costumes, stage lighting and great choreography during these sequences to capture the energy on stage and that of the crowd, and Brewer’s direction, it allows Hudson and Jackman to turn this theatrical outing into one of the most entertaining films of the year.

But the brilliance of Hudson and Jackman’s performances extends beyond their singing abilities. Hudson delivers what is arguably the best performance of her illustrious career as Claire, capturing the inspiring and feisty spirit of this individual. Never missing a beat comedically with her performance, delivering some of the film’s best laughs with her unforgettable one liners and paired with a great accent, the comedic side that audiences have long known from Hudson shines. But, it is in the film’s second half after life presents Claire with an unfathomable change in circumstances where Hudson is given the material to take her performance to an all new level, ensuring that she will leave audiences speechless with her performance. With a heartbreaking vulnerability as Claire adjusts to her new life, Hudson brings a rawness to the film that pierces through the viewers’ heart while setting the stage for Claire’s inspiring resilience to propel her arc into the film’s final act that will no doubt leave audiences in tears. It’s an incredible performance from Hudson, one of such a level of mastery that we have not seen from her since Almost Famous, that will no doubt have her be a serious contender this awards season in the Best Actress category.