With this film, Carney cements himself as one the great musical directors of all time

Rating: 10/10 (26 July 2019)

I saw Once (Carney's first major film) about a year ago. I immediately purchased Begin Again and Sing Street from Amazon after completing it. I watched Begin Again about 2 days after it arrived. And I loved that film as well. But I delayed watching Sing Street for as long as I could. The reason was simple you can only watch a film for the first time once and I didn't want to rush seeing this man's work. I finally gave in and watched Sing Street last night. I am glad I waited and glad I gave in. Like Once and Begin Again, Sing Street is a brilliant film that fits comfortably within the musical genre while being atypical low-key and intimate.
Sing Street is a classic boy meets girl tale centered in Dublin in the mid-80's. A young artistic teenage struggle to find his voice while trying to woo a slightly older girl; their budding love is contrasted with the humanly dysfunctional home life of both and the strife of being in school. It has all the major story beats you expect. There is a bully character. There is a sequence of the straight-laced elders not understanding the teens artistic expression. The older libertine brother of the teen is a voice of wisdom and of warning. Carney's script, much like Begin Again being a reworked A Star is Born, conforms to the coming of age tale. What sets it apart is the details. It contains every story beat one would desire. It is has personal (it is clearly inspired by Carney's life) authentic vibe to it that makes the tropes real again.
But the glory of this film is the direction. The handheld quasi-documentary camera work-especially in the musical scenes-strips the artifice from the story and it truly makes you feel connected to these characters. The movie feels utterly real especially in the precise nature of the teen's naïve attempts to be creative. The direction is beguiling in how it makes spectacle out of intimacy. The film contains a very inventive camera pan that works as a time jump cut, it also has a in narrative fantasy sequence for one of its songs. It somehow manages to keep the film very close and low key but also bold and striking in its grandeur in both sequences. It turns the musical form back onto itself and completes the re-invention of the form started in Once.
The music is, of course, wonderful. It is by the same composer as much of the music from Once. It has the same raw but poignant energy to it. More than that it feels as if the characters are creating it. It has the youthful quality it should. It is good but unpolished. The simple elegance you would expect from a gifted teenage.
I adore this film so much.