Richard Dormer as Terri Hooley.
With his tongue firmly in his cheek, Terri Hooley (Richard Dormer, TV’s Game of Thrones) not only opened a record store in Belfast’s Bomb Alley, but named it for the tremors that too-often shook the district; his Good Vibrations were not always of excitation-inducing kind. As the Troubles raged around him, Hooley turned his fondness for rock and punk into a shop and a label, riding on the infectiousness of his talent, The Undertones, and their anthemic single, Teenage Kicks. Alas, his fortunes, driven by passion but lacking in business savvy, were often as volatile as the political struggles waged in the streets outside.
So says directors Lisa Barros D’Sa and Glenn Leyburn (Cherrybomb) and writers Glenn Patterson and Colin Carberry in their telling of the tale, their film taking its title from Hooley’s labour of love. The moniker proves apt in other ways, too, the feature buzzing with enthusiasm and energy that trickles through every frame to the watching audience. Appropriating the amiability of its inspiration and protagonist in almost fabled fashion, Good Vibrations exudes warmth and welcomes eccentricity as it charts the many beats, bangs and bounces that comprise the true story.
Central to the film’s air of charming contagion is Dormer, all joyously wild-eyed, wily and with a winning grin that never fails to elicit its own appreciative smiles in return. Steeped in the unwavering sense of certainty of music conquering all that radiates from his character, Dormer brings charisma as well as conviction – but of the raw, rough-around-the-edges type that also perfects Hooley’s blend of sarcasm and sweetness. Though supported by a capable cast that includes Liam Cunningham (Safe House), Jodie Whittaker (One Day) and comedian Dylan Moran (A Film with Me in It), his leading efforts are never less than likeable.
The constant congeniality helps gloss over the film’s many conveniences – reliance upon every music movie cliché chief among them. Hopping between seedy bars, speeding along in shabby vans, and consuming copious amounts of alcohol are all obvious elements of the narrative; so too, the incursion of disapproving parents, discarded wives and devious industry executives. The components of fellow upbeat biopic 24 Hour Party People are recalled in the rise and rocky road of one influential figure, but in this case with more shambles and less structure. Despite the ever-present context of conflict, hope reigns supreme; that Good Vibrations as a feel-good film cannot be questioned.
As it skips through times good and bad, shows the surface of troubles, and soars through the successes, hard-earned as they were, the film easily resembles the many catchy, spiky songs peppered throughout its 103 minutes – a chirpy, cheerful ode to rebellion, perhaps. That’s the tune Good Vibration sings, and does so with fun and feeling, in a fitting tribute to a man, his enamour of music, and their combination in local myth.
Rating: 3 out of 5
Good Vibrations
Director: Lisa Barros D’Sa and Glenn Leyburn
UK, 2012, 103 mins
British Film Festival
November 19 – December 8
http://britishfilmfestival.com.au/
