Wild Rose

Name: Wild Rose
Genre: Drama, Music
Released: June 21, 2019
Duration: 101 min
Rating: 80
Cast: Adam Mitchell, Ashley Shelton, Blair Kincaid, Carol Pyper Rafferty, Craig Parkinson

2019

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 32 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Universal acclaim based on 106 Ratings

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8.2

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8.2	User Score Universal acclaim based on 106 Ratings

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Wild Rose

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Movie Details & Credits

Neon | Release Date: June 21, 2019 | R

Starring: Adam Mitchell, Ashley Shelton, Blair Kincaid, Carol Pyper Rafferty, Craig Parkinson, Daisy Littlefield, Daniel Campbell, Gemma McElhinney, James Harkness, Jamie Sives, Jane Patterson, Janey Godley, Jessie Buckley, Julie Walters, Lesley Hart, Matt Costello, Maureen Carr, Natalie Mcconnon, Sophie Okonedo, Tracy Wiles

Summary: Rose-Lynn Harlan (Jessie Buckley), a rebellious country singer who dreams of trading the working-class streets of Glasgow for the Grand Ole Opry of Nashville, juggles her menial job, two children, and committed mother (Julie Walters), as she pursues her bold ambition of a one-way ticket to musical stardom. With the support of her bossRose-Lynn Harlan (Jessie Buckley), a rebellious country singer who dreams of trading the working-class streets of Glasgow for the Grand Ole Opry of Nashville, juggles her menial job, two children, and committed mother (Julie Walters), as she pursues her bold ambition of a one-way ticket to musical stardom. With the support of her boss (Sophie Okonedo), Rose-Lynn embarks on a life-changing journey that challenges her sense of self and helps her discover her true voice.… Expand

Director: Tom Harper

Genre(s): Drama, Music

Rating: R

Runtime: 101 min

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Critic Reviews

100

Michael O'Sullivan

Jun 26, 2019

To its great credit, the movie turns left when you expect it to turn right, taking a route that is less well traveled, yet more plausible. Read full review

Leslie Felperin

Apr 10, 2019

Pure dead gallus (that's Scots for 'wonderful'). Read full review

David Sims

Jun 19, 2019

That Rose-Lynn is an onstage force is easy to tell from the second she picks up a microphone, but Taylor makes this film less about her gift than about the maturity she needs to take it beyond the local Glasgow pubs. As a result, the film’s melancholy but uplifting closing notes land that much more powerfully. Read full review

The Observer (UK) Mark Kermode

Apr 15, 2019

Jessie Buckley, who proved so electrifying in Michael Pearce’s psychological thriller Beast, lights up the screen as Rose-Lynn Harlan; a 23-year-old firebrand, fresh out of jail, wearing an electronic tag beneath white cowgirl boots. Read full review

Movie Nation Roger Moore

Jul 19, 2019

A vivid, estrogen-charged charmer, a winning twist on “chasing your dream” and “You can have it all” with just enough sober slapdowns to keep it honest. Read full review

IndieWire David Ehrlich

Jun 20, 2019

No matter how contrived or hackneyed things get, Buckley’s voice always breaks through the clouds like some kind of divine revelation. And that voice only gets more powerful when Wild Rose finally gives it something to say. Read full review

The Guardian Peter Bradshaw

Apr 10, 2019

Buckley provides a vitamin boost in every scene. Read full review

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User Reviews

MillieMa

Nov 6, 2019

Amazing film, Jessie Buckley is a gem and so talented. Music in this film is also amazing.

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

hnestlyonthesly

Oct 7, 2019

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. About a week ago, Wife was lamenting the fact that we’ve abruptly hit the bottom of the summer movie well, with no interest in seeing Child’s Play and too much self-respect to see Men In Black: International, and no theaters that are featuring her anticipated The Farewell, and then she found this playing up in Palo Alto.... Wild Rose is Buckley’s sophomore film–matching nicely with compatriot Florence Pugh this year–and it has lots going for it.

This is the way that Wife set up the film for me: I think it’s about a young woman who’s a single mother (but not so single because she seems to be getting some help from her mother) from Scotland who wants to abandon her family in order to pursue a career in country singing in America. Sold. At that time I wasn’t even aware that Buckley was the star, but by that time the absurdity of that premise and the prospect of seeing a film about America from the outside in was all I needed.

There seems to be a bit of serendipity about the timing of this film. I think these types of outsider films about America have a lot of appeal because they have a way of describing the positive aspects of American culture at a fraught time in our politics without appearing like a Pollyanna.

Wild Rose goes about representing under-represented parts of America by creating a compelling “trans-national” character, one that in the hands of a less sensitive and thoughtful director and actor might have come off as quirky and magical, but here does nothing of the sort. The film makes no effort to make Rose-Lynn sympathetic for the first two thirds of the film, Wife and I agreed, and then in that last act, it dares you not to like her. It’s kind of ambitious how far out of its way the film is willing to go for you to resent her delinquency, her effortless lying.

