The New Classics - Happy-Go-Lucky
Tuesday, June 4, 2019 at 6:00PM Michael Cusumano here to discuss a scene I find myself thinking about all the time.
Scene: Scott's meltdown
When you pause to consider how mundane the actual events of Mike Leigh’s films usually are, it’s funny to think how many moments from them lodge permanently in the memory. Barely a weekend goes by that I don’t see some kind of world-ending cataclysm portrayed in expansively budgeted detail and what does my brain return to over and over again? Lesley Manville in Another Year retreating to her glass of white wine or David Thewlis in Naked stalking a security guard through the dark to harangue him about the meaning of life.
The famous Mike Leigh technique of crafting screenplays from extensive improvisations yields scenes that unfold with the conviction of real life...
As a result, his films don’t need to amp up the action to get our attention. We process the scenes as immensely important, no matter how low the stakes, because, well, that’s how important they would be if they were happening to us.
In this respect, no scene is burned into my mind like the climactic meltdown in Leigh’s 2008 film, Happy-Go-Lucky. Practically, it is just a sour, ill-tempered man losing his grip and taking his personal issues out on his poor driving student. Yet I may as well have been in the backseat myself for how often my mind returns it.
Sally Hawkins’ genius-level performance as Poppy is a far more complex creation than I often see it credited. Most reviews describe Poppy as positivity personified with is far from a complete picture. She does try to meet everything life throws at her with sunshine and cheer but she is also a flirt and a scamp. Her needling of Scott during their drives is quite deliberate, her attitude being something along the lines of “If you can get on my wavelength we can have some laughs, but if you insist on being a curmudgeon I am at least going to amuse myself”. More accurate to describe Poppy as a spirit of anarchy, albeit anarchy of an aggressively chipper variety.
Poppy is also, and there is no getting around this, irritating as hell. To say you love Poppy is not to say you don’t want to smother her with a pillow from time to time. This is entirely intentional on the part of Leigh and Hawkins, who are playing with our first impressions. Realizing that Poppy’s worldview is not as shallow as it first seems, is to understand that her attitude is a conscious choice that she must defend daily against a disagreeable world. Throughout the film Poppy is a happy warrior against pessimism and despair and in her ordeal with Scott is her final crucible. The unstoppable optimist meets the immovable grouch. We’ve already seen a similar dynamic play out twice in the film already by the time’s Poppy’s driving lessons reach a boiling point. Once with the abused child in her class, where she is able to make a difference for the better, and in the second case, with the mentally unbalanced homeless man, whom she finds beyond reaching. In which of these directions Scott will tilt is the central question of the film.
It is no exaggeration to call Eddie Marsan’s Scott one of my favorite of all performances. Marsan is merciless in his dissection of this miserable, bile-filed man. The way his feelings of inferiority are defensively twisted into delusions of grandeur (“I’m outside the pyramid looking in!”) and from there metastasizes into racism and conspiracy theories. The way his anger with Poppy is so clearly rooted in his attraction to her, his mind instantly fast-forwarding to the inevitable sting of rejection and curdling into rage. It’s no accident that for all Poppy’s irritating habits it’s the sight of her handsome new boyfriend that pushes Scott over the edge. Scott is probably the most complete portrait of a troll film has to offer. Wherever he is in 2019 you can be sure he is a nightmare on social media.
You rarely see Happy-Go-Lucky described as a film about teachers although that’s exactly what it is. Poppy and Scott share a vocation. Their conflict isn’t just a personality clash, but a battle over how to approach the world. Her determination to meet Scott’s belligerence with compassion even after he crosses the line into physical and verbal violence (after first re-establishing boundaries) is her final victory in their battle of wills, although it’s a victory in which she is forced to confront her utter inability to help this wretched man. That Poppy continues to face the world with optimism even after experiencing its limits in such a bruising fashion is what makes her a hero.
Reader Comments (20)
I love this movie so much and love your article but this is the first time with one of these episodes where the scene involved is not remotely a favourite. I totally hear what you're saying but this might be my least favourite scene in the movie. I think Eddie Marsan was just too much too big acting for me.
Nat: Racist, misogynistic ball of entitled white dude rage isn't exactly calling for a "small" performance, though?
This was the movie that made me fall in love with Sally Hawkins.
So many great moments in this film... The one with the homeless man stands out for me, but also a lot of the stuff at Poppy's school. I love the dance teacher, who feels like she could be the focus of another complete film on its own.
