''Sing Street'' is a 2016

coming-of-age Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the change. It can be a simple legal convention or can b ...

comedy-drama film written and directed by John Carney from a story by Carney and Simon Carmody. Starring Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, Lucy Boynton, Maria Doyle Kennedy,

Aidan Gillen Aidan Murphy (born 24 April 1968), better known as Aidan Gillen (), is an Irish actor. He is the recipient of three Irish Film & Television Awards and has been nominated for a British Academy Television Award, a British Independent Film Award, ...

Jack Reynor Jack Reynor (born 23 January 1992) is an Irish-American actor. His notable roles include the films '' What Richard Did'', '' Transformers: Age of Extinction'', ''Glassland'', ''Macbeth'', '' Sing Street'', and '' Midsommar'', as well as the ser ...

and

Kelly Thornton Kelly Thornton (born 13 April 1997) is an Irish actress who began her career as a child actress. She is best known for her roles as Corrina Mallon in the 2015 RTÉ drama '' Clean Break'' and Emma in the film ''Life's a Breeze'' (2013), which ea ...

, the story revolves around a boy starting a band to impress a girl in 1980s Ireland. It is an international co-production among producers from Ireland, the United Kingdom and the United States. The film had its world premiere at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,6 ...

on 24 January 2016. It was released in Ireland on 17 March 2016, in the United States on 15 April and in the United Kingdom on 20 May. The film received positive reviews from critics, grossed $13 million worldwide on a $4 million budget, and was nominated for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy at the

74th Golden Globe Awards The 74th Golden Globe Awards, honoring the best in film and American television of 2016, was broadcast live on January 8, 2017 from The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California beginning at 5:00 p.m. PST / 8:00 p.m. EST by NBC. ...

Plot

In inner-city south Dublin in 1985, Robert Lawlor struggles with his architecture practice and his marriage, and drinks and smokes to excess. At a family meeting, he announces he is taking his youngest son Conor out of his expensive school and moving him to a Christian Brothers school, Synge Street CBS, which Robert asserts is of equally high repute. Conor's older brother Brendan ribs him about the change as well as about the state of the family unit. Conor appears in his new uniform but without the regulation black shoes. The school principal, Br. Baxter, chastises him despite Conor's pleas of being unable to afford new shoes. To avoid going shoeless, he paints his shoes black. An encounter with the school bully, Barry, introduces Conor to Darren, an ally and budding entrepreneur. When Conor recruits aspiring model Raphina for a music video, Darren agrees to manage his band and introduces him to multi-instrumentalist Eamon. The band practices in Eamon's living room, playing covers until Brendan encourages him to develop the band's own style. He writes original songs with Eamon, describing themselves as "futurists". The band films their first music video wearing comical costumes; Raphina acts as

ingénue The ''ingénue'' (, , ) is a stock character in literature, film and a role type in the theater, generally a girl or a young woman, who is endearingly innocent. ''Ingénue'' may also refer to a new young actress or one typecast in such rol ...

and makeup artist. Conor goes into school the next day wearing make up, and Brother Baxter forcibly removes it. Raphina gives Conor his nickname "Cosmo", which she says is more in keeping with his new band's image. After spending the day filming a music video for a new song, Conor and Raphina kiss. Conor also stands up to his bully, Barry by pointing out the insignificance of both their lives, which greatly upsets Barry. Robert and Penny's marriage falls apart while Raphina and Conor's relationship blossoms. Conor takes Raphina out to Dalkey Island in his granddad's motor cruiser. Here, they view the car ferry leaving

Dún Laoghaire Dún Laoghaire ( , ) is a suburban coastal town in Dublin in Ireland. It is the administrative centre of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown. The town was built following the 1816 legislation that allowed the building of a major port to serve Dubli ...

for the UK and discuss Raphina's dream of leaving Ireland for

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. Conor, Raphina and the band prepare to film a ''

Back to the Future ''Back to the Future'' is a 1985 American science fiction film directed by Robert Zemeckis, and written by Zemeckis and Bob Gale. It stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Crispin Glover, and Thomas F. Wilson. Set in 19 ...

''-inspired music video for their new song, but Conor is disheartened when Raphina fails to show up. She reveals that she was set to leave for London with her boyfriend, but he abandoned her. Hurt by her lack of disclosure and offended by her nonchalance, Conor breaks up with Raphina. Because of the break-up and his family's problems, Conor finds difficulty in writing or playing music, but Brendan urges Conor to continue so he can make a better future for himself. Penny and Robert announce to the family that they are getting legally separated and selling the house. Penny plans on moving in with her affair and boss, Tony, whilst Robert plans on getting a small apartment. They will share custody. An opportunity arises for the band to play live at an end-of-year party at school. Conor strikes up a friendship with Barry, offering him the chance to be the band's roadie and escape his abusive family. Conor prepares a new song mocking Baxter, which the band perform as an encore while distributing homemade masks of Baxter's face. Raphina arrives before the band finishes and reconciles with Conor. Both of them leave the party and the school in uproar. After secretly saying goodbye to his family later that night, Conor and Raphina persuade Brendan to drive them to Dalkey, so they can escape in the motor cruiser and head to London. Brendan agrees and drives them to the harbour, where Brendan and Conor embrace. Conor and Raphina sail out to sea, following the ferry across the rough