Meanwhile, the music of this film is an exquisite mix of covers by Buckley and thoughtfully chosen songs from the country canon. The one line from an improvised song she sings early on in the film rang in my ears for days afterwards: “Every good thing that ever happens, happens from the inside out.” (Feels a little bit like a line you’d hear in Terry Pratchett’s I Shall Wear Midnight series.) The final song Glasgow is a showstopper. The Oz metaphor captures the strain between her professional aspirations, personal desires, and familial obligations in a really powerful way.

Afterwards, Wife said that Buckley had actually got her start in acting by being on a television singing competition-type show, the same sort she blows off as an option in the film in a bit of meta-theater. It shows: I’m not a country music aficionado, so it was hard for me to know at the time of watching whether she was covering most of the film’s soundtrack herself or if we were listening to other women in the country music scene, but the upcoming movie soundtrack is filled with Buckley’s covers, which fills me with joy.

The redemptive makeover that the audience is expecting is never really served. Instead, Rose-Lynn remains an unformed, though more self-aware and mature character. Wild Rose’s depiction of Rose-Lynn does an excellent job of representing a Millennial sense of imposter syndrome through the relentless reminders that Rose-Lynn is ordinary: “Do you play?” a beloved BBC radio cameo by Bob Harris asks, “Do you write?” She answers no and the audience is informed of how hopeless and starry-eyed her dreams are. “You would not believe how many people do that exact thing,” the security guard tells her outside the Grand Opry in Nashville, poking holes in what feels at the time like a heartfelt moment a long time coming.

The delightful weirdness Rose-Lynn’s transnational love affair is in and of itself a reason to see this film. If for no other reason than to learn that there are enclaves of country music in the far reaches of the British Isles, bars that faithfully reconstruct our Americana, and singers who drop their accents to take on ours. The **** of America is at first a joyous love letter to Nashville and the country music scene, and even when her actual journey is anything but, it still finds way to represent the charm and depth of feeling of Nashville through her lyrics and the energy of their simulacrum of Nashville back home.

Wife was a little miffed that the solution to Rose-Lynn’s problem was through money even if the source was different than anticipated. I really liked the party plot line and it’s twist.

If you are similarly in the desert of films this summer, one of the rare movie-goers who has been saving yourself for something other than MIB, then check Wild Rose out.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

citizendang

Jun 29, 2019

Wild Rose is Rose-Lynn, a Glasgow girl who has one passion, to get to Nashville and make it as a country singer. However she faces some serious obstacles including, living in Glasgow, having a prison record, no job and serious family complications. Despite the fact that Rose-Lynn willWild Rose is Rose-Lynn, a Glasgow girl who has one passion, to get to Nashville and make it as a country singer. However she faces some serious obstacles including, living in Glasgow, having a prison record, no job and serious family complications. Despite the fact that Rose-Lynn will frustrate and anger you with her actions you will root for her. One of the best movies of the year with a star-making breakout performance by Jessie Buckley. Follows what should have been her breakout performance in Beast last year but sadly that film was in a very limited release. Wild Rose is not a musical but it has an outstanding soundtrack that meshes perfectly with character development and the story arc. Jessie sings all of the songs in the film, with raw passion and sensitivity. Glasgow, a song co-written by Mary Steenburgen should get an Oscar nom. Beautifully directed by Tom Harper (War and Peace) and cleverly written with layers, great dialogue and unexpected twists by Nicole Taylor (3 Girls) Co-stars the always wonderful Dame Julie Walters (Educating Rita, Harry Potter and Mary Poppins Returns) as Rose-Lynn's mom and Sophie Okonedo (Hotel, Rwanda, Dirty Pretty Things) The film has had rave reviews by critics and viewers alike and the few so-so reviews still gush about Jessie's performance. A must-see. You will go through all levels of emotion but ultimately fall in love with Rose-Lynn. Guaranteed after seeing the film you will be checking Jessie's videos, interviews, past performances (Woman in White, War and Peace, Taboo, Chernobyl, Beast) and anxiously awaiting the five films that she has coming out in the next year.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

MarkTakayama

Jul 7, 2020

I love this movie about a country singer in the UK, The lady try to make her dream come true. She tries to overcome the obstacles. But she had to make a decision about her life. I love her passion to music, family, and hometown.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