On first watch, I remember wondering why this particular scene was chosen for the climax. Your write-up made me understand that choice better and see the performances and structure in a new light. Great write-up!
I love that scene as I felt it validated Sally Hawkins as a force to be reckoned with as I was wowed by her positivity but that scene shows that she is aware of how cruel the world is but knows there is a sense of hope in there but that moment is also this face of reality that she has to face. She was robbed of an Oscar nod.
They were so robbed that year.
In my top 5 favourite movies of all time. So insanely underrated. In a perfect world, it would’ve won Picture, Director, Actress, Supporting Actor, and Screenplay.
I love that you mention it is a film about teachers, because a majority of the characters in the film are: Zoe, Scott, the flamenco teacher, Poppy’s sister Helen...
It's weird but i can't remember a favorite scene from this movie. I just love how Sally Hawkins develope her character, looking happy in a forced way but avoiding that the performance looks like a cartoon.
César Gaytán -- not even the flamenco class with the amazing Karina Fernández?
thevoid99: It was 2008. If she got the nom, she might have gotten the win, and actors wanted Winslet off the docket.
@Peggy Sue
Is a good scene but not a favorite to me. But is because i love some movies just for a performance than the movie by itself. Like Perfume (Ben Whishaw) Gloria (Paulina García) The Green Mile (Doug Hutchison) or even Me, Myself and Irene (Jim Carrey) and Smiley Face (Anna Faris)
The Flamenco scene is still my favourite. We howl with laughter every time we watch it.
Great write up summing up Poppy perfectly but as usual but with Leigh characters there are elements of improv and caricature which often come over as BIG ACTING.
I live with someone who at times reminds me of Scott,the summation of him was spot on too
Oh how the world would have been better forever had Sally Hawkins won the Oscar instead of Kate Winslet for that abomination! This is why we can't have nice things...
Damn Nathaniel, when Volvagia posts a concise on-topic comment you know you’ve underthought your opinion.
@Nathaniel, right on the money. I wouldnt say this is my least favourite scene, but the level of hamming weakened it. Pretty sure Marsan actually spat in my face. I love this film and this is a great analysis tho.
We all fear those moments when actors decide “it’s yelling time!” and the performance flattens out as they bulldoze through their imagined Oscar clip, but that’s not happening in this scene, which I find to be a great example of someone going big without losing subtlety. Marsan never loses the emotional thread. You can, for just one example, spot the moment when Scott realizes he’s lost his temper and embarrassment starts to creep in. Plus, Marsan and Leigh have laid the groundwork for this explosion so well in all Scott’s previous scenes where he comes up to the verge of blowing his stack but doesn’t.
I always think of something a friend told me once in high school. We were discussing a Rolling Stone countdown of the greatest vocalists in rock history and I expressed confusion that Kurt Cobain was on the list with the likes of Sam Cooke and Aretha Franklin. My friend looked at me with pity and shut me down with “He can scream on key.” That always stuck with me as the perfect description of someone who can go big without losing detail. Eddie Marsan can scream on key.
"Scott is probably the most complete portrait of a troll film has to offer. Wherever he is in 2019 you can be sure he is a nightmare on social media."
That is truly insightful! Great piece on a wonderful film. I've seen it a few times and now I want to see it again. Thank you.
Schmeebs and Peggy Sue – Yes on the Flamenco scene! It was the runner up scene for this article (I wanted a scene that let me write more about Scott). Interesting in the way it foreshadows this article’s scene, a teacher losing her cool in the middle of the lesson over a bad romantic experience. Only the Flamenco teacher is like the light to Scott’s dark, not letting Poppy’s irritations under her skin, excusing herself when she loses her grip, then rallying and continuing on with the class with her dignity intact. And she actually teaches her class what she’s supposed to!
Mark – I too have a Scott in my life (he won’t read this) and find Marsan astonishing in the way he so completely captures the type. Probably a big reason the character sticks with me the way it does
Several People – thanks for the kind words about the article. Encouraging comments fuel future posts
Hawkins swept most o the critics award that year, including NYFCC, LAFCC, etc...but she is still a relatively unknown then and only Golden Globes took a chance on her, & not only nom her, but awarded her a deserving win over their perennial fav, La Meryl!!!
The other big three, Oscar, SAG & even Bafta!! (considering Hawkins is their homegrown talent) simply snubbed her..
I tink she was in the unfortunate 6th place on most ballots
I want to thank you for the efforts you made when writing this article. Your creative writing ability inspired me to start my own blog now.
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