Happy-Go-Lucky

I was happy to view Mike Leigh’s latest with little advance knowledge, so the film could unfold for me like life itself, never knowing just what’s next, with first reactions misleading and final feelings mixed. That is the essence of Leigh’s process, the six months he spends with the cast, working through the characters from the outside in and the inside out, and letting the story emerge from the personalities and interactions that develop. It works so well, one wonders why more directors don’t work the same way. After Secrets & Lies, Topsy-Turvy, Vera Drake, and more, Leigh definitely ranks with the best directors in the world. At first glance, Happy-Go-Lucky may look like a departure, more light-hearted and uncomplicated, but it becomes progressively deeper and more complex, even days after viewing. I confess to having borrowed a bootleg copy of this new release, but will see it again if it ever arrives at a theater near me, and it’s sure to seem different with hindsight, the randomness illuminated by the canny construction, the artful raising and subverting of expectation. I won’t spoil any surprises for you, but just describe the opening scene. Through the credits, we see Poppy riding her bike through the streets of London, smiling broadly and waving at strangers. She stops and goes into a bookstore, annoying the taciturn clerk (and some of the audience) with a stream of laughing patter while she browses. As embodied indelibly by Sally Hawkins, she’s an attractive but psychotically cheerful 30-year-old, turned out in a rainbow of flounces and furbelows. Too much to take, it seems, but beneath her antic aspect, we gradually discern finer qualities. She comes out of the bookstore to find her bike stolen, but her only regret is that she didn’t get the chance to say goodbye to it. In subsequent scenes we see her partying with her female mates, and learn that she has found her niche as a primary school teacher. And we find out that her good cheer is not a natural mania, but a chosen way of being in the world. We follow her through several weeks of small (mis)adventures, and find out just what it means to view the world through Poppy-colored glasses. Sally Hawkins seems destined for a totally-deserved Oscar nomination (like Imelda Staunton as Vera Drake), and however you wind up feeling about her character, you have to love her performance. Equally potent is Eddie Marsan (memorable as Vera’s son) as the tightly-wound driving instructor, whose weekly sessions with Poppy frame the story. The rest of the cast live in their roles, revealing much in small and sidelong ways. This is a film to see with an open mind and an open heart, as well as open eyes. (2008, dvd, n.) *8* (MC-84.)