Category Archives: Kate Hudson

2025 Films, Biography, Craig Brewer, Drama, Ella Anderson, Erika Slezak, Fisher Stevens, Hugh Jackman, Jim Belushi, Kate Hudson, King Princess, Michael Imperioli, Mustafa Shakir

Song Sung Blue-2025

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Song Sung Blue-2025

Director Craig Brewer

Starring Hugh Jackman, Kate Hudson

Scott’s Review #1,507

Reviewed January 5, 2026

Grade: A

Knowing nothing about the film Song Sung Blue (2025) other than brief snippets of a trailer, it wasn’t on my radar to see. A sole Golden Globe Awards nomination by star Kate Hudson felt like a sentimental effort rather than merit.

Appearing to be little more than a feel-good holiday time release with a sprinkling of schmaltz and a money grab to nostalgic fans of entertainer Neil Diamond, I hesitated to go to the theater to see it.

To my immediate surprise and delight, the theater was nearly full, an anomaly in today’s quick-to-streaming world, but the importance of movie theaters is a topic for another day.

While Song Sung Blue is a delightful crowd pleaser and the songs are catchy and infectious, there is a darkness to the story, based on real-life events, that I didn’t see coming.

By combining a local singing duo’s triumph with tragedy, the film creates a perfect counterbalance that had me and the audience I was with in both tears and chuckles.

The project appears to be based on a 2008 documentary about the real-life couple.

The film stars Hugh Jackman and Hudson as Mike and Claire Sardina, who perform as the Neil Diamond tribute band Lightning & Thunder in their local area of Wisconsin, circa the 1990s.

They are struggling blue-collar folks eeking out a living as an impersonator and a part-time hairdresser, respectively. While both are middle-aged, each with an ex-spouse and a teenage daughter, and tons of bills to pay, they nonetheless adore performing in any capacity and love the thrill of life.

Mike is a recovering alcoholic, and Claire suffers from bouts of depression. Still, they meet early in the film, fall in love, and marry almost immediately.

The actors Jackman and Hudson have enormous chemistry, which makes the film work so well. The audience instantly buys their connection, love of performing, and passion for music. Why couldn’t Mike and Claire have met years ago? It’s thanks to the actors that we wish they had.

While Jackman is terrific as the Diamond performer, dazzling and charismatic in each performance, he never usurps Hudson, nor is there a perception that she is merely a backup performer.

Truth be told, I was more enamored with Hudson’s performance by a hair. Immediately drawing me in with her spot-on Midwestern accent, which never wavered, her depiction of a single middle-aged mom living in the suburbs is perfection.

Trying to be calm but occasionally exploding with rage or bursts of gleeful excitement, Hudson never overacts or makes Claire seem ridiculous. Her late-1980s crappy car, discount-rack clothes, and heart-of-gold characterization work so well.

To cement the dysfunctional yet strong family’s bond, Mike’s daughter, Angelina (King Princess), and Claire’s daughter, Rachel (Ella Anderson), instantly bond. Joined by Claire’s son, Dayna, the family structure is set.

As essential add-ons, diversity is incorporated through family friends who represent ethnic, multicultural, and LGBTQ+ communities.

These strong bonds are crucial because, before Mike and Claire can even savor the success of becoming the opening band for a Pearl Jam concert and performing with singer Eddie Vedder, tragedy strikes when a terrible accident changes their lives forever.

The first of the family tragedies hits like a ton of bricks and is so brilliantly filmed. My audience gasped in pure shock at the turn of events. A mini sigh of relief at the hint that it’s all a dream is quickly extinguished by reality, making the sequence all the more powerful.

Craig Brewer, who both directs excellently and also writes the screenplay, must love music. He delves deep into Diamond’s catalog, mentioning more obscure songs like ‘Soolaimon’ besides the obvious mainstays, ‘Sweet Caroline’ and the title track.

Thanks to pitch-perfect performances by Jackman and Hudson, Song Sung Blue (2025) is paced perfectly and hits every emotional chord. With humor, heart, and drama, it delivers a fitting tribute to one of the most beloved singer-songwriters in modern music history.

