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Sing Street (2016), PG-13, ★★★1/2

Let's go make some music.
Listening to music and loving music is one element of your lifestyle but creating original music and persuading people to enjoy it is a whole different ball game. I tried my hand at creating some musical flare and I did come up with one quickly but a few others not so much. When making music or a song, it's all about improvisation and rhythm that flows. But, having a theme of having the appreciation for music set in Dublin is a breath of fresh air because it is all about the journey, personal relationships and camaraderie. This is one of the few fresh and crowd-pleasing movies in a disappointing year so far. 

Back in Dublin, 1985, 15-year-old Conor Lalor (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo) is living with his parents, Robert (Aiden Gillen) and Penny (Maria Doyle Kennedy). They constantly bicker and argue as they are in financial strain, which inspires his lyrics. Robert announces during a family meeting that Conor will be put in a free state school than a current school. His brother, Brendan (Jack Reynor), who is a stoner dropout, makes some comments. 

Conor does not have a good first day at school as he being bullied by a kid named Barry (Ian Kelly), sort of a retread to A Christmas Story but he ultimately meets Darren (Ben Carolan). As the two leave school, Conor and Darren see a girl across the street named Raphina (Lucy Boynton) and even though she has no interest with the boys at school, she gets asked by Conor to be in the video. They sing a couple of lines and she joins. Conor and Darren say they should form a band. They recruit many kids: Eamon (Mark McKenna), a kid who is skilled at playing the bass guitar, Ngig (Percy Chamburuka), a keyboard master and Larry and Garry (Conor Hamilton and Karl Rice). They called their band "Sing Street" and make a few original and inspirational songs. 

And, they still keep making music. 
I enjoyed this movie a lot because even though it has a familiar concept, the movie takes turns into fresh territories that felt more nuanced and personal. There are a few scenes between Conor and Raphina that would not make it into standard Hollywood films because they would not fit but those scenes fit because they identified with the struggling stages of their lives. To redeem their personal problems, they celebrate by making music and enduring those memories. To me, this movie is a testament of youth, brotherhood and companionship. It is refreshing to know that this more of a character-driven narrative than a musical film because it was more impactful. 

All of the performances are great with Ferdia Walsh-Peelo heading the movie with a bit of gravitas and subtle teenage charisma. It is about the journey and challenge with this character as his character transforms throughout the film. His chemistry with Lucy Boynton is quite nice and different as they are both damaged both physically and emotionally. Their romantic development is old-fashioned and quite nice. Jack Reynor is great as the brother as he communicates with him his opinion regarding Conor's music. Plus, every character amongst the band has chemistry as they try to figure out their rhythm from their personality to their costumes. 

Director John Carey who has made the solid Begin Again and great Once has factored in another lovely poem about creativity and artistry regarding music itself but goes into directions that you have to sympathize with other characters. It is also another love letter to Dublin because if set in a different town, the movie would not have a fresh vibe. Even though the arc regarding its band is a bit predictable, the journey is still fun. The movie is quirky and nostalgic as the 80s music will definitely come up and maybe listen after the experience is over. Sing Street was such a pleasure to watch that it'll definitely put a smile on your face. 

***1/2


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