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Here is a startlingly strange, undeniably entertaining real-life tale from the heartland of American showbusiness; an endearing hit whose feelgood flavour won’t prepare you for how the narrative frequently and brutally turns similar to a precarious carnival attraction. I actually had myself shutting my eyes with my jaw agape at certain key points, and was grabbing the chair ahead with both fists.

The Stranger-Than-Fiction Story

Mike and Claire Sardina, superbly portrayed by Jackman and Hudson, were a Milwaukee married couple who had children from prior unions that during the 1990s formed a cheesy Neil Diamond tribute act named Lightning and Thunder; they became an underground sensation in their home state and even performed before Pearl Jam, whose guitarist Eddie Vedder amiably accompanied them on stage for an additional song.

But things were far from simple for the pair, and this movie contemplates how tough it is when misfortune's bolt hits repeatedly.

Adapting a Real Story

It is in fact adapted from a prior documentary film of the same title from 2008 by Greg Kohs concerning this surreal reality, a film that was heavily reliant on the couple’s family archive of home video. It’s fair to say that the original documentary focuses more intently on the delusional and absurd aspects in the lives of Mike and Claire.

Yet this is not the approach this film from director Craig Brewer reinvents their story. The director and stars 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 headline a performance.

Notable Acting

Hudson likewise shines, doing her own singing in the role of Claire, who before she joined Mike in the world of Neil Diamond homage had a thriving act as Patsy Cline. She is shown 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 called Mark, and Mustafa Shakir is a James Brown performer known as Sex Machine. Ella Anderson plays Claire’s teen daughter Rachel, and King Princess is Mike’s daughter Angelina who is around the same age – and their burgeoning friendship serving as another subtle element contributing to the movie's charm.

The Core Narrative

Irony and satire have been surgically removed from Mike and Claire’s heart-stoppingly eventful life stories, and replacing them Brewer substitutes those attributes which the pair personally would have recognized: the vulnerability and loneliness of trying to make it in the margins of the music industry, or for that matter making it anywhere and in any business.

This is a tale of relentless perseverance and its cheerful optimism renders it a calorific Christmas treat.

The film "Song Sung Blue" releases December 25th in the US and January 1st in Australia and the United Kingdom.