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Amazon.co.uk Review
A more upbeat movie than you might expect from Mike Leigh, yet one that finds one of Britain’s finest film directors still on good form. Happy-Go-Lucky follows a primary school teacher, Poppy, played by Sally Hawkins, who has an infectious, positive manner about her. She’s the shining core of the film, an upbeat, happy, yet absolutely three dimensional character.
Poppy’s nature is, inevitably, somewhat tested in Happy-Go-Lucky, not least by driving instructor Scott. Superbly played by Eddie Marsan, it’s fair to say that Scott doesn’t share Poppy’s positivity, yet once more, he’s a frighteningly real character, and at times extremely unsettling to watch.
There are layers to Happy-Go-Lucky, with plenty bubbling on under the surface, yet that there’s no escaping the fact that it is a cheerier movie than Leigh usually delivers. It’s fuelled particularly by Sally Hawkins, who is quite brilliant in the central role, and it’s potentially a career-making performance from her.
Yet, once again, the hidden star of Happy-Go-Lucky is Mike Leigh himself, who has shaped an often very funny film, but not one without some gravitas to it. The man remains a national treasure, and Happy-Go-Lucky is but the latest reason why. An easy film to recommend. --Jon Foster
Product Description
United Kingdom released, PAL/Region 2 DVD: LANGUAGES: English ( Dolby Digital 5.1 ), WIDESCREEN (2.35:1), SPECIAL FEATURES: Behind the scenes, Featurette, Interactive Menu, Making Of, Scene Access, Trailer(s), SYNOPSIS: If you know the British filmmaker Mike Leigh's work - early and later titles like "Bleak Moments," "Naked" and "Vera Drake" - you may find yourself watching his most recent movie, "Happy-Go-Lucky," with mounting unease, a tinge of dread. Despite the extraordinary human parade that has passed in front of his lens, laughing and raging, yearning for love and asking for cuddles, Mr. Leigh has never been an artist for whom happy (word or idea) has been an easy fit. Life is sweet, as the title of another of his films puts it with a heart-swelling yes, but it's also an eternal fight against doom and gloom, the soul-crushing no. The push and pull between yes and no animates all of his work, investing it with narrative tension and a sense of artistic purpose that is, whether overtly articulated or not, also insistently, vigorously left-leaning. The hard-working and often besieged characters who populate his stories live in worlds partly defined, if not wholly circumscribed, by ideology and the state. Nobody mounts a soapbox or whistles "The Internationale" in "Happy-Go-Lucky," but the film is so closely tuned to the pulse of communal life, to the rhythms of how people work, play and struggle together, it captures the larger picture along with the smaller. Like Poppy, the bright focus of this expansive, moving film, Mr. Leigh isn't one to go it alone. SCREENED/AWARDED AT: Berlin International Film Festival, British Independent Film Awards, European Film Awards, ...Happy-Go-Lucky ( Happy Go Lucky )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Reading the other reviews, this seems to be a film that you are likely to either love or hate. I loved it, although if it were described to me, I would fully expect to find the Poppy character (or rather, the implication that she is an ideal that people should strive to emulate) rather patronising. I think what made the difference for me was that the character was shown to have some depth.
It's difficult to summarise plot, because there isn't really one - the film basically follows an extreme of character - the happy-go-lucky person who seems impossible to knock down. It's a 'slice of life' type film, and we see her in various situations that are probably there to show that her life isn't that different from the average. Who knows though? Perhaps we all have secret tragedies, and the fact that there is no real trauma in hers is the real source of her happiness. I suspect not though.
The scene with the tramp for me was critical - it was the point at which I stopped dismissing Poppy as a bit of fluff and started thinking that there was something else rather special about the character - the scene was unrealistic in the sense that few sane people would likely go up to a tramp who is very obviously not in touch with reality - but Sally Hawkins' portrayal was so convincing that instead of thinking, 'Fake' it made me think that Poppy had a very special insight, that she would know the tramp-nutter wouldn't harm her, and that she had sufficient compassion to try to find out how he was. It was that balance of compassion that made her chirpiness in the rest of the film endearing rather than annoying.
I loved the interactions between Poppy and Scott (the driving instructor) - and here again, it was the subtleties of the interaction and the great acting that won me over. Because, basically, Poppy's behaviour was very irritating (IMO) and potentially unsafe, and a driving instructor would have been totally justified in telling her off - but the way he responds, he's just so typical of people who work in customer-interfacing roles who really shouldn't. The scene with the pregnant sister was so brilliant - and such a great illustration of how when people say, "I just want you to be happy", what they really mean is "I just want you to do as I say".
Very well observed and very funny IMO.
A feel good film yes, but what's wrong with feeling good occasionally?
It's difficult to summarise plot, because there isn't really one - the film basically follows an extreme of character - the happy-go-lucky person who seems impossible to knock down. It's a 'slice of life' type film, and we see her in various situations that are probably there to show that her life isn't that different from the average. Who knows though? Perhaps we all have secret tragedies, and the fact that there is no real trauma in hers is the real source of her happiness. I suspect not though.
The scene with the tramp for me was critical - it was the point at which I stopped dismissing Poppy as a bit of fluff and started thinking that there was something else rather special about the character - the scene was unrealistic in the sense that few sane people would likely go up to a tramp who is very obviously not in touch with reality - but Sally Hawkins' portrayal was so convincing that instead of thinking, 'Fake' it made me think that Poppy had a very special insight, that she would know the tramp-nutter wouldn't harm her, and that she had sufficient compassion to try to find out how he was. It was that balance of compassion that made her chirpiness in the rest of the film endearing rather than annoying.
I loved the interactions between Poppy and Scott (the driving instructor) - and here again, it was the subtleties of the interaction and the great acting that won me over. Because, basically, Poppy's behaviour was very irritating (IMO) and potentially unsafe, and a driving instructor would have been totally justified in telling her off - but the way he responds, he's just so typical of people who work in customer-interfacing roles who really shouldn't. The scene with the pregnant sister was so brilliant - and such a great illustration of how when people say, "I just want you to be happy", what they really mean is "I just want you to do as I say".
Very well observed and very funny IMO.
A feel good film yes, but what's wrong with feeling good occasionally?
51 of 57 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Mike Leigh is the master of the awkward silence and the cringe, of the emotional distress behind so many people's lives.
On the surface, the relentlessly cheerful Happy go Lucky marks a change from that, because the central character, Poppy, is so irritatingly Pollyanna-ish and upbeat. Sally Hawkins carries the film, showing that behind her silliness and happiness, Poppy is in fact intelligent and sensitive. That said, the whole cast turn in great performances.
This is a much more insightful film than might at first meet the eye, fun to watch at the time, with plenty to think about afterwards. Fun and clever - what more ou could you ask for?
Shot in a glossy palate of primary colours, the whole film, and London in particular, look stunning. Highly recommended.
On the surface, the relentlessly cheerful Happy go Lucky marks a change from that, because the central character, Poppy, is so irritatingly Pollyanna-ish and upbeat. Sally Hawkins carries the film, showing that behind her silliness and happiness, Poppy is in fact intelligent and sensitive. That said, the whole cast turn in great performances.
This is a much more insightful film than might at first meet the eye, fun to watch at the time, with plenty to think about afterwards. Fun and clever - what more ou could you ask for?
Shot in a glossy palate of primary colours, the whole film, and London in particular, look stunning. Highly recommended.
32 of 36 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Poppy, Mike Leigh's latest creation, sails through this slice of life with a smile on her face, fun on her mind and kindness in her heart.
Quite brilliantly brought to life by the excellent Sally Hawkins, Poppy has much to be happy about. A true friend, a nice flat in a Finsbury Park, a job she was born to do,supportive colleagues, An enjoyable social life, making her Happy-Go-Lucky. Many could probably act happy for a few hours but Hawkins manages so well to cover all the detail - the eyes, expressions and body language - to show happiness - and never sadness
Then there is Scott. When Poppy's bike is stolen (it must have "flown the nest"), she is confronted with Scott (Eddie Marsan) the driving instructor.The very antithesis of happy. Scott is rigid, angry, frustrated, impatient, knotted up and racist. A borderline OCD sufferer, who is tortured by who-knows-what in his past. Scott is the most bitter and overwhelming character in a Mike Leigh film since David Thewlis in "Naked". A towering performance.
If Poppy is the light, Scott is definitely the dark, but such dark shadows inhabit the whole of "Happy-Go-Lucky". The unhappy schoolboy, the glum Sister, the social climbing sister who dominates her husband. Little vignettes of irritation and annoyance.
The film is at times both lovely and disturbing, life affirming but carrying a caveat that unhappiness does exist in the sullen faces, in madness, in neuroses.
Happy-Go-Lucky is a highly enjoyable and often very funny film, but it also carries terrible sadness. I have never been a massive fan of Mike Leigh, but I have to admit that I was wrong. He just seems to get better and better.
Quite brilliantly brought to life by the excellent Sally Hawkins, Poppy has much to be happy about. A true friend, a nice flat in a Finsbury Park, a job she was born to do,supportive colleagues, An enjoyable social life, making her Happy-Go-Lucky. Many could probably act happy for a few hours but Hawkins manages so well to cover all the detail - the eyes, expressions and body language - to show happiness - and never sadness
Then there is Scott. When Poppy's bike is stolen (it must have "flown the nest"), she is confronted with Scott (Eddie Marsan) the driving instructor.The very antithesis of happy. Scott is rigid, angry, frustrated, impatient, knotted up and racist. A borderline OCD sufferer, who is tortured by who-knows-what in his past. Scott is the most bitter and overwhelming character in a Mike Leigh film since David Thewlis in "Naked". A towering performance.
If Poppy is the light, Scott is definitely the dark, but such dark shadows inhabit the whole of "Happy-Go-Lucky". The unhappy schoolboy, the glum Sister, the social climbing sister who dominates her husband. Little vignettes of irritation and annoyance.
The film is at times both lovely and disturbing, life affirming but carrying a caveat that unhappiness does exist in the sullen faces, in madness, in neuroses.
Happy-Go-Lucky is a highly enjoyable and often very funny film, but it also carries terrible sadness. I have never been a massive fan of Mike Leigh, but I have to admit that I was wrong. He just seems to get better and better.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
funny & sad, light-hearted & deep
Bubbly, bouncy, cheerful to the point of being annoying but wonderfully refreshing, thoughtful and caring - that's Poppy, a 30-year-old primary school teacher from London, who goes... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Kornmuhme
happy to...
...call this the worst movie I have ever seen.
utter nonsense and the acting is so foul it's unbelievable! Read more
utter nonsense and the acting is so foul it's unbelievable! Read more
Published 2 months ago by jaybeuk2012
A wonderful film!
This is an astonishingly lovely film, life as it is lived with all light and shade, funny, tragic, amusing, romantic, scary, comforting, mysterious. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Fairfield
happy go lucky
the film was a nice chick flick the type you can watch more than once. story was not entirely clear but its a easy going film to watch.
Published 6 months ago by J. A. Moss
En Ra Ha ha ha
Happy Go Lucky is the story of a female primary school teacher Poppy who, in the American vernacular, might be described as "kooky", as "happy go lucky" is probably a bit of an... Read more
Published 10 months ago by Green Man Music
Light-hearted fun
Not a lot you can say about this - settle down in the sofa with your feet up and perhaps a glass of something and prepare for a very jolly evening. Nice escapist fun.
Published 11 months ago by Book fiend
Effortlessly simple, yet beautiful - one to watch on a rainy afternoon
This film is poignant and touching, with the main character Poppy, played by Sally Hawkins bringing in a wonderful performance. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Mrs. R. Burnett
Just OK
Saw this advertised on a youtube clip and thought it would be good. It was just Ok and nothing special
Published 15 months ago by shirley
It IS fun
This movie works on two levels - it is Mike Leigh after all - a light level where it is very funny, even slapstick in places, and a deeper level. Read more
Published 17 months ago by Dijijo
Happy or Nutty?
Happy-Go-Lucky is a quirky, yet dark, British comedy about a 30-year-old primary school teacher living in London. Read more
Published 18 months ago by Alison
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