IsaacJ

Jun 25, 2019

Cinema is no stranger to the classic ‘star is born’ tale; there’s something about the likeable underdog fighting against the odds to rise to success that seems to transcend time and genre. In the wake of Bradley Cooper’s fourth incarnation of A Star is Born, perhaps the familiar narrativeCinema is no stranger to the classic ‘star is born’ tale; there’s something about the likeable underdog fighting against the odds to rise to success that seems to transcend time and genre. In the wake of Bradley Cooper’s fourth incarnation of A Star is Born, perhaps the familiar narrative can get a bit tiresome… yet it’s approached with a fervid exuberance by director Tom Harper in Wild Rose, graced with a fantastic performance by real life star-in-the-making, Jessie Buckley.
Harper and screenwriter Nicole Taylor take us to Glasgow, where we meet ex-convict Rose-Lynn Harlan, a loudmouthed country (and not western) singing hopeful who dreams of moving to Nashville to find success. Her reproachful mother Marion (Julie Walters) would much rather she give up the fantasy and look after her young kids, but from the first scene, as we see Rose-Lynn march assertively out of a penitentiary in white cowboy boots, we know she won’t be having it. She soon begins to work for cheery housewife Susannah (Sophie Okonedo), who seeks to help her in making something of her aspirations.
Generally, Wild Rose is classic storytelling, the type of tale that entertains and excites, but takes few risks. Taylor’s script is a characterful piece of work, but the real star here is clearly Buckley, who delivers a superb turn as the truculent but lovable Rose-Lynn. There’s a wry moment of humour as our anarchic songstress ridicules a suggestion that she enter some TV talent show so that her talents may be seen; this was of course where Buckley herself started out in 2008’s I’d Do Anything. Wild Rose is testament to how far Buckley has come; as Rose-Lynn, she gives a nuanced performance, balancing impertinent self-confidence with a cleverly judged level of doubt and vulnerability. Even when the storytelling becomes a little cloddish, it’s Buckley’s honesty that brings everything back to Earth.
Julie Walters is also on expected brilliant form as Rose-Lynn’s exasperated mother; the dynamic we see play out between Rose-Lynn and Marion is all too familiar but is no less well-done here, with the two actresses delivering magnificent performances. Middle-class saviour Susannah is a little one note in comparison, but Sophie Okonedo approaches the role with enough conviction.
There are certain moments in the narrative that prove troublesome, feeling a little jagged and somewhat disingenuous to the characters, but these are quibbles that are often expertly resolved, usually by another moment of excellence from Buckley or Walters.
Much like its decidedly non-Glaswegian counterpart from Bradley Cooper, music plays a key role in Wild Rose, giving clear voice to the story. Susannah curiously asks Rose-Lynn in an early scene why she loves country music in particular, to which the blunt reply comes; “because it’s three chords and the truth”. Jack Arnold’s tunes in this film are toe-tappers, importantly, but also act as a great device used to bring out the “truth” of Rose-Lynn’s character; there’s a musical point early on in the film that is gorgeously intimate and, from then on, we are behind Rose-Lynn, cheering her triumphs and mourning her setbacks. It helps significantly that Buckley is a gifted vocalist (elements of her musical theatre background snake nicely into the bravura of Rose-Lynn’s performances).
Tom Harper has crafted a hearty crowd-pleaser in Wild Rose; it might not be revolutionary storytelling, but, for the most part, it’s nimbly executed. If you’ll leave applauding for anyone, it’ll be for Jessie Buckley.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

mohammadhoseinj

Feb 8, 2021

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. A good film can be a lot of things; It can make you cry, It can make you laugh, It can make your dream, It can make you stand. It can make you sad and make you dry; It can take your heart full of lies.
But at the end of the day, A good film makes you write this kind of **** about it, so more people find it, and more people watch it.
Maybe I watched Wild Rose at the right moment and in the right place, or maybe my Platonic love for seeing Jessie Buckley's Oscar makes me too soft for her films. But I don't think it's the latter, Because God, I hate every single second of that BS new movie she made with Charlie Kaufman. So Yeah, Wild Rose is a good film.
Between all these cinematic bull****s that we love and make us suffer more (and dream more at the same time, if you will), Films like Wild Rose is the **** IT" that we need. You Know? Like, No. It's not like that; success is not like putting everything behind. Success is not a dream story of flying free out of every barrier. Life is serious, challenging, and most of the time, so ****ing hard. And that "SUCCESS" comes from embracing every single person/thing/whatever you have in your life.
At the end of the day, It's a good film. I'm happy that I watched it, and I hope all of these words make one more person want to watch it.
Thanks, Tom Harper, God bless you, Rose-Lynn Harlan, and oh you Queen of Memphis, GO ROBB THAT BANK OF LIFE. Whoa!… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

kevinb92

Jul 8, 2019

This movie is way too long and boring. The acting is average and the music is very bad. I don’t recommend this film.

1 of 4 users found this helpful13

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75	#75 Best Movie of 2019
59	#59 Most Shared Movie of 2019