Chronicling the lives and careers of the Neil Diamond tribute band Lightning and Thunder, Song Sung Blue, based on the award-winning 2008 documentary by Greg Kohs, as written and directed by Craig Brewer does a poor job of truly capturing the depth of this tale. Granted, there may be more material here than can be depicted in two hours and twelve minutes, but Brewer needed to make better choices.
Buy Song Sung BlueSong Sung Blue introduces us to Mike and Claire (Hugh Jackman and Oscar-nominated Kate Hudson), tribute artists working the county fair circuit. They both have a love for performing, and Mike has dreams of reaching stardom. The two form Lightning and Thunder, get married, and begin to develop a significant following in Wisconsin. As is the case throughout the film, everything happens quite fast, and it isn’t long before the audience begins to wonder when something is going to go wrong. I mean, something must go wrong. There may be happy endings, but you don’t often see movies with stories where everything goes right.
Tragedy does indeed strike, and it is so poorly executed in the film that you may need to stop and rewind to see what the heck just happened. Claire is injured, the recovery stalls the career, and everything falls apart. The under-explored relationships between the children (Ella Anderson, King Princess, and Hudson Hensley) comes to the forefront as does Mike’s heart condition. Oh, Mike is also an alcoholic. I know! There’s a lot going on. Claire develops and recovers from a dependency on pain killers, and the family and Lightning and Thunder make a comeback.
It’s the strong performances that make this film watchable, including the supporting cast. Michael Imperioli, Fisher Stevens, and Jim Belushi are great. Unfortunately, we just don’t get enough of these characters. Jackman nails the talented and frustrated performer, but it’s Hudson that truly lights up the screen.
It’s hard not to enjoy anything with this much Neil Diamond music in it and watching Kate Hudson embrace all that as Claire is heartwarming, but ultimately, the lack of depth in this movie is frustrating. The two daughters develop a bond, but we see very little of how that happens. Mike’s heart condition remains somewhat of a mystery, and Claire’s drug dependency comes and goes faster than the career of a tribute band.
Hesitantly, I must give this Ron’s Rejection. Ultimately, it would have made a better series where all elements of the story could be properly explored.
The Extras are:
- Extended Performances: “Crunchy Granola Suite” & “Sweet Caroline”
- One Plus One Equals Three: Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson talk about their characters.
- Lightning in the Bottle: A look at the cast.
- Eye for Style: Costume designer Ernesto Martinez gets the spotlight
- Feature Commentary with Writer/Director Craig Brewer
