Directed and Written by : John Carney
Starring : Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, Lucy Boynton, Jack Reynor, Mark McKenna,
Release Date : March 17, 2016
As far as modern movie musicals go, with "Once," "Begin Again," and now "Sing Street," Director / Writer John Carney seems to be hitting all the right notes for me to fall in love with his films. It's true that there's a typical theme that runs through his movies, usually involving people who are discovering what they can achieve through writing and performing songs, there's an unrequited love, there are some obstacles to overcome, and at the end it's established that music has the power to elevate the characters to great new heights in their lives.
While it's easy to criticize the movie for being predictable and expected, the story and characters are much too charming to hold that fault against the film. This coming-of-age story about a boy who starts a band for the sole purpose of getting a girl's attention, is innocently appealing to watch. It has a good sense of humor that revolves around awkwardness and familiar adolescent experiences that's just enjoyable to see play out in this story. There are also some dramatic plot points that surround the core entertaining premise to give the story just a little bit more gravitas to put things into perspective.
Ferdia Walsh-Peelo as Conor Lalor does a fantastic job as our protagonist who becomes this young rock musician that is simply easy to root for. Lucy Boynton does a great job as Raphina, the more-than-meets-the-eye girl that Conor is attracted to, who ends up inspiring him to better himself as a person. Jack Raynor as Conor's older brother Brendan steals the movie however with his enjoyably witty one-liners and encouraging words of wisdom. Of course, a major highlight of this movie are the original songs that pay tribute to the sounds of the 1980s, and it's entertaining to listen to music that sounds similar to something Duran Duran or The Cure would make.
At initial glance, "Sing Street" may not appear to be a film that everyone needs to watch, but there's a universal appeal about it that just might hit all the right chords among the movie audience. I may be biased towards liking John Carney's works, and I did immediately purchase the soundtrack after watching it, but I encourage everyone to see this.
LOVED IT enjoyedititsokayitsmehitsterrible
