Sally Hawkins,
Eddie Marsan,
Alexis Zegerman,
Sinead Matthews,
Kate O'Flynn
... see more 
Sally Hawkins and Eddie Marsan star in director Mike Leigh's seriocomedy concerning an eternally optimistic teacher living and working in North London. Thirty-year-old teacher Poppy (Hawkins) always h... read more
Directed by: Mike Leigh
Release Date: October 10, 2008
Keywords:
feel-good,
funny,
little,
happy,
quirky,
delightful,
main character,
sally hawkins,
mike leigh,
driving instructor,
Sally Hawkins ,
Mike Leigh ,
Eddie Marsan ,
Happy Go Lucky
DVD Release Date: March 10, 2009
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Stats: 3,793 reviews
Your Rating
Flixster Reviews (3,793)
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February 13, 2012An engaging character study about a woman blessed with a sunny disposition. It is a rare occasion that you see a protagonist who's care-free nature isn't looked down upon. Her naivety a source of contempt. Poppy the protagonist is in many ways the antithesis of a protagonist in a... read more
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February 5, 2012This cheeky comedy about a female teacher who enjoys looking on the bright side of life feels a bit like the British reply to France's Amelie. That mostly goes for the way our main character lives her own life entirely to her own rules and enjoys every minute of it. The way this ... read more
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November 5, 2011Poppy annoyed the crap out of me in the beginning of the movie. You start to think that maybe she has a loose screw somewhere. But when you see the people she meets, and the shit she has to deal with from other people (her driving instructor), her insane cheerfulness isn't that b... read more
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November 17, 2010More of a TV drama than a movie, it has some sweet, if slightly annoying, everyday English characters undergoing their everyday lives without the story ever reaching any momentous conclusion. I suspect this is all part of the director's style; meandering, entertaining realism wit... read more
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October 12, 2010Happy-Go-Lucky would be perfect if it had a plot. Instead, what you get is great shooting, great acting, and a great happiness as you watch Poppy go about her aimless, unconventional, thirty-year-old life. This is a film filled with great moments. It frustrates me to read critque... read more
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September 10, 2010Wow! Add Poppy to my list of favorite movie characters. Sally Hawkins infuses Happy-Go-Lucky with joy and energy, making it an absolute pleasure to watch.
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August 11, 2010To be honest, I disagree with all of people's opinion about this movie... They say it was a funny, energetic, and delightful comedy, but what I saw for almost 2 hours was a stupid and boring comedy... The worst of it, this movie doesn't have a story at all... The story just tells... read more
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July 18, 2010I like this film, and I am not quite sure why. Poppy (Sally Hawkins) is a perky young British woman. The movie seems to be a bunch of random scenes about her life. There are times when I just wonder why we are seeing this part of Poppy's life -- can she really be that ditsy? ... read more
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April 12, 2010A refreshing feel-good film that will leave you smiling, Happy-Go-Lucky presents a cheerful character that may be initially mistaken for a simple-minded optimistic woman, but later she proves to be much more complex about the way she sees things, which Sally Hawkins does a wonder... read more
Critic Reviews
November 13, 2008
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel
October 31, 2008
Amy Biancolli, Houston Chronicle
I've never used this cliché in a review before, and God forbid I ever use it again, so pay close attention: Happy-Go-Lucky is the feel-good movie of the year. Full Review
October 31, 2008
Tom Long, Detroit News
Sally Hawkins, in a blinding, Oscar-worthy piece of acting so good you barely see it, plays Poppy, a perpetually upbeat elementary schoolteacher in London. Full Review
October 30, 2008
J. R. Jones, Chicago Reader
Leigh pushes the story in a more interesting direction, asking whether people find happiness or simply will it on themselves. Full Review
October 24, 2008
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune
The new Mike Leigh film, Happy-Go-Lucky, is a real pleasure, and besides being Leigh's most buoyantly comic feature it's a marvelous showcase for Sally Hawkins, who has worked twice before with the Br... Full Review
October 23, 2008
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Sally Hawkins been in movies before, including Leigh's "Vera Drake" and Woody Allen's "Cassandra's Dream," but this is her star-making role. She was named best actress at Berlin 2008. I will deliberat... Full Review
October 23, 2008
Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic
Expertly directed by Mike Leigh, Happy-Go-Lucky is not only joyous but substantial. Full Review
October 23, 2008
Andrew Sarris, New York Observer
Mr. Leigh has executed a richly exuberant entertainment for our troubled times, and deserves still another of my honorary Oscars for his astoundingly skillful effort. Full Review
October 17, 2008
Ann Hornaday, Washington Post
The British actress Sally Hawkins delivers a nervy, utterly captivating tour de force performance in Happy-Go-Lucky, Mike Leigh's transporting new film. Full Review
October 17, 2008
Susan Walker, Toronto Star
Coming from the man who made his name as a director of often grim social-realist films such as Vera Drake, All or Nothing and Secrets & Lies, Mike Leigh's Happy-Go-Lucky strikes one as a film fantasy. Full Review
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