Irish Sea The Irish Sea or , gv, Y Keayn Yernagh, sco, Erse Sie, gd, Muir Èireann , Ulster-Scots: ''Airish Sea'', cy, Môr Iwerddon . is an extensive body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Ce ...

to a new life in London. Brendan watches them disappear into the distance and cheers, overjoyed that his younger brother has left to go on to greater things.

Cast

Production

Development

In February 2014, it was announced that John Carney would be directing the film, from a screenplay he wrote about a boy starting a band in order to impress a girl. Carney would produce through his Distressed Films banner, along with Anthony Bregman through his Likely Story Banner, Kevin Frakes for PalmStar Media, and Raj Brinder Singh for Merced Media Partners, with

Paul Trijbits Paul Trijbits is a Dutch-born film and television producer living in London, with his wife Patricia and children Jakob and Lea. Career Before joining the UK Film Council, Paul Trijbits produced a number of feature films including Richard Stan ...

and Christian Grass for FilmWave. The film is a semi-autobiographical depiction of Carney's upbringing in Dublin.

Casting

Sing Street cast at Dublin International Film Festival

In a July 2014 interview, Carney announced he would be casting unknown actors in the film. The unknown actors turned out to be Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, Ben Carolan, Mark McKenna, Percy Chamburuka, Conor Hamilton, Karl Rice, and Ian Kenny. In September 2014, it was announced that

, Maria Doyle Kennedy and

had joined the cast of the film, portraying the role of Conor's father, mother and brother respectively.

Filming

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as a ...

on the film began in September 2014 in Dublin and concluded on 25 October 2014. Its namesake school, Synge Street CBS, was among the shooting locations for the film.

Music

Much of the original music by the band "Sing Street" was composed by Danny Wilson frontman Gary Clark, with Carney, Ken and Carl Papenfus of the band

Relish A relish is a cooked and pickled product made of chopped vegetables, fruits or herbs and is a food item typically used as a condiment to enhance a staple. Examples are chutneys and the North American relish, a pickled cucumber jam eaten with ho ...

, Graham Henderson and Zamo Riffman also receiving writing credits.

Adam Levine Adam Noah Levine (; born March 18, 1979) is an American singer and songwriter. He serves as the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the pop rock band Maroon 5. Levine began his musical career in 1994 with the band Kara's Flowers, of which ...

co-wrote (with Carney and

Glen Hansard Glen Hansard (born 21 April 1970) is an Irish singer-songwriter, musician and actor. Since 1990, he has been the frontman of the Irish rock band The Frames, with whom he has released six studio albums, four of which have charted in the top ten ...

) and sings on the track "Go Now". The film also features music of the period from

The Cure The Cure are an English rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith has remained the only constant member. The band's ...

a-ha A-ha (usually stylised as ''a-''h''a''; ) is a Norwegian synth-pop band formed in Oslo in 1982. Founded by Paul Waaktaar-Savoy (guitars and vocals), Magne Furuholmen (keyboards, guitars and vocals), and Morten Harket (lead vocals), the band ...

Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer and bassist Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor. With the addition of drummer Roger Taylor the following year the band wen ...

The Clash The Clash were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave music, new wave moveme ...

Hall & Oates Daryl Hall and John Oates, commonly known as Hall & Oates, are an American pop rock duo formed in Philadelphia in 1970. Daryl Hall is generally the lead vocalist; John Oates primarily plays electric guitar and provides backing vocals. The two ...

Spandau Ballet Spandau Ballet () were an English new wave band formed in Islington, London, in 1979. Inspired by the capital's post-punk underground dance scene, they emerged at the start of the 1980s as the house band for the Blitz Kids, playing "European D ...

The Blades A blade is a sharp cutting part, for instance of a weapon or tool. Blade or Blades may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Blade (character), a Marvel Comics character ** Blade (New Line franchise character) ** B ...

and

The Jam The Jam were an English mod revival/ punk rock band formed in 1972 at Sheerwater Secondary School in Woking, Surrey. They released 18 consecutive Top 40 singles in the United Kingdom, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in December ...

Soundtrack

The soundtrack album was released by

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American Decca's president. ...

on 11 March 2016.

