Sing Street

Dublin in the 1980s: 15-year-old Conor (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo) doesn't exactly lead a carefree life. His parents (Aiden Gillen & Maria Doyle Kennedy) are constantly fighting and since the recession also has a full grip on his family, he is taken from the expensive private school. Henceforth he must attend a public school on Synge Street, where on his very first day he makes the unpleasant acquaintance of strict mores and nasty classmates. But then he sees the slightly older Raphina (Lucy Boynton) across the street, who turns his head at first sight. In fact, Conor finds the courage to approach the girl and when she tells him she wants to be a model, he offers her the chance to be in his band's next music video. There's just one small problem: Conor doesn't have a band. That has to change as soon as possible.

Sing Street is John Carney's third musical directorial effort after Once and Can a song save your life. This time the focus is on the 80s lifestyle in what is again a very charming story. Admittedly, the whole thing is set in an Ireland marked by recession and political crises. Nevertheless, the film is not a dreary social drama. With a lot of humor and even more music, Carney tells a wonderful coming-of-age story about first great love and about the difficulty of finding one's own identity as a teenager. Especially viewers who grew up in the 80s will recognize themselves or someone from their circle of friends in one of the many endearing characters. Carney has perfectly succeeded in tracing this very special musical and fashionable era with a loving wink, while paying worthy tribute to some of the greats of the music scene at the time.

Carney's love of music is especially revealed here in that he succeeds well in showing how the right songs can help a person get through difficult times. Music as an expression of feelings - whether you just listen to it or make it yourself - is a hugely important catalyst that can help young people in particular get through many a crisis. When you can express yourself in this way, or when you hear the songs of someone who makes you feel understood, then broken hearts, problems at school, a lack of future prospects or even the separation of parents can simply be dealt with better. And that's exactly what Carney is able to illustrate perfectly in this film. With a lot of humor, some cruelly funny, but unfortunately very realistic fashion sins and songs that are once again extremely catchy, Sing Street hits the audience right in the heart and provides a comforting warmth there, which is then reflected in a satisfied smile.

Critics could accuse the film that it neglects the social problems in Dublin too much and that the film lacks profundity as a result. But since the protagonist is a teenager in love, this is absolutely authentic. Because for Conor, it's not his father's unemployment or his mother's affair that is the most important thing in life right now, but Raphina. And that's exactly why it's absolutely right that this is also the focus of the story and everything else is rather secondary. On the other hand, the fact that it doesn't take him and his friends long to become really good musicians might not really be realistic. However, it should not be forgotten that this is not a documentary but an extremely likeable fairy tale about first love - and there you don't have to take it so exactly with reality in all aspects.

Sing Street just offers nice, funny and heartfelt entertainment that allows you to escape reality for just under 100 minutes and just enjoy a wonderful story. The film is a wee bit like a John Hughes version of Carney's earlier films. Kids of the 80's and anyone who loves likeable coming-of-age movies should definitely not miss this one. Absolutely worth seeing

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp