Sing Street (2016)

I see nobody’s started a thread on this yet, so I guess I’ll take the initiative.

I’m giving Sing Street an absolute recommendation; it’s a total hidden gem. It was directed by John Carney, who we already know from Once and Begin Again, so you could say he’s basically completed his musical trilogy here. It’s just this small, unpretentious, deeply personal piece of filmmaking from him, and honestly, it’s brilliant.

The film premiered at Sundance back in January 2016, and now the US theatrical release is finally rolling out. I actually managed to catch it a few days ago, and I’m completely blown away.

So, let's get this discussion moving. I'll start things off with the trailer, and I'll be dropping more stuff into the thread as I go. 🙂

trailer:


Here is the first clip - The Riddle of the Model:


IMDb:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3544112/

I am definitely planning on seeing this again. 🙂
The film has a great nod to Back to the Future, and there's even a mention of Star Wars in one of the song lyrics.

I really loved Once and Begin Again, so I'm definitely looking forward to this one.

Getting ready for the US premiere—it's been pushed back to April 22nd:

Check out the latest interview with Ferdia Walsh-Peel and Mark McKenna on "you and me this Morning":


The hype surrounding the film just keeps building. I guess the buzz is pretty much everywhere now.

They performed "Beautiful Sea" during the show:


And here’s how that song looks in the actual film—Ferdia is rocking a total David Bowie vibe:


The poster:

So, did you actually make it out to Sundance to see it?
I haven't been able to find a single theater here in the States showing the film, so I'm curious how you managed to track it down.

It just hit the torrent sites.

Noah Roberts46 said:It hit the torrent sites.

I appreciate the enthusiasm, I really do, but we should probably point out that watching stuff via torrents instead of hitting up the local AMC theater is basically illegal viewing. We really ought to be promoting legitimate ways to watch movies. Personally, I’m just sitting here waiting for the Blu-ray release in three weeks because this is a must-watch movie.

Honestly, your post kind of highlights a massive issue. People downloading torrent releases are starting to treat them like actual premieres—like if it isn't on a torrent site, it didn't even happen. I guess that goes against everything the cinematic medium is supposed to be about. It just ruins the anticipation and the whole ritual of watching a film; it turns movies into nothing more than fast food consumption.

I'll probably post some more info about this great film soon.

Look, people just don't have the time or the money, and I don't even have a cinema in my town.

It’s actually a really charming film; I enjoyed every single second of it. It does an incredible job capturing the relationship between time and music—that final concert song is pure genius. Honestly, the funniest part for me was when that bully finally leaves his house and flips off his parents. Personally, I liked it better than Once and Begin Again.

This film is just straight-up genius! Honestly, it’s easily my favorite film of the year so far, and I'd say it actually tops his previous two.

A columnist over at the Chicago Tribune just put Sing Street on his list of the best films of 2016

http://www.chicagotribune.com/entert...30-column.html

Ferdia and Mark are smoothing out the YouTube comments on the film 🙂

The link for Riddle of the Model from the earlier posts isn't working anymore, so here's a new one


Riddle of the Model at Sundance:

I’ve been blasting the soundtrack and singing that one Up song for days now—it's totally stuck in my head!

Riddle of the Model really stuck with me. It’s got that quintessential 80s vibe—the costumes, the performances, all of it. It serves as a solid foundation inspired by Phil Collins.😬

Good grief, what a cliché-ridden, sugary mess. It feels like Once was really the peak of Carney's work, because honestly, both Begin Again and now Sing Street feel pretty lackluster by comparison.

The film is watchable enough, I guess, but there's nothing special about it. The songs are incredibly weak—even weaker than the ones in Begin Again (Once is just several classes above these two, where the tracks are totally forgettable and monotonous). It’s disappointing, really; there are way too many sappy scenes and the characters are just pure stereotypes...

If you want a actually good film about a band, you're better off just rewatching The Commitments.

vivideagle7 said:Good grief, what a cliché, sugary mess. It's obvious Once was Carney's peak, because the mediocre Begin Again and now Sing Street are pretty weak by comparison.

The film is watchable, I guess, but nothing special. The songs are really weak—even weaker than Begin Again (Once is several classes better than those two, where the music is just forgettable and monotonous). It's disappointing, honestly. Way too many sappy scenes, and the characters are just total stereotypes...

If you want a good film about an American band, you're better off rewatching The Commitments.

To me, it's a masterpiece. All three are great, but Sing Street is the top for me. I simply adore this film. The soundtrack has been on repeat for weeks, and I bet Carney will be working on a musical soon, just like he did with Once.

Honestly, I thought Once was total garbage—just a super irritating film, so I didn't even bother with the second one. But this third one? It’s easily the best of the bunch.

Grace Sanchez50 said:I've been listening to the soundtrack and singing that Up song for days now

wow. Okay, here's my take on it:

The first time I saw the film in theaters, I thought Brown Shoes, Beautiful Sea, Drive it like you stole it and Riddle were the best parts. But then, seeing it a second time in the theater... I don't know, I suddenly noticed how phenomenal Up actually is—the music, the lyrics, the whole message. It’s everything. Even that one scene where they’re practicing in the room and the camera just spins through time until they finally hit that point where the whole band is tight and playing like pros. There's also that other version of Up called the bedroom mix. You know, those scenes where Cosmo is sitting on the beach in the wide shot. It's absolute cult classic material. Honestly, it could work as a poster too. The Blu-ray comes out in two weeks. cant wait.

And here is the first performance of Up. Seriously cool:

The songs are just so dull and uninspired, it’s actually painful...

It feels just like 95% of that whole British alternative rock scene back in the 80s.

vivideagle7 said:The songs are just boring and unoriginal... it's actually painful to listen to.

Which is pretty much true for 95% of that 80s British alternative rock scene.

All five of them are great if you ask me, and honestly, the soundtrack is original, catchy, and just magnetic. I mean, the film is picking up amazing reviews and ratings everywhere, and even musicians like Bono are impressed by how well the movie captured the era.
http://goodmenproject.com/arts/sing-...terpiece-jsnk/

Then again, like any film, it’s probably not for everyone.

vivideagle7 said:The songs are just boring and unoriginal, it’s actually painful...

Just like 95% of that whole British alternative rock scene back in the 80s.

Well, damn, that's literally what the film is about.

It’s okay, I guess—definitely weaker than Begin Again, and honestly? Way weaker than Once.