Home Entertainment: ‘Kat and the Band’ review

The last few months have been a struggle for everybody. Whether you’ve suddenly found yourself trapped in your home, or you’ve been manning the front-line, it’s likely that you’re in the market for a good old-fashioned feel-good film. Now then, might be the perfect time for you to catch new digital release Kat and the Band. The film stars Anna and the Apocalypse‘s Ella Hunt, McFly’s Dougie Poynter, and Rufus Hound amongst others, and tells a classic tale of a young person trying to achieve their dream, and the pitfalls that they encounter along the way. Kat (Ella Hunt) is a sixth form student with a passion for live music. Much to the bemusement of her education-led and business focused mother, it is Kat’s dream to manage bands. When the perfect opportunity presents itself, Kat finds herself the manager for up-and-coming band Dollar Days. Things are not quite so straight forward though, as she fails to correct the band when they make the assumption that she’s a hot-shot manager who has been working in the industry for years. Before long, Kat finds finds herself juggling mock exams, an overbearing mother, and a busy tour schedule; can Kat pull it all off, or will everything come tumbling down?

Kat and the Band makes for very easy viewing, and taps into that spark that makes the likes of Eddie the Eagle, A Streetcat Named Bob, and Booksmart, so special. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what that is exactly, but in this case, that Ella Hunt is such a big component is certainly a key factor. As with her turn in Anna and the Apocalypse, Hunt is simply charming as the titular Kat. It’s not an easy thing to pull off as Kat isn’t, at first glance, the nicest of characters. She’s not nasty – that’s left for the college bullies – but she is definitely flawed by some rather selfish and self-centred traits. She’s one of those characters that is so driven by their dream that they don’t realise when they are taking loved ones for granted, or being thoughtless. Despite this, the audience find themselves allied with Kat, willing her to succeed. Maybe it’s because everybody has had an impossible dream at some point in their life, or maybe it’s that it’s clear her heart, if not her priorities, are in the right place.

Hunt also has great chemistry with her co-stars. There’s a nice subtle romantic undertone to the dynamic between Kat and Dollar Days bassist, Alex (Poynter); one that doesn’t go down the usual route that one would expect. The other core relationship is that between Kat and bestie Jane (Jennifer Leong), this one plays as a cross between Lady Bird‘s Lady Bird and Julie, and Booksmart‘s Molly and Amy. It’s a sweet central relationship that the film focuses on, and it’s refreshing to have the romantic plot bumped down in favour of honing in on a female friendship. There’s also a lot of mother-daughter in-fighting and eventual bonding that many women can relate to; Kat and her mother initially appear as polar opposites, but have more in common than they realise. Every character in this film has their place and function, and not one of them is wasted, which is a rare success for any film, let alone a little independent drama.

The other element that makes the film so watchable has to be the music. All the Dollar Days songs featured in the film are provided by real-life band, Some Velvet Morning, and it’s pure easy-listening bliss. The fact that songs by a pre-established band, rather than ones made-up for a pretend band, are featured helps add a layer of validity to the work, as does casting a well-known musician such as Dougie Poynter as one of the trio. The songs are infectiously catchy, and Some Velvet Morning are clearly set for an influx of new fans. The on-screen band, which features the aforementioned Poynter, work well on screen together, and importantly look like a band you would see down at your local music hall venue. Speaking of music venues, it’s a little strange seeing such places on screen, which generates a nostalgic pang for when they were this vibrant. Seeing London portrayed in its usual busy state also strikes an oddly emotional chord.

The overall plot isn’t the most original, the narrative follows a very tried and tested formula, but director E. E Hegarty injects so much warmth and charm into every frame that it will endear itself to the toughest cynic. A perfect feel-good film with a killer soundtrack, Kat and the Band is exactly the soothing balm that the world needs right now.

Kat and the Band arrives on Digital HD platforms on Monday 13th July.