Release

In February 2014, it was announced that FilmNation Entertainment had been selected to sell international rights to the film. In May 2014, it was announced

The Weinstein Company The Weinstein Company (usually credited or abbreviated as TWC) was an American independent film studio, founded in New York City by Bob and Harvey Weinstein in March 2005. TWC was one of the largest mini-major film studios in North America prio ...

had acquired U.S distribution rights to the film, for $3 million. The film had its world premiere at the

on 24 January 2016. The film screened at the Dublin Film Festival on 18 February 2016, and at

South by Southwest South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, ...

on 11 March 2016. The film was released in Ireland on 17 March, and in the United Kingdom on 20 May 2016. It was released in the United States on 15 April 2016.

Home media

The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray on 8 August 2016.

Reception

Box office

''Sing Street'' grossed $13.6 million. In the United States, the film made $63,573 from five theatres in its opening weekend, an average of $13,796 per venue.

Critical response

Review aggregator

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

reported an approval rating of 95% based on 214 reviews, with an average rating of 8/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "''Sing Street'' is a feel-good musical with huge heart and irresistible optimism, and its charming cast and hummable tunes help to elevate its familiar plotting." On

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

, the film has a weighted average score of 79 out of 100 based on 38 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by PostTrak gave the film a 96% overall positive score and an 85% "definite recommend". Guy Lodge of

Variety.com ''Variety'' is an American media company owned by Penske Media Corporation. The company was founded by Sime Silverman in New York City in 1905 as a weekly newspaper reporting on theater and vaudeville. In 1933 it added ''Daily Variety'', based ...

gave the film a positive review, writing "Perched on a tricky precipice between chippy kitchen-sink realism and lush wish-fulfilment fantasy, this mini-'' Commitments'' gets away with even its cutesiest indulgences thanks to a wholly lovable ensemble of young Irish talent and the tightest pop tunes—riffing on Duran Duran and the Cure with equal abandon and affection—any gaggle of Catholic schoolboys could hope to write themselves. Given the right marketing and word of mouth, this Weinstein Co. release could ''Sing'' a song of far more than sixpence." In ''The Observer'',

Mark Kermode Mark James Patrick Kermode (, ; ; born 2 July 1963) is an English film critic, musician, radio presenter, television presenter and podcaster. He is the chief film critic for ''The Observer'', contributes to the magazine ''Sight & Sound'', pre ...

gave the film four out of five stars, writing: "When it comes to capturing the strange, romantic magic of making music, few modern film-makers are more on the money than John Carney." He added, "The bittersweet, 'happy sad' drama that follows has drawn inevitable, if misguided, comparisons with ''The Commitments'', yet tonally this is closer to the teen spirit of Todd Graff's 2009 film ''

Bandslam ''Bandslam'' is a 2009 American musical romantic comedy drama film directed by Todd Graff who co-wrote the screenplay with Josh A. Cagan. The film stars Aly Michalka, Vanessa Hudgens, Gaelan Connell, Lisa Kudrow, Scott Porter, Ryan Donowho, an ...

''...or even Richard Linklater’s sublime ''

School of Rock ''School of Rock'' (titled onscreen as ''The School of Rock'') is a 2003 comedy film directed by Richard Linklater, produced by Scott Rudin, and written by Mike White. The film stars Jack Black, Joan Cusack, Mike White, and Sarah Silverman. ...

''. As Carney has proved previously, he knows how to straddle the line between the sound in the room and the sound in your head – a sequence that segues from bedroom composition to living room rehearsal (with tea and biscuits) to full studio production perfectly negotiates the space between kitchen-sink realism and musical fantasy in which this lovely, lyrical movie casts its spell". Kermode concluded by saying, "Happy sad indeed. I laughed, I cried, I bought the soundtrack album."

Accolades

Stage adaptation

''Sing Street'', like Carney's film ''

Once Once means a one-time occurrence. Once may refer to: Music * ''Once'' (Pearl Jam song), a 1991 song from the album ''Ten'' * ''Once'' (Roy Harper album), a 1990 album by Roy Harper * ''Once'' (The Tyde album), a 2001 debut album by The Tyd ...

'', was adapted for stage as a musical, also called ''Sing Street''. The screenplay was adapted by

Enda Walsh Enda Walsh (born 1967) is an Irish playwright. Biography Enda Walsh was born in Kilbarrack, North Dublin on February 7, 1967. His father ran a furniture shop and his mother had been an actress. He is the second youngest of six children. Wa ...

(who also wrote the book for the musical ''

'') and the production was directed by Rebecca Taichman. The show premiered at

New York Theatre Workshop __NOTOC__ New York Theatre Workshop (NYTW) is an Off-Broadway theatre noted for its productions of new works. Located at 79 East 4th Street between Second Avenue and Bowery in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, it hou ...

on 16 December 2019 after extensive workshops. The musical was set to premiere at the Lyceum Theatre in previews on 26 March 2020 and officially on 19 April. but it suspended its production due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

. Nevertheless, a cast recording featuring the original Broadway cast was released on 22 April 2020.

References

External links