Oscar Nominations: Best Actress-Kate Hudson

2022 Films, Angela Lansbury, Crime Thriller, Daniel Craig, Dave Bautista, Edward Norton, Ethan Hawke, Hugh Grant, Jake Tapper, Janelle Monáe, Jared Leto, Jeremy Renner, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kate Hudson, Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr., Madelyn Cline, Natasha Lyonne, Rian Johnson, Serena Williams, Stephen Sondheim, Thriller, Yo-Yo Ma

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery-2022

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Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery-2022

Director Rian Johnson

Starring Daniel Craig, Edward Norton, Janelle Monáe

Scott’s Review #1,331

Reviewed January 5, 2023

Grade: B

I teetered over grading Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022), referred to as Glass Onion, a B+ or a B, but the hardline critic in me won out on this day.

If I hadn’t compared it so much to the deliciously witty and inventive Knives Out from 2019, I might have given it a generous B+ rating. Still, it’s also impossible not to compare the two, since the setups and similarities are too apparent.

Rian Johnson, who returns to the fold as director, writer, and co-producer, pays tribute to the fabulous Agatha Christie murder mystery whodunits and the Hercule Poirot detective inclusion with the delightful Daniel Craig as the lead, reprising his role as master detective Benoit Blanc, as he takes on an exciting new case.

A Greek island owned by ultra-billionaire Miles Bron (Edward Norton) serves as the setting for the Southern detective’s latest adventure, which unfolds as a group of the tech giant’s friends gather for a murder mystery party that quickly turns deadly.

I couldn’t watch Miles without thinking of Elon Musk, the current controversial social media Twitter chief executive officer, in all his juvenile buffoonery.

Appearances by top stars Janelle Monáe, Kate Hudson, Kathryn Hahn, and Leslie Odom Jr., and a surprise cameo by Hugh Grant round out the cast. Along with Craig and Norton, this brings enough star power to create buzz.

It’s also appealing that Benoit, a clear ode to Poirot, is the only character who is the same from the first Knives Out story. His character is immediately developed when we see him soaking in a bathtub in his Manhattan apartment, conversing with a male voice offscreen.

He refuses to leave the tub during the very topical COVID pandemic, making the entire film feel incredibly timely and relevant.

Let’s see what happens when the film ages ten years.

We later learn that his husband, Phillip (Hugh Grant), lives with him, and Blanc is gay. How wonderful to incorporate an LGBTQ+ presence into a main character, and icing on the cake is that the studly James Bond actor is all in.

With Blanc’s vague sexuality revealed, the exciting mystery commences with many twists and turns among the characters, led by a fantastic dual performance by Monáe. She plays sophisticated New Yorker Andi and her southern sister Helen Brand.

The other characters are a mixed bag with Hudson and Hahn playing ridiculous, over-the-top roles as a washed-up fashion designer and an aspiring governor, respectively.

But the cartoon character award goes to former WWE professional wrestler David Bautista as the weird, buff guy, Duke Cody, who barely keeps his clothes on.

Still, the characters are a hoot, and the anticipation of how they all connect, who has screwed over whom, and why, is slowly revealed in fun form.

Not to be outdone, there are even revelations of who is screwing whom in the bedroom.

The story isn’t as interesting as the one in Knives Out. The ingenious script is lost, and by the end, it’s a case of who cares? All we want to know is who’s dead and who’s alive, and what does the Mona Lisa have to do with anything?

The cast undoubtedly had a ball making Glass Onion, and the sunny Greek Island locale is a great choice. As the players bask in the sun and saunter around in bikinis, sipping a cocktail or three amid peril, it is great fun for the cast and viewers alike.

It’s unclear if Johnson will create another installment of the Knives Out collection, but I’m on board if he does. I’ve been fascinated by the whodunit genre for as long as I can remember.

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022) isn’t quite as riveting or satisfying as Knives Out (2019), but the film is still enjoyable, thanks to its superior, glossy production values and a great cast.

Oscar Nominations: Best Adapted Screenplay