If you do not know the story of Lightning & Thunder, you’d be forgiven for assuming the saga of the Milwaukee-based husband-and-wife Neil Diamond tribute act in the 1990s was the stuff of fiction.
But, no, the highs and decidedly down lows of Mike and Claire Sardina were chronicled in the 2008 documentary “Song Sung Blue.” While the new narrative film of the same name takes the usual liberties with the facts, it’s easy to see why this story so often has been described as “stranger than fiction.”
In theaters on Christmas Day, this is one extended song that, after sucking you in with a catchy hook, changes the tenor, the tone, the tempo and straps you in for a ride on an emotional roller coaster. And, thanks to the performances of its leads, Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson, as well as the deft touches of its writer and director, Craig Brewer, the film makes this transition seamlessly…