Happy-Go-Lucky (2008)

Overrated.

Happy-Go-Lucky is a film about some very obnoxiously chipper people who never have anything bad happen to them. A story without conflict is no story at all. Now hold on, I do have some compliments to give the film. But let me get the complaints out of the way first.

Poppy (played with energy and sincerity by Sally Hawkins) is the main character in this movie. She is a schoolteacher and she is incredibly happy (hence the film's title). I know people like Poppy. They are blithe and cheery and nothing in the world could possibly upset them; they live in a perpetual dreamland, with a "child-like wonder." A majority of folks find this type of person delightful. I find this type of person horribly annoying to the point of insanity.

Maybe I'm just an asshole, but I don't find a story about this kind of nutjob interesting. Or maybe I've seen City of God too many times to find Poppy's Disney-movie outlook charming or even believable. The problem is that director Mike Leigh sets up a very realistic world for this film and doesn't bother to give us a realistic character. The issue is certainly not Hawkins' acting; she attacks the role and never wavers. But it's all in service of a character who jumps on trampolines every day after work and makes bird masks out of paper sacks and doesn't mind if her bike is stolen. Again, it's probably just me, but I find it hard to care about such a protagonist. If I met Poppy I'd want to punch her in the face.

Of course, I'm sure lots of other people would find Poppy delightful, and those people should, by all means, see Happy-Go-Lucky. The film has many good points, some of which I will enumerate here:

First of all, the scenes with Eddie Marsan, who plays Poppy's driving instructor Scott, are easily the best of the movie. I think his character is not given a big enough chunk of the film, especially since he brings almost all of the story's conflict. He is hilarious and kind of heartbreaking.

Mike Leigh does a nice job visually in Happy-Go-Lucky, and you can tell he's a director who knows what he's doing. I appreciated the resistance to the temptation to toss in a lot of trendy indie film cliches. There are some creative shots here, and lots of bright colors that fit the film's mood very well.

If you're wondering whether or not you should see this movie, you should probably ask yourself whether you are drawn to or annoyed by happy people. Also, if you like something to actually happen to your protagonists, maybe this isn't for you. That's the best recommendation I can give.