Sing Street is inspired by Irish writer/director John Carney’s life and love for music. In many ways it is a mosaic of the joy and sadness of 14-year-old Conor’s life (starring Ferdia Walsh-Peelo) in growing up and coming to terms with the world around him in 1980s Dublin, carried through with the insurmountable power of rock and roll. With genuine emotions yet comedic lens, Sing Street will have you humming the songs for days.
Conor wakes up to his parents on the brink of separation, the cutting sarcasm of his drop-out brother and a new public school with bullies and a tough headmaster. Yet, he also lights up at the sight of this girl on the sidewalk. Raphina, aspiring model, girl with the “dangerous” eyes and a cigarette dangling casually on her lips, would soon form the lyrics of his very first song as he struggles to form a band and include her in their music video.
The band members and their music genres may be eclectic, but the true rock and roll vibes are there. Coached by his brother Brendan who knows rock and roll is a risk, Conor experiments with writing lyrics and pouring his soul into the music. The Riddle of The Model, ‘Brown Shoes, Town Called Malice and Stay Clean are some of the songs you will want to replay after the movie, among other coming-of-age anthems.
His angst, his love for his crush, his pain and his rebellion — they ooze through his music. Conor does not hold back anymore. Instead of letting things happen to him, he makes them unfold in the ways he wants them to be.
Sing Street also makes several references about America through the prom night, the 80s music, the dream. The American dream feels as real to this Dublin teenager as perhaps all of us. The desire to break free, to find freedom in taking risks and letting go of his past and the blind optimism in life magically turn themselves around when Connor take action, proving that there is always a way to attain your wildest aspirations. Granted, it does not always turn out that way, but we need that, sometimes. Conor is the hero in his story, and rock and roll is his spirit.
