Thursday, January 12, 2017

Sing

DIRECTOR: Garth Jennings  VOICE CAST:  Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Seth MacFarlane, Scarlett Johansson, John C. Reilly, Taron Egerton, Tori Kelly  SCREENWRITER: Garth Jennings  PRODUCER: Chris Meledandri, Janet Healy  EDITOR: Gregory Perler  MUSIC: Joby Talbot  GENRE:  Animation, Musical Comedy  PRODUCTION COMPANY: Illumination Entertainment  DISTRIBUTOR: Universal Pictures  COUNTRY:  United States LANGUAGE: English  RUNNING TIME: 110 minutes
Technical assessment: 3.5
Moral assessment: 3
CINEMA Rating:  V13 with parental guidance
Buster Moon (Matthew McConaughey) has to do something to prevent the closure of the theater house that he has inherited from his father.  He thinks of hosting a singing competition to save the theater and to use his remaining little cash as a prize. He confides this plan to his bestfriend  Eddie Noodleman (John Reilly) who is equally supportive of the idea. But the assistant of Buster mistakenly types on prize amount from $1000 to $100,000.  This expectedly generates interests to many aspiring singers who flock to the audition and showcase their talents. Instead of amending the prize amount, Buster remains optimistic and scouts for sponsors to cover up for the lacking amount.
True to its title, Sing is a movie treat for both music and non-music lovers. It is an entertaining animated musical comedy with “personified” animal characters. The featured songs are a popular selection across decades, hence may be relatable to viewers of all ages.  Sing has a good narrative flow with coordinated sub plots and complementary musical score. Likewise, dialogues are spontaneous and meaningful. The actors behind the voices did an excellent job as demanded by the characters’roles, especially in projecting different emotions.


There is value in appreciation of God-given talents like singing and dancing as projected in Sing.  This serves as an inspiration for someone who is facing financial difficulties to regain losses by opening opportunities for others to showcase their singing talents.   Along with this noble intention in the character of Buster Moon is his determination to continue the legacy of his father and remain optimistic amidst disappointments and challenges.   Similarly, contestants come to join not only with their talents but with varying reasons and aspirations.  While pursuing dreams through talent showcase is a positive action, there are portions in the movie that depict misbehavior, like stealing electricity and money, lying to evade collectors, gender stereotyping, and inordinate leniency to the person who commits mistakes at work.  For this reason, children below 13 years old must be guided by adults, lest they think good intentions justify wrongdoing.