Sing (2016)

Sing (2016)

6/10

Starring the voice of

Matthew McConaughey

Reese Witherspoon

Seth MacFarlane

Scarlett Johansson

Directed by Garth Jennings

Sing is a fun movie with all the nostalgic events attached to the songs we love added to it. Illumination Entertainment have created another masterpiece animation from my point of view outside the Despicable Me franchise.

Illumination Entertainment has previously released in the same year The Secret Life of Pets, a movie I did not seem to fancy much, and I think it was a step down from the their 2015 Minions. The financial returns on The Secret Life of Pets has ensured the plans of a The Secret Life of Pets 2.

As we await a Despicable Me 3 (2017) and a Minions 2 (2022), Sing was a great interval. The movie’s voice casting was exceptional. The characters were memorable and Illumination did a great job in the back story of all the characters.

The animation gave life to each of its lead characters so while watching you do not get lost on why they are devoted in getting the task done and leave everything else they cared about to satisfy their need to sing and be free.

The storyline however is not eventful nor is it newish. You can guess your way through the movie as the events unfold you can see the familiarity between this any other musical based movie. Their use of anthropomorphic animals was welcomed as it added a colorful sight, as we see them manage their day to day lives in an exaggerated and yet funny setup.

The movie’s use of anthropomorphic animals may not step up to the Oscar Winning Zootopia (2016). Where Disney set a bar for such so high it will take a while to get the taste of such out of your mouth, not to mention the critical praise and box office returns they got from it, Sing tried to reach such a height, but did not quite make it.

The animation plot focuses on a Koala named Buster Moon who owns a theatre which is faced with financial crisis. Moon’s antics to keep the theatre going was getting him nowhere until he thought up an idea to make a musical, filled with people from a music competition he will organize.

His plan was to give a $1000 to the winner of such a competition, but his bumbling secretary messed up and added two more 00s to the prize money making it $100,000.

The lines for the competition went around the block before Moon found out the mistake, now Moon is trapped with making sure the competition goes well to save his theatre and raise the cash which he does not have for the winner.

His problem became more compounded with the performances selected to perform at the finale, as each of the performers had with them different baggage which can make or mar his plans.

Sing is a nice movie for the family to watch and I enjoyed watching the movie myself.