Review of Happy-Go-Lucky (2008) by Sarah E — 26 Jan 2011

There's a scene in Happy-Go-Lucky where the main character Poppy is staring out her flat window and comments, "It's a beautiful sky." There are clouds looming on the horizon, but Poppy clearly doesn't see those. Either her gaze is fixed on the remaining patch of blue sky, or Poppy sees every sky - even the ones with clouds in them - beautiful. I'm leaning towards the latter of the two.

Happy-Go-Lucky is a movie where everything could have gone horribly, horribly wrong. If Sally Hawkins hadn't been so terrific as Poppy, if her supporting cast hadn't been so solid, if her script hadn't been so good, and if her story had any less heart, this would have been awful to view. Hawkins isn't annoying or shrill though; she hits every key just perfectly with her voice and gestures, turning Poppy in a relentless and likable optimist who never seems to overbearing. The character herself is restrained enough to know when she's gone too far, which is wonderful, because sometimes she really does take it too far. Then again, the film raises the question as to whether or not there is such a thing as 'too far'. Just how happy is too happy? Poppy's answer is refreshing and honest, and I appreciate it. There's too much pessimism in the world today, and a constant conflation between realism and tragedy. In order for something to be true, it can't be good or positive. Happy-Go-Lucky suggests not only the opposite, but also that happiness is mostly about perception. I know that this isn't entirely true, but I also know it's not entirely false either.

The amount of heart that this movie possesses shouldn't be astounding, but it is. There are clouds looming in Poppy's horizon, but the fact that she even has a sky, the ability to see it, and the ability to appreciate it, is a gift enough for her. It's also a gift for those around her, they just don't realize it at the time. Poppy's not too nice; the world's just not nice enough.