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Here is a startlingly strange, certainly enjoyable true-life story from the heartland of American showbusiness; an endearing hit whose feelgood flavour does little to warn you for how the plot repeatedly and savagely twists like an unsafe fairground ride. Personally, I found myself shutting my eyes and mouth open at certain key points, and was grabbing the seat in front of me with both fists.

The Unbelievable True Tale

The couple Mike and Claire Sardina, terrifically played by Jackman and Hudson, were a Milwaukee married couple with kids from prior unions that during the 1990s created a cheesy Neil Diamond tribute act called Lightning and Thunder; they grew into an underground sensation in their home state and even performed before Pearl Jam, whose guitarist Eddie Vedder good-naturedly joined them during their performance for an additional song.

However, life was far from simple for the pair, and this movie contemplates the difficulty that arises when the lightning of ill fortune strikes more than once.

From Documentary to Drama

It is in fact adapted from a prior documentary film of the same title from 2008 by Greg Kohs about this stranger-than-fiction world, a film that was extensively on the couple’s family archive of homemade recordings. One could argue that the documentary focuses more intently on the unrealistic and ridiculous elements in the lives of Mike and Claire.

Yet this is not the approach this film from writer-director Craig Brewer reimagines their tale. The director and stars turn the laugh-at into laugh-with. Jackman delivers a masterful performance portraying a Neil Diamond tribute artist, sounding almost like him, and appearing strikingly alike. He is entirely believable as an individual not destined for in the big league but who clearly has the chops (and the vocal cords) to carry a show.

Standout Performances

Hudson is also excellent, doing her own singing in the role of Claire, who prior to partnering with Mike in the Neil Diamond tribute world had a thriving act as Patsy Cline. She is shown powerfully singing Cline's songs, although there is one Cline standard that this film interestingly misses out.

Michael Imperioli plays a Buddy Holly tribute artist named Mark, while Mustafa Shakir appears as a James Brown act 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 – with their developing friendship serving as another subtle element of the film’s likability.

The Heart of the Story

Irony and satire have been meticulously excised from the account of Mike and Claire's heart-stoppingly eventful life experiences, and in their place Brewer substitutes those qualities that the couple themselves would have been aware of: the vulnerability and loneliness of trying to make it on the fringes of the music business, or indeed succeeding in any field and in any business.

It is a tale of relentless perseverance and its bright hopefulness renders it a calorific Christmas treat.

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