Movie Review: Sing (2016)

Stars: 3 out of 5

Pros: Fun singing, lots of action

Cons: A bit too many stories for a movie

The Bottom Line:

Animals singing

Too much story for the film

Kids will still enjoy

Competition to Save a Theater

I wasn’t that interested in seeing Sing when it first came out, but I had some friends tell me how good it was.  I tucked that away, still not rushing out to see it, but when I spotted it on TV, I decided to watch it.

All Buster Moon (voiced by Matthew McConaughey) has ever wanted is to own a theater.  His dream has come true, but the problem is, his not very good as a theater manager.  In fact, his theater is so in debt that he’s about to lose it.  His only hope is one last, hugely successful show.  And, he’s come up with the perfect idea.  He’s going to host a singing competition, pulling people from the local area.  This will give him a huge audience to draw from to sell tickets to the show.  But will it work?

Keep in mind that Sing is set in a world of animals.  So Buster is a koala.  Among his contestants are a pig, an elephant, and a gorilla.  It adds some fun to the movie.

If you are looking for huge plot surprises, this isn’t the movie for you (which is true of many animated movies, I’ll admit).  I had the big picture figured out early, although there were a few complications that I hadn’t expected along the way, and I was pulled into the story to see how they’d reach the ending I was expecting.  Still, the plot is enjoyable, and kids will love it.

My problem was that the movie tried to focus on too many characters.  In addition to Buster, we spend quite a bit of time with about half of the contestants, and they are all given their own arc.  That might work in a TV show, but in a movie that runs under two hours, it keeps us from getting to know all of the characters well.  I just couldn’t quite get invested in them the way I wanted to.  I cared a bit about the outcome, but I wanted to care more.

But kids probably won’t care about that.  They’ll be drawn in by the animals, who are a lot of fun.  With so many storylines to balance, the pace is fast, which will also appeal to them.

And adults?  They’ll have a lot of fun listening for the bits and pieces of music used in the movie.  I got a kick out of seeing who would be singing which song next as the story unfolded.  They probably won’t enjoy it as much as their kids do, but it is entertaining.

The voice cast is extremely impressive, with the likes of Reese Witherspoon, Seth MacFarlane, Tori Kelly, and Jennifer Hudson working to bring the characters to life.

This isn’t a movie I’m going to want to sit down and watch often, but I’m glad I watched Sing.  Kids will definitely enjoy it more than their parents, and since they are the intended audience, that’s okay.