Dolly Parton the Songbird
Singer Leanna Taylor (Dolly Parton) has been doing the same sort of songs for a long time thanks to her boyfriend/ manager who feels that whilst new material would be good it has to fit in with what the band already plays. So when a new member of the band comes up with a new song it upsets the apple cart especially as he falls for Leanna and thinks that she deserves to have a bigger career than just touring around the same clubs and being held back the whole time. To add to the confusion is out of the blue she receives a call from her mother to tell her that her father has died, a father who was the reason for Leanna leaving home all those years earlier.
To simplify "Blue Valley Songbird" it is the story of Leanna, how as a child she had to deal with an abusive, controlling father and having escaped him finds herself in another controlling situation with a boyfriend who as her manager tells her what to do. The story is very much how through the encouragement of a new band member and his affection she gets the courage to break free and try and become the star she could be whilst healing old wounds with her mother in the process. As I said that is the simplified version and there is more plot than just that but it is the basis and it is an okay basis for some drama.
But the reason why "Blue Valley Songbird" works is thanks to Dolly Parton as she is sweet, beautiful, charming, funny, maternal and we get to hear her beautiful voice over and over thanks the plethora of songs which appear in the movie. The truth is that Dolly Parton brings with her so much goodwill that many of the movies flaws, such as some erratic camera work can be over looked because you end up mesmerised by Dolly's looks, voice and personality.
What this all boils down to is that "Blue Valley Songbird" is really just an okay movie but for fans of Dolly Parton it is a lot more entertaining thanks to so many scenes of her singing. Without what Dolly brings to the movie it would be slow, hard work.
