{"id":351801,"date":"2025-12-17T20:19:10","date_gmt":"2025-12-17T20:19:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/351801\/"},"modified":"2025-12-17T20:19:10","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T20:19:10","slug":"song-sung-blue-review-neil-diamond-movie-hits-wrong-notes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/351801\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Song Sung Blue’ review: Neil Diamond movie hits wrong notes"},"content":{"rendered":"

The story of Mike and Claire Sardina \u2014 a struggling husband-and-wife Neil Diamond<\/a> tribute act from Milwaukee \u2014 was never the stuff of Hollywood movies. Unfortunately, it\u2019s been made into one.<\/p>\n

Hugh Jackman<\/a> and Kate Hudson<\/a> are slumming to play the slightly batty couple in the big-hearted but misguided \u201cSong Sung Blue,\u201d a baffling adaptation of a very moving 2008 documentary.<\/p>\n

Director and writer Craig Brewer isn\u2019t certain where the through line of the movie really is so he explores working-class pressures, adds a rom-com, swerves into tragedy and drug addiction and then lets Jackman and Hudson sunnily perform some 20-odd songs, turning \u201cSong Sung Blue\u201d into a melodrama-meets-holiday-sing-along. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Hugh<\/p>\n

This image released by Focus Features shows Hugh Jackman, from left, Fisher Stevens, Michael Imperioli and Jim Belushi in a scene from \u201cSong Sung Blue.\u201d (Focus Features via AP)<\/p>\n

This image released by Focus Features shows Hugh Jackman, from left, Fisher Stevens, Michael Imperioli and Jim Belushi in a scene from \u201cSong Sung Blue.\u201d (Focus Features via AP)<\/p>\n

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Hollywood should have stayed away. The original documentary by Greg Kohs \u2014 who gets a producer credit this time \u2014 was about two artists who, despite facing foreclosure notices and insurance denials, still showed up for gigs, chasing that showbiz high, even when one suffered an amputation. The couple and their blended family came across as somewhat delusional but sweet and their tragedies seemed almost preordained. It was a small story.<\/p>\n

Jackman and Hudson try to lose themselves in these parts. He walks around in sagging tighty-whities, with dirty fingernails and a missing tooth, and she works hard to be drab. The filmmakers ape many of the signatures of the documentary, like the sight of airplanes rumbling over the Sardinas\u2019 house. In too many ways, \u201cSong Sung Blue\u201d feels like an act of karaoke.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Skye<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Maya<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Like Brewer\u2019s previous \u201cDolemite Is My Name,\u201d<\/a> the new movie surrounds the main actors with a kindly support crew, like the guitar player played nicely by Michael Imperioli and managers portrayed by Fisher Stevens and Jim Belushi. Ella Anderson does excellent work as Claire\u2019s angsty daughter, and look for a fun moment when an actor playing Pearl Jam\u2019s Eddie Vedder takes the stage to share \u201cForever in Blue Jeans.\u201d<\/p>\n

The songs are excellently handled. Brewer is, after all, the director of \u201cHustle & Flow,\u201d too. Hudson radiates as she sings, while Jackman absolutely nails Diamond\u2019s sound and stance. If you came to hear \u201cSweet Caroline,\u201d you\u2019ll leave with a deeper respect for a songwriter who also wrote such gems as \u201cPlay Me\u201d and \u201cHolly Holy.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Jim<\/p>\n

Jim Belushi, from left, Mustafa Shakir, Craig Brewer, Kate Hudson, Hugh Jackman, Ella Anderson and Hudson Hensley. (Photo by Evan Agostini\/Invision\/AP)<\/p>\n

Jim Belushi, from left, Mustafa Shakir, Craig Brewer, Kate Hudson, Hugh Jackman, Ella Anderson and Hudson Hensley. (Photo by Evan Agostini\/Invision\/AP)<\/p>\n

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It\u2019s just that the overly long song performances are always smiling, exuberant affairs in what has to be considered a story of tragedy and they don\u2019t fit tonally. Of course, music was the Sardinas\u2019 happy place \u2014 their onstage names were Lightning & Thunder \u2014 but the blissful deliveries seem more like cheesy holiday movie fodder than studs in a well-constructed movie.<\/p>\n

Some unnecessary Hollywood touches \u2014 an overcooked scene with a defibrillator and the ridiculous, non-factual way we lose Mike \u2014 stick out poorly. The filmmakers also never really explore the world of musical impersonation during a time when authenticity was becoming the coin of the realm. It doesn\u2019t know what to do about heroes who are deeply campy, using wind machines in a biker bar. Overall, it\u2019s just not so good, so good. <\/p>\n

\u201cSong Sung Blue,\u201d a Focus Feature release that hits theaters on Christmas Day, is rated PG-13 by the Motion Picture Association for thematic material, some strong language, some sexual material and brief drug use. Running time: 133 minutes. One and a half stars out of four.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The story of Mike and Claire Sardina \u2014 a struggling husband-and-wife Neil Diamond tribute act from Milwaukee \u2014…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":351802,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[49,48,152731,114117,5649,58927,152732,75,50941,152733,152730,10797,152735,37511,129031,152734,152736,7670,337,114118,37891,11636,1994],"class_list":["post-351801","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-movies","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-claire-sardina","tag-craig-brewer","tag-documentaries","tag-eddie-vedder","tag-ella-anderson","tag-entertainment","tag-film-reviews","tag-fisher-stevens","tag-greg-kohs","tag-hugh-jackman","tag-james-belushi","tag-kate-hudson","tag-local-news-for-apple","tag-mark-kennedy","tag-michael-imperioli","tag-milwaukee","tag-movies","tag-neil-diamond","tag-pearl-jam","tag-wi-state-wire","tag-wisconsin"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/351801","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=351801"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/351801\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/351802"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=351801"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=351801"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=351801"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}