Poppy (Sally Hawkins) is a primary school teacher that seems to have all the answers to happiness. Her whole life seems to be devoted to turning tough times into flashes of pleasure. When her bike gets stolen, the only thing she can think to say is, “I didn’t even get to say goodbye.” Rolling with the punches is an understatement…Poppy can take it from the best of them. Scott (Eddie Marsen) is a cynical driving instructor who plays the yin to her yang. Polar opposites, each driving lesson is a painful one. Well, for Scott.
While I was prepared to find this film dreadfully boring, it wasn’t. Not completely. It was difficult to remain detached as Sally kept reeling me in with Poppy’s infectious personality – the kind miserable cynics like me want to punch in their grinning faces. No matter what malignant turn life threw at her, she remained steadfastly happy. Eddie Marsen was terrific. Short and unintimidating as he is, the venom he spewed actually made me afraid of Scott the driving instructor, who’s constant mantra of “En-Ra-Ha” was comedy in and of itself.
Happy-Go-Lucky is not mainstream enough for the popcorn flick fanatics, but it’s found a comfortable niche in the independent markets. Happy-Go-Lucky is a meandering movie that just opens a brief, semi-inspiring, window into Poppy’s life. If there’s a lesson to be had, it suggests for you to find happiness within yourself, and that’s the secret not many are privy to. I enjoyed it, less for the story (which was hardly there), and more for the characters.
