sweet coming-of-age

Rating: 8/10 (31 December 2016)

It's 80's Dublin. Economy is bad and everybody is leaving for London. Conor Lawlor's parents are cutting back on costs and he's forced to attend the Christian Brothers School on Synge Street. He's picked on by school bully Barry Bray and Brother Baxter insists on black shoes. He's befriended by diminutive Darren Mulvey. He gets aspiring model Raphina to be his video vixen. Now, all he needs is a band so that he can shoot the video. His older brother has such sage advise as "No woman can truly love a man who listens to Phil Collins." and be "Happy-Sad".
This is one part nostalgia, one part sweet coming-of-age, and one part family dysfunction. All three are great and they work well together. The kids are great. The songs are alright. It needs a catchy tune like Once where it sells the movie. In the end, the songs are mostly amateurish like the characters themselves. The story touches all the right spots. It is sweet and sour. Above all, one really like these characters.