“There’s no shortage of folk who can sing”, a tough-loving Marion (Julie Walters) tells her daughter who’s dreaming of leaving Glasgow to become a country singer in Wild Rose. The Glaswegian Dorothy with stars in her eyes is Rose-Lynn (Jessie Buckley), a bolshie 20-something with a minor criminal record and two small kids. Rose-Lynn’s Oz is Nashville and her itchy feet – no matter the ankle tag under her white cowboy boots – will get her there at any cost. So begins an arduous but always optimistic cycle, as the young woman runs away from the responsibilities of family and adulthood in order to chase who she thinks she has to be.
War & Peace director Tom Harper finds Buckley with a light, warm touch as the pair give this wanderlust-fuelled story some real weight. On the other side of Glasgow, Rose-Lynn meets Susannah (Sophie Okonedo), a prim, wealthy and empathetic woman who becomes her employer and surrogate fairy godmother, determined to enable Rose-Lynn’s talent.
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Full review published on Sight & Sound
