Americans know just a few Irish films like Commitments and series like Derry Girls. This has that same relatable story of young people finding their way.
The fictional band Sing Street itself has pretty good songs. They were charming, kind of Icicle Works or Modern English sounding.
The film actually starts off by teasing us with Motorhead and Clash songs, and with a skinhead kid as bully who then becomes a friend. You find yourself expecting the kids to form a Stiff Little Fingers type band.
Then some of the soundtrack almost wrecks it. Who they use as inspiration is laughable. Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, and Hall and Oates? It's the worst of the 80s, when almost literally every other band was so much better.
Joy Division/New Order. Bauhaus. Yaz/Alison Moyet. Tears for Fears. Echo and the Bunnymen. Siouxsie and the Banshees. The Fixx. Early U2. Big Country. The Alarm. Even the Smiths, though their singer became a whiny hateful bigot.
Any of these would be better or more believable choices. Siouxsie and Bauhaus each inspired hundreds of imitators and millions of teens worldwide. Duran2 inspired exactly zero people. That part of the story was clueless.
And they seriously expect us to buy a longhaired headbanger older brother who praises Duran or Spandau? I remember touring 80s rock acts back then who mocked the new romantics, and the audiences cheering their mockery. IRL a headbanger would sneer at them, even pick fights.
In the US, Spandau were one hit one wonders, widely mocked because of their pretentious clothes and sappy ballad as cheesy Sinatra wannabes. Duran were pretty boys posing as musicians, and loved/lusted after only by 12-14 year old girls. HO did "blue eyed soul" in the 70s. That means they were very weak white imitators compared to genuine soul like Sam Cooke or Aretha. Then they did irritating jingles passing as pop songs in the early 80s before their career took a nosedive around 1985.
It's still well worth watching, even if you will find yourself fast forwarding past the bad soundtrack choices to hear the better songs. A good story almost ruined by a third of the soundtrack being awful. Sing Street though, is a band you'll listen to.
ETA: I'm glad of the strong reactions to my review. The downvotes are amusing, that some bad 80s pop fans are so fragile. I like the higher than I expected number of up votes. Good to know some others feel the same.
The fictional band Sing Street itself has pretty good songs. They were charming, kind of Icicle Works or Modern English sounding.
The film actually starts off by teasing us with Motorhead and Clash songs, and with a skinhead kid as bully who then becomes a friend. You find yourself expecting the kids to form a Stiff Little Fingers type band.
Then some of the soundtrack almost wrecks it. Who they use as inspiration is laughable. Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, and Hall and Oates? It's the worst of the 80s, when almost literally every other band was so much better.
Joy Division/New Order. Bauhaus. Yaz/Alison Moyet. Tears for Fears. Echo and the Bunnymen. Siouxsie and the Banshees. The Fixx. Early U2. Big Country. The Alarm. Even the Smiths, though their singer became a whiny hateful bigot.
Any of these would be better or more believable choices. Siouxsie and Bauhaus each inspired hundreds of imitators and millions of teens worldwide. Duran2 inspired exactly zero people. That part of the story was clueless.
And they seriously expect us to buy a longhaired headbanger older brother who praises Duran or Spandau? I remember touring 80s rock acts back then who mocked the new romantics, and the audiences cheering their mockery. IRL a headbanger would sneer at them, even pick fights.
In the US, Spandau were one hit one wonders, widely mocked because of their pretentious clothes and sappy ballad as cheesy Sinatra wannabes. Duran were pretty boys posing as musicians, and loved/lusted after only by 12-14 year old girls. HO did "blue eyed soul" in the 70s. That means they were very weak white imitators compared to genuine soul like Sam Cooke or Aretha. Then they did irritating jingles passing as pop songs in the early 80s before their career took a nosedive around 1985.
It's still well worth watching, even if you will find yourself fast forwarding past the bad soundtrack choices to hear the better songs. A good story almost ruined by a third of the soundtrack being awful. Sing Street though, is a band you'll listen to.
ETA: I'm glad of the strong reactions to my review. The downvotes are amusing, that some bad 80s pop fans are so fragile. I like the higher than I expected number of up votes. Good to know some others feel the same.