[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”27419″ img_size=”800×450″ alignment=”center”][vc_column_text]Synopsis:
Fresh out of prison, a Scottish woman juggles her job and two children while pursuing her dream of becoming a country music star. She soon gets her chance when she travels to Nashville, Tennessee, on a life-changing journey to discover her true voice.
Before watching Wild Rose, I have heard a lot of remarkable comments about the movie from some of my favorite movie podcasts including The Next Big Picture and InSession Film. Just like the majority of you, I have not heard much about it before because it is a British film out in limited release in select theaters. Such a shame too because, as Rotten Tomatoes describes, this is an incredible but complicated story about Rose-Lynn, a woman on a quest to become a country music star, while also grappling with the responsibilities of being recently released from prison and a young mother of two children. Fortunately, it was playing at a local theater near me and I knew I had to jump on the bandwagon and see what all the hype was about. As soon as the end credits started to roll in, I finally understood why everyone in the film community is going bonkers over this charming but not-your-typical underdog journey.
We can’t go much further in this review without discussing the star of the film, which is Jessie Buckley (Chernobyl) who plays an aspiring country singer in Scotland that wants nothing more than to follow her dreams in Nashville, Tennesee. Life gets in the way, however, because she is an ex-convict who works as a housekeeper in order to support her two distant children and her passion to perform. She is the kind of character that you want to win but you keep getting frustrated at because she keeps making the same mistakes and falls back more than she makes strides. This is a basic formula for an underdog story but it stands out from the rest because of the stellar performance by Buckley.
She creates a character who is rambunctious, determined, and extremely talented. We empathize with Rose-Lynn because she realizes the mistakes she has made in her past and how it affects her relationship with her two children and her boss as well as her mother Marion who is played by Julie Walters (Harry Potter films, Mamma Mia). When she puts in the effort to turn her life around, you cheer on for her. Many of us can relate to what Rose-Lynn is going through and that realistic depiction of a struggling musician trying to make it big is not something that you typically see in recent movies about rising stars like A Star Is Born (2019) or Bohemian Rhapsody where it focuses more on the glamour and “happy ending” of famous musicians.
What makes Rose-Lynn’s journey to stardom different from the abundance of “rags to riches” stories is that you do not really get the traditional ending you expect to see. In fact, this movie closes off with an open ending and Rose-Lynn does not necessarily get what she originally wanted. It is one of those situations where she distinguishes the difference between what she REALLY WANTS and what she ACTUALLY NEEDS. The finale of the movie sends off Rose-Lynn in a satisfying conclusion to her character arc and a beautiful ballad to what truly matters to her. Definitely my favorite feel-good movies of the year so far!
My score: ★★★★/5
Be sure to catch Wild Rose while you still have the chance which is still playing in select theaters.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
probably at the movies.
