You know what makes me sing the blues?
Sing Street, a 2016 comedy, coming-of-age, backstage musical, directed by John Carney. Carney pulled experiences from his childhood for the movie. The PG-13 film had innuendo and language, making it appropriate for teenagers and adults.
The story starts in Dublin in 1985, and focuses on teenager Conor Lawlor (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo), an aspiring songwriter. Conor asks an aspiring teenage model, Raphina (Lucy Boynton), to be in his band’s music video; the problem was Conor didn’t have a band. Would the main character get the girl and would his thrown-together band find success?
The original music was written in the style of the 80s. The film captured difficulties of the songwriting process, which added realism. The music was catchy, and not in an influenza kind of way, with tunes like “Drive It Like You Stole It.” Conor drew inspiration from his life. For example, he was inspired by Raphina, and wrote a song called “The Riddle of the Model.” The film also featured music by popular 80s musicians, like Duran Duran and Hall & Oates, for instance.
Connor faced conflict against the school administration, a bully, and his parents who are divorcing. He also struggled with his identity, as is common for coming-of-age films. The same went for Raphina. Connor’s brother struggles with having to push his dreams aside for his family.
The predictable acting made characters seem like caricatures.
*Spoiler Alert*
Guy goes after girl. Girl dates creep. Guy and girl have chemistry. Girl chooses the creep, but ends up changing her mind and goes after the good guy who she actually likes. How romantic and unexpected. *rolls eyes*
*End Spoiler Alert*
The actors didn’t have on-screen chemistry. Raphina seemed aloof, and Conor seemed more caught up in music than he did in her, which was strange since the reason he started a band was because of her.
Brendan, Conor’s brother (Jack Reynor), didn’t get enough screen time. He was outspoken, but cared about his family. He had dreams and was self-sacrificial. If he had more screen time, the film might have had more depth.
The set was like stepping in a time machine. Conor’s family gathering around the TV watching music videos, which were innovative at the time, captured the era. The teenagers’ music videos looked like cheesy 80s music videos. The costuming wasn’t over-the-top 80s, as some movies seem to go for the most extreme examples from a decade as they can.
I wasn’t blown away by lighting, except for one scene.
*Spoiler alert*
The band was filming a music video at school, and Connor was imagining the ideal music video being filmed and how everyone loved his band. Then the scene switches back to reality. During the imagined part, the lights flash on Conor as though he’s a celebrity. When it switches back to reality, which was not at all what he pictured, the lighting is more dull and pale.
*End Spoiler alert*
The film didn’t seem to have a deep meaning and wasn’t particularly entertaining. The plot didn’t have enough rising action or a good climax. It was one-dimensional. The only character that I cared about was Conor’s brother. The plot was weak and overdone. Some scenes, like one of the mothers turning on a sex toy, seemed bizarre and out-of-place.
If Sing Street had more of a build-up-climax-resolution kind of setup, if the characters weren’t flat, or if the acting was better, I might’ve been impressed. All-in-all, though, Sing Street was an interesting idea, but for a musical, it wasn’t note-worthy. B-.
10/11/17
Jenna Shackelford
poppingthequestionsreviews.wordpress.com 