It's hard to be happy . . .

. . . when you're forced to watch such dreck. I had great hopes for the film Happy Go Lucky, which is set in London and promised to be an uplifting and inspirational look at modern life. Sally Hawkins plays Poppy, a young primary school teacher in London who always looks on the bright side of life. She laughs, giggles, and smiles at everything. And I mean everything. Her bike gets stolen? No problem, she'll just sign up for driving lessons. She hurts her back on the trampoline? What fun! We can go visit the physiotherapist (where she wears a pink bra, orange thong and lacy pantyhose, as we all attire ourselves for medical treatment).


Being relentlessly cheerful isn't a liability in itself, but the execution of it is where the problem lies. There are great, long stretches when nothing, I mean absolutely nothing, is happening on screen except Poppy giggling and looking insanely cheerful. She comes across not as someone who is relentlessly merry, but as someone who is perpetually on drugs. She is constantly doubled over with laughter and flapping her hands about -- so much so that it is difficult to understand what she is supposed to be saying when she is speaking. The other characters in the film, some of which are suppose to be grouches and killjoys, come of as "normal" people shocked and a little horrified by this clearly deranged creature in front of them.


The theater where I saw the film was not crowded, but as the minutes ticked off, people began to leave. I held out for about 40 minutes before I also had to admit defeat. I didn't, however, march myself to the box office and demand my money back, as I overhead other people doing as I left.


Although this film is getting good reviews and ratings everywhere, I don't understand how anyone was able to stand to sit through it. Awful.


Final Verdict for Happy Go Lucky: No Gherkins, for an annoying, unintelligible lead character, nonexistent action, and barely any London scenery