"3 chords and the truth"
That's what Rose-Lynn has tattooed across her forearm. That's the answer to the question the other people born and raised in Glasgow ask her, "Why country music?"
Rose-Lynn has just gotten out of prison. Headphones on, country playlist rolling, she immediately sets to getting her life plans back on track. Her plan is pretty simple. You see, she has a goal, a dream, a purpose...to get to Nashville to fulfill her destiny as a country music superstar.
Not everyone is completely onboard with her plan, like her mother, played by Julie Walters. She is expecting Rose-Lynn to focus more on her two children, who she has been taking care of while their mother was gone.
Rose-Lynn is young and gifted, but her plans on how to achieve her dream are often at odds with the responsibilities of raising two children.
Jessie Buckley, who plays Rose-Lynn, gives a transcendent, star-in-the-making performance, battling who she is for who she knows she's meant to be. She sings most of the country songs on the soundtrack, covers of country classics and original tracks for the film. The music is terrific. She is a beautiful singer, and an electric performer, seeing her perform a set at Glasgow's Grand Ole Opry will have you believing right along with her that country stardom is her fate. Seeing her struggle to do right by her children and pursue her own ambition will break your heart. Julie Walters will take you on a parent's journey, trying desperately to guide Rose with love and encouragement, but push her to take responsibility for her life, her choices, her children. There are so many points in the later stages of this movie where I thought they would fade to black, and they could have, and we would have still been left with a very good movie that admitted life's biggest questions don't have easy answers. Instead, the movie pushes through these would-be endings with determination and compassion, and by the time the credits roll, you have one of the most satisfying films I've seen in a long time, and just an absolutely can't miss story (whether you like country music or not!). I just adore this film, and can't wait to see more from the wild Rose who lit up the stage.