In Happy Go Lucky, British director Mike Leigh's latest film, Sally Hawkins gives what could be the performance of the year as the constantly chirpy central character, Poppy. If she doesn't at least earn an Oscar nomination for this part than she will have been robbed.
This slice of life movie focuses on Poppy, a primary school teacher who is constantly upbeat and cheerful. She's so overly happy and laughs at everything that at first she's annoying, but her continual happiness despite what life throws at her becomes over the course of the movie, quite charming and delightful. We probably all know someone like her; one of those people who can't bear for their to be a silence or lull in a conversation.
There isn't so much a plot to the movie as a series of events. The one central story is Poppy's weekly driving lessons that she begins taking after her bike is stolen at the beginning of the story. Her driving instructor is snappy, angry, bigoted and pretty much a dick. Only Poppy who wants to make everyone happy would stick with such an insulting and difficult instructor. As the movie goes along, her decision to stick with him seems like a worse and worse one as he becomes increasingly erratic and potentially dangerous.
Mainly though this is a character study of Poppy and we see her go about her life as a teacher. Her and her flatmate go out, Poppy takes dance lessons, deals with a problem student in her class and visits her family. All mundane things but filmed entertainingly and with great humor. What drama there is, is just below the surface and in Poppy's eyes. Occasionally we are shown a crack in her joyful demeanor, but it is soon gone as her front is put back in place.
Most of the credit for this movie must go to Sally Hawkins. Her naturalistic performance makes the more showy performances of say, Angelina Jolie in Changling, look like acting. In my mind she's the one to beat for the Oscar this year. The Golden Globes thought fit to nominate her, I only hope the Academy follows their lead.
