Review of Happy-Go-Lucky (2008) by Jani H — 18 Jun 2009

Mike Leigh has been always some kind of a stranger to me. Ok, I've seen some of his work but because most of his movies are pretty much aimed at the female viewers, I've chosen to skip most of 'em. The reason why I watched 'Happy-Go-Lucky' was that at least here in Finland, Sally Hawkins performance was considered to be a contender at the Academy Awards. "Performance of the year" was said in the Finnish cinema magazines..

After the first quarter of the film, I wasn't still sure if I even like the character called Poppy. She's so over the top positive and wants to make everyone happy and so on. She does have a heart and a good attitude towards life but I'm pretty sure that I would've got a big headache if I spent a hole day with her...

The film does have some good characters. My favourite was the hobo that she met during the night. That scene also summed up what Poppy really is. Why does she have to help and please everyone? What has made her the way she is? Eddie Marsan's character, the driving instructor was also nice but again, what made him the way he was? A lot of questions was left in my head or then I guess I just wasn't consentrating that hard...

In the end, the performances in the film is the reason why this film should deserve a viewing. Not a film for me but I'm sure that 'Happy-Go-Lucky' will find its own fanbase.