Director Mike Leigh is known for emotional dramas, heavy subject matter and strong female characters. His previous films, Vera Drake and Secrets and Lies, have cemented his reputation as a storyteller. While Happy-Go-Lucky still has a complex female lead, the mood of the rest of the film is anything but predictable Leigh fare.
    Sally Hawkins stars as Poppy, an optimistic London schoolteacher going through life’s ups and downs with relative aplomb. What makes Poppy stand out is her childlike optimism in the face of anything life throws her way — whether it’s having her bike stolen or enduring a visit from her family, she takes it all in stride. She’s irrepressibly happy, and she easily laughs off grumps who chide her state of being. The film covers a month in her life, as she uses the theft of her bike as motivation to finally learn to drive. The most dramatic and awkward moments in the film take place during Poppy’s five driving lessons — her instructor, Scott (Eddie Marsen), is the complete opposite of Poppy, and each lesson tests her conviction that there is good in everyone. Marsen plays Scott as a man at the end of his rope, ready to rain down on Poppy’s perpetual happiness parade. This isn’t something Poppy takes lightly, as she tries her best to enjoy every moment of life and wants the same for others.
    Leigh has assembled a skilled cast and given them rein to flesh out his characters through an improvisational style, resulting in realistic dialogue that occasionally rambles, much like in real life. Happy-Go-Lucky is more than just a character study, it’s a happiness test. Poppy is either someone you aspire to be, or she’s that really annoyingly happy person you can’t stand to be around.