James R | On 12, Jan 2015

Director: Marc Evans
Cast: Minnie Driver, Aneurin Barnard, Danielle Branch, Robert Pugh, Owen Teale, George MacKay, Haydn Gwynne
Certificate: 15
Watch Hunky Dory online in the UK: Amazon Prime / Apple TV (iTunes) / Prime Video (Buy/Rent) / Google Play

Marc Evans’ Hunky Dory is a likeable, free-wheeling film, full of nostalgia, talented young actors and Minnie Driver doing a Welsh accent. It follows Vivienne, an idealistic teacher who’s hoping to encourage her pupils to put on an end-of-year production of Shakespeare’s The Tempest – and what better way to get kids’ attention than to use the timeless throes of 1970s pop?

And so the stage is set for a medley of classics – with a big emphasis on David Bowie (hence the title) – all performed by the cast, which includes Aneurin Barnard and George MacKay among the students, plus Robert Pugh and Owen Teale as a headmaster and parent.

Written by Laurence Coriat, it’s a Brit flick with soul, captured with warm cinematography and a cheerful ensemble of young talent. But the thing that really clicks is the way it uses its soundtrack to amplify its characters and their own dramas – to the point where it even inspired this writer to pen a review to the tune of Life of Mars. (With apologies to David Bowie.)

It’s a god-awful small affair
for Viv (Driver), who has mousy hair.
Stuck-up teachers (Gwynne) are yelling “No!”
They don’t care about her little show.
But Viv’s fear is nowhere to be seen
as she talks to the kids of Swansea
about post-school life after they leave,
even though some look nearer 20.
Hunky Dory might sound like a bore,
like you’ve heard it 10 times or more,
but Marc Evans’ film feels new –
full of Bowie, Shakespeare and Minnie…

Driver!
lighting up the school hall.
Oh man!
Look at that actress go:
It’s like Glee’s new Welsh show.
Take a look at those songs, man,
the soundtrack is a must-buy.
Oh man!
The Byrds, Beach Boys and ELO –
they cover them all with such soul.
Is there life in Wales?

It’s on young Davey’s (Barnard) tortured brows;
Stella (Branch) just wants to be friends right now.
But in the heatwave of ’76,
there was no stopping these young kids.
An unrequited, emo horde,
hormones mucking up all their thoughts.
They’re closer to glum than to Glee,
which makes their growing pains genuine;
Darren Evans has talent galore,
but Barnard steals the show at the fore.
He looks just like Elijah Wood
but this Hobbit can sing – like Minnie…

Driver!
lighting up the school hall.
Oh man!
Look at that actress go.
It’s worth watching for those
scenes with Shakespeare and songs, man.
This movie’s easy to like.
Oh man!
It builds to such a charming close:
The Tempest’s musical show.
Is there life in Wales?
(Heck yes, of course there is.)

Hunky Dory is available to watch online on Amazon Prime Video as part of a Prime membership or a £5.99 monthly subscription.

 

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