It is not on that level of an
artistic achievement but I think Mike Leigh’s Happy-Go-Lucky (probably more of a triumph for Sally Hawkins—who
is wonderful here– than Leigh himself) makes for an interesting pairing
with Leigh’s greatest work- Naked.
The 1993 masterpiece is dark, a story about a singular character (most of
Leigh’s work is about a family and/or ensemble) who is dark, angry at the
world— and here, we have the polar opposite- a genuinely positive, happy
person (mostly despite the ugliness in the world around her that seems
hell-bent on snuffing her happiness out)
This is the world (and similar
title) of the auteur who gave us High
Hopes and Life is Sweet—here
the title is a pretty apt character description
It starts with the theft of
Hawkins’ bicycle—you can’t be a cinema enthusiast and realistic like Mike
Leigh and not take this as at least a nod to the 1948 De Sica masterpiece Bicycle Thieves. Hawkins’ character
lets it roll right off her back- she laughs at it and it prompts her to
take up driving lessons—which is the main thing that drives this film (like
all of Leigh’s work it is really plotless)
Her thesis is stated outright
early on— “It is mad out there…. gorgeous day for it” with her colorful
eclectic clothes (and flat), big hoop earrings
This is observational cinema- we’re
in her life, her routine—she takes up Flamenco dancing, she has driving
lessons on Saturday at noon, she goes to work, she goes and gets a drink,
etc
A real person- such rich
characterizations- eclectic, quirky, bracelets galore, genuinely good –
she can be a bit of a tough hang she’s so chirpy sometimes – and if you’ve
seen Billy Madison 77 times like
I have you can’t help but think of this being a feature film bout Miss
Lippy (Hawkins’ is a primary school teacher of course)– haha
There is one wipe edit during a kindergarten
sequence – I think it’s the only one in the film and the only one in Leigh’s
career
I found her
character to be instructional on life
A gorgeous
setting of the frame (the film is not filled with these) under a rusted
industrial area as she tries to help a homeless man
Eddie
Marsan is incredible here—angry, racist, sneering—and he’s coming to a
boil
Again- this
isn’t on the level of Naked, or
even 2004’s (and Leigh’s previous film) Vera Drake but there are a few purposeful splashes of yellows
in the production design. If there was more of it we’d have a stronger
film. This is the anti-Naked
which was covered in blackness. There are yellows in the background of
Hawkins’ character as she jumps on the trampoline, the door of the man she
goes on a date with, her friends’ car, her shirt the day after the date
It is
purposeful that we largely see her as a teacher and surrounded by other
teachers (Marsan is a driving teacher, the Flamenco dancer)
[…] Happy Go Lucky – Leigh […]