There’s something to be said for feel good movies like The Sapphires, a kind of Dream Girls-esque biographical celebration of music. It may not break any especially new ground or end up in a place you’re not expecting but along the way it’s a genuinely pleasant watch, the kind of crowd pleasing ray of sunshine among a sea of movies that are content to sulk in the corner.
Set in Australia in the late ’60s and inspired by a true story,” The Sapphires follows three Aboriginal sisters who dream of becoming famous using their singing voices. Down on their luck they meet Dave Lovelace (Chris O’Dowd), who after some trepidation becomes their manager. Recruiting a fourth member in the form of their cousin who they haven’t seen in 10 years, the girls set out on the road to their first proper live show – entertaining troops in Vietnam.
Despite its cliches the film works for a few reasons, the first of which is the performances. Jessica Mauboy, Miranda Tapsell, Shari Sebbens and particularly Deborah Mailman as the controlling but well-meaning Gail have great chemistry with one another, convincingly playing family united by music and often tested by their distinct personalities, wreckless choices and past mistakes. Chris O’Dowd is, well, Chris O’Dowd but he’s perfectly cast here as the cocky yet good-hearted Dave, trying his best to inspire the girls into performing the sort of soulful music he knows they can.
Secondly their’s the music of the toe-tapping variety. Most people probably won’t have heard of the eponymous group but the same can’t be said for the songs the girls sing, ranging from Who’s Lovin’ You to I Heard It Through the Grapevine. You don’t have to be a particular fan of the music beforehand as the way it’s woven into the story – as well as the skill and gusto of which the girls sing them – has the power to win you over.
Where the film falters is in the fringes of the story. It attempts to deal with delicate and complex racial and political issues, often through the use of flashback as we find out more about the girls’ past, but it doesn’t really have the means or the guts to handle them in an intelligent or meaningful way. That aspect is sort of just there, never really gelling with the otherwise upbeat nature of the film. Also, while you might hope that it would avoid the type of cliched romance trappings often associated with this type of film it ultimately can’t help itself, piling on romantic subplots that just feel forced and unneeded.
The Sapphires may not bring anything particularly new to the table, and it fumbles when it tries to move out of its comfort zone into complex areas that even a serious drama would struggled to get right. But with a funny script that zips along at a nice pace, likeable performances and, perhaps most importantly, well performed music as its backbone the film succeeds admirably, just not exceptionally.
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The Sapphires is released in UK cinemas on November 7th.
