Back when I first started writing reviews in 2014, an early
entry I came across was John Carney’s Begin
Again, a film that I was left mostly underwhelmed by due to its skeletal
plot that existed purely for the exhibition of some pretty damn good original
music. Writer-director Carney is back
again with Sing Street, and it seems
as though he has taken the lessons of his previous film to heart, because this
movie not only feels like a fresh start for the director, but he delves into
some deeply personal territory to tell a touching and memorable musical drama
that should bring him some much deserved acclaim from critics and audiences
alike.
Set in 1985 Dublin, Carney tells a semi-autobiographical
tale through his fourteen year old protagonist, Conor. Conor lives with his constantly fighting
parents and has only his older college-dropout brother to look to for guidance
and companionship. In order to save
money, Conor’s parents pull him out of his school in order to attend a less
prestigious Catholic academy, where he is the target of bullying from both a fellow student
and a headmaster who is not so subtly implied to be a child molester. One day, though, he sees a girl across the
street, whom he develops an instant infatuation for. He tells her that he has a band and that he wants
her to model for him in a music video.
She agrees, but there’s just one problem: Conor doesn’t have a band yet.
In short order he manages to assemble some of the school’s
misfits into the semblance of a musical group, and they start out undeniably
rough, mimicking the artists that influence them without much of a sound to
call their own. However, as time goes on
and the boys practice with one another, the music starts to take shape, first
as tributes to their inspirations but eventually as a sound of their very own,
which by the way is some of the best original music I’ve heard in a film for a
while now. Carney has a unique gift for
conveying the fun and energy of writing music, and watching Conor and his band
develop over the course of the film is engaging on a musical level and, more importantly, as a
demostration of Conor's coming of age.
And it works so well as a coming of age story that it’s
pretty forgivable that no character is well developed as Conor or his love
interest, Raphina. Due to the
autobiographical nature of the story, Conor’s perspective is limited, yet the
movie doesn’t enter the too-easy pitfall of making Raphina a one-dimensional
object to lust after. She’s enigmatic at
first, yet eventually reveals enough personal motivation and insecurity to
stand on equal footing with the film’s lead, and the chemistry the two share
feels like a genuine expression of young love.
It’s rooted in an awkward sense of humor that the film exudes
throughout, a sense that these kids could have been people we grew up with and that
their slightly uncomfortable mannerisms and speech patterns aren’t too far off
from how we were at their age.
All in all, Sing
Street is a pretty damn entertaining film.
With some fantastic lead performances, a cheeky sense of humor, and some
incredibly catchy music, John Cagney has established that he can do more than
assemble a series of music videos into a feature length amalgamation,
ironically enough by making a movie about kids making a series of music
videos. This is definitely one to seek
out in a theater wherever you can find it, and then buy the soundtrack to keep
the memory of the experience alive. Which
reminds me, I have an iTunes purchase to make….
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