Happy Go Lucky - B

In theaters. Rated R, 118 minutes. Trailer.

As Doc has noted, British writer/director Mike Leigh is prone to the talky, about nothing film. Happy Go Lucky fits that mold, but his ability to give life to working class British characters makes the film enjoyable and it has stuck with me for the 5 days since I have seen it. Sally Hawkins is Poppy, a happy go lucky 30 year old teacher in London. As you might imagine, she has an irrepressibly positive disposition that belies a depth underneath the spunky exterior. Click below for more HAPPY:

Poppy isn't just happy herself- she engages others, even strangers, in pleasant conversations that are mostly ignored by the other party. She lives with her long time friend, the plaintive Zoe, and interacts often with her trashy, chavish younger sister. There are several annoying scenes and lots of happy interactions where Poppy fails to really engage the situation by making everything a joke. Nothing really happens in the film, but it shows her going out, working as a teacher in a primary school and taking driving lessions.

This is the best part of the film, as possessed and psychotic driving instructor Scott (Eddie Marsan) shows the exact opposite way of living life. Her sessions with Scott are tense and scary at times, and the climactic scene between the two was one of the most riveting and intense scenes that I can recall this year. Marsan is masterful as the angry and lonely Scott, and should be getting mentioned as a Supporting Actor. The scene where the group visits Poppy's younger (but pregnant, married and mortgaged) sister is also very good, showcasing Leigh's great family dynamic writing (never better than in Secrets and Lies). Toward the end of the film, Poppy finds a boyfriend and appears happy, but is adrift in the world.

Hawkins is really good, rarely losing the big smile and making it count when it isn't there. I wasn't a big fan of the film as I left the theater, but I have been thinking about it over the last few days and the dialogue and characters are some of the best of the year, if only for their realism. Lots of bird symbolism and migration and journeys. Worth seeing in an especially weak year.