Sing Street (2016)
Directed & Written by John Carney
Starring: Lucy Boynton, Maria Doyle Kennedy, Aidan Gillen, Jack Reynor, Kelly Thornton, Ferdia Walsh-Peelo
Plot Synopsis: (via IMDB)
A boy growing up in Dublin during the 1980s escapes his strained family life by starting a band to impress the mysterious girl he likes.
My Opinion:
I really enjoyed this movie! It’s nice to watch a feel-good, fun movie like this one. It was also nice to get a break from superheroes… I could’ve gone to X-Men: Apocalypse but just didn’t have the energy. I’m very glad that I saw Sing Street instead. I’d rank it very high on my list HERE of the 2016 movies I’ve seen.
I’ve not seen any other John Carney films. I’ve not seen Begin Again mainly because I really don’t like Keira Knightley plus Adam Levine is in it, right?? Ugh. If I see that stupid video where Maroon 5 are playing at various weddings ONE more time, I’m gonna puke! And I do want to see Once but I’ve been putting it off for years because it looks so indie & soooo singer-songwritery. I really need to be in the mood for that sort of thing before I watch it as it has the potential to annoy me. I already know, however, that Sing Street is the one for me.
Teenagers in 1985! With loads of my favorite 80’s music! Joe Jackson! Duran Duran! Hall & Oates! The Cure!!! This is MY era! I’m very happy that this movie had a mixture of well known 80’s songs as well as new songs written by the band in the film as I was afraid it would all be music that I didn’t know. But, hell – the songs by the band in the movie were really good anyway! Maybe a little too good to be fully believable from a group of 15-year-old boys… But who cares? This is one of those movies I enjoyed so much that I can ignore a few small imperfections. Yeah, the story is basic and a bit cliché & predictable. That really doesn’t bother me as long as a film is good, which this one is. I don’t want to pick it apart. I hate when people overanalyze a movie that’s just meant to be fun. I had a lot of fun watching Sing Street – there were more laughs than I was expecting, I cared about the characters & what would happen to them, there was just the right amount of drama without it being melodramatic, and the music was great. What more can we ask for from a movie?? 🙂
This movie is full of unknowns as far as I’m aware (I’ve not looked them all up). Well, except for the dad being played by Littlefinger. That was weird – seeing Game Of Thrones actors in other things is always a little distracting. Everyone did a good job & I really liked not knowing them all already. Our main character (the band’s singer) & the girl he falls for are adorable – I would imagine we’ll be seeing them in many more films after this one. The movie gets a decent balance between the different aspects of the boy’s life (his relationships with his family, the girl, the band, and other students & teachers in his new school). However, my favorite relationship was probably that with his older brother, played by Jack Reynor. Loved him! He’s the best thing about the movie. I’ve never seen him in anything before but apparently he was one of the possibilities for playing Han Solo? I hope to see him in more after this – he was a real highlight in this film.
Summary:
There’s not much more that I can say about Sing Street. I clearly thoroughly enjoyed it but I know that it’s very much my type of thing. I always like movies about bands but especially love them when they involve teenagers in the 1980s since I’ll always be able to relate to that (even when the movie is set in Dublin instead of small town America). It reminded me a lot of We Are The Best!, a Swedish movie from a few years ago about three girls in 1982 Stockholm who decide to form a punk band. Sing Street has the same sort of spirit as that film and I loved them both & can totally relate to the characters in both films despite them being set in different countries from the one where I grew up. What can I say? The language of music is universal. I highly recommend Sing Street to music lovers and to Eighties lovers.
My Rating: 8/10
**Don’t watch this clip if you like knowing nothing about a movie beforehand but there aren’t any spoilers in it or anything. This is the first song that the band in the movie writes (The Riddle Of The Model) & this clip shows them making a “video” for it. If you’re curious, it’ll give you a good idea of the vibe of the film. And it’s a catchy tune! 🙂
Surely a video clip made in 1980’s would have been in 4:3 picture ratio and not widescreen? 😉 😛
Nice review! Sounds like the sort of film I’d go for, especially as I’m a child of the 80’s too! 🙂
Lol. That sounds like a comment my hubby would make. ; ) Thanks! I think you’d probably enjoy this one! It’s a lot of fun. : )
Sounds like the soundtrack will be as good as the film.
I saw this on Monday and it was just so lovely and the soundtrack was incredible. Oh and I LOVED Brendan!
Yay! You know, I thought “Abbi would like this movie”. I was totally crushing on Brendan – he’s the true star of this one. : )
*pass
#pass
You’d love it!!!!!!
*you wouldn’t
#nope
; )
( ! )
#butts
I really enjoyed this too – had a smile on my face for most of it. The last two seconds of The Riddle Of The Model…inspired!
Looks like this one has a lot of fans! : ) It’s just so nice to see a feel-good movie like this sometimes. And Riddle of the Model has been stuck in my head for days!
I loved it too!
Yay! Looks like a lot of people did. Such a lovely film. And the songs are still stuck in my head. : )
Great review! I have been wondering about whether or not to check this out, but I think I will give it a watch sometime!
Thanks! I think you’d have fun with this one. It’s a hard one NOT to like. : )
great review! I rather like movies with bands in. Can turn out really great
Thank you! Yeah, I love movies with bands too. And this one is loads of fun. : )
Great review! I saw a trailer for this yesterday at the cinemas, it looks really good! I think we have to wait a while though before it comes to screens
If you enjoyed this sorta movie, I’d highly recommend We Are The Best. Its a Swedish movie about a group of young girls who want to form a punk band. Great movie, I reckon you’d like it as this sounds similar in some ways
Thanks! You should check this out when it’s available, it’s a lot of fun. : ) Especially if you liked We Are The Best (yes, this reminded me of that one. I loved that one & compared them in the final paragraph. Lol). ; )
oh I must’ve missed that comparison! That’s cool that you liked that movie, I thought it was great. Can’t wait for this to finally hit our screens
Hehe. That’s okay. This movie did definitely remind me of that one! So I think you should enjoy this. : )
Can’t wait till it hits our screens 😀
Sounds a bit like the Commitments. You really should watch Begin Again, it’s a lovely film and Adam Levine isn’t awful in it.
I suppose it’s a little bit like that. But I preferred this (probably because I love this kind of music). : ) Aw, MAN….. Do I HAVE to watch Begin Again?! ; ) Okay – I think it’s on Netflix so I may give it a chance now as I liked this one so much!
Still one of the best movies of 2016.
Agreed! : ) My very favorite of 2016 so far if I don’t count Room (which was 2016 in the UK).
I’m saving this for a rainy day!
It’s a perfect rainy day movie! It’s such a feel-good film. Hope you love it! : )
I’ve been waiting to see this but it looks like it’s not coming out in Finland… Or at least I think so. 😦 But I absolutely adored Begin Again, I felt like flying afterwards, it was total 5/5 movie and since I saw this one coming up, I got already excited. I’m so glad to hear everyone has liked it!
Oh, that’s a shame! I do hope you get to see it somehow as I imagine you’d really like it if you liked Begin Again. I loved Sing Street so I really should watch Begin Again now too! : )
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Ooo sounds pretty cool,it sounds like a movie i can just chill and enjoy. I’m just gonna have to wait for the july release!! Fun review 🙂 I’m getting that punk band feel.
Yep – it’s a great “fun” movie. : ) Not really punk band so much – they try several different styles but all 80’s pop. LOVED the music! I hope you enjoy it. : )
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