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Here is a startlingly strange, undeniably entertaining real-life tale from the heartland of American showbusiness; a lovable crowdpleaser whose feelgood flavour does little to warn you for the way the plot frequently and brutally turns similar to a precarious carnival attraction. Personally, I found myself shutting my eyes with my jaw agape during several crucial moments, and was grabbing the chair ahead tightly with my hands.

The Unbelievable True Tale

The couple Mike and Claire Sardina, superbly portrayed by Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson, were spouses from Milwaukee who had children from prior unions who in the 90s formed a cheesy Neil Diamond tribute act named Lightning and Thunder; they became an underground sensation in their home state and even opened for Pearl Jam, whose guitarist Eddie Vedder amiably accompanied them on stage for an additional song.

But things were far from simple for the pair, and this movie contemplates how tough it is when the lightning of ill fortune hits repeatedly.

Adapting a Real Story

It is in fact adapted from an existing documentary of the same title created in 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 original documentary puts more emphasis on the unrealistic and ridiculous elements in the lives of Mike and Claire.

Yet this is not the approach this film from director Craig Brewer reimagines their tale. The director and stars turn the laugh-at into laugh-with. Jackman delivers a masterful performance as a Neil Diamond impersonator, sounding almost like him, and looking almost like him. He’s perfectly plausible as someone who isn’t supposed to be the major leagues but who undoubtedly possesses the talent (and the pipes) to headline a performance.

Notable Acting

Hudson is also excellent, doing her own singing in the role of Claire, who before she joined Mike in the Neil Diamond tribute world had a thriving act performing as Patsy Cline. She is shown powerfully singing Cline's songs, even though one particular Cline standard that this film interestingly misses out.

Michael Imperioli plays a Buddy Holly tribute artist called Mark, while Mustafa Shakir appears as a James Brown act called Sex Machine. The role of Claire's teenage daughter Rachel is played by Ella Anderson, and King Princess is Mike's daughter Angelina of about the same age – and their burgeoning friendship serving as another subtle element contributing to the movie's charm.

The Core Narrative

Sarcasm and mockery have been surgically removed from Mike and Claire’s heart-stoppingly eventful life experiences, and in their place Brewer installs those qualities that the couple themselves would have been aware of: the fragility and isolation of trying to make it in the margins of the music business, or for that matter making it anywhere and within any profession.

This is a never-say-die story and its cheerful optimism makes it a calorific Christmas treat.

The film "Song Sung Blue" is out on 25 December in the US and 1 January in Australia and the United Kingdom.