Sing

An immensely enjoyable & likeable animated comedy, Garth Jennings' Sing is extremely entertaining to children and adults. The film may not, however, leave a lasting impression as the tale of a singing competition and its animal competitors does little to stand out. Characters are cute, and voice-talent is strong; but both the narrative and the animation lack depth. Sing is fun, but it rarely hits any high notes.

There have seemingly been a wave a very solid animation movies within the last few years or so. Sing is quite a different animation film since the basic is about singing. Initially did not expect this film to be great, funny or interesting but upon viewing, there was something different in both style and originality with this film.

What makes this film work is not only the singing (there are a blend of older songs and newer ones of different genres) but the different type of characters, and how each main animal character is given a backstory and subplot.

For a family/children film it works- the comedy is juvenile, the visuals are nice to look at and it sends a positive message. Exceeded expectations, anticipating Sing 2.

This date night was going to be an unexpected twofer. First on our list we saw La La Land and just loved it so we stuck to the musical genre and next on our list was the lighter side of comedy with the animation feature Sing. Neither Mrs. Shullivan or I are fans of 3-D films but this was the only format being offered at 10:00 PM so we went for it. It took me about 15 minutes to adjust to the 3D format even though I have tried it a few times before, and my opinion has not changed. In my opinion the 3D format does not add any value to a film and by the sparse theater crowd I assume most are in agreement with me. Producers have attempted the 3D format for more than 60 years now with little success and I will be glad when the format is abandoned and the editors rely on content quality and not CGI.

The film Sing is great and it will appeal to a vast crowd from the age of 3 to 103. After I had adjusted to the 3D format and we got to know the animal characters and the story line I for one just forgot that it was an animated feature and I sat back and watched the film progress in a very positive light. There are some big name stars lending their voices and I am sure they are proud of their finished product.

Buster Moon (Matthew McConaughey) owns a theater for live performances that lately he has been unable to sustain paying his debts so the bank is after him to pay up or the bank will repossess Buster's dream theater. Buster's late father had worked extremely hard in his car wash across the street from the theater to fulfill Buster's dream to open the theater and Buster needed to pull off the biggest hit of his life if he were to keep his dream theater out of the bankers grasp. Each of the animal characters has a story to tell. Each of the animal characters also has a great voice and a personal life that the winning prize money if they were to win the sing off would take care of.

The plot is simple so the children should be able to follow along relatively easy, all the animated animal characters were adorable. There are also some bad guys besides the bankers who want their hands on the prize money, and this just adds more humor and excitement to this cute little animated feature.

The songs were great, the story line very heartwarming, and the animated characters were all cute and cuddly. Mrs. Shullivan and I ended our date night on a high note for this twofer evening. I give the film an 8 out of 10 rating, taking two points off for making me watch the film in 3D which did nothing to enhance this viewers experience.

If you like this review I also wrote one on the first film we saw tonight which was La La Land.

I knew I was in for a good music movie when the first song gave me chills.

I went into this movie expecting lots of songs and gags, and they are there, but I didn't expect to start caring about the characters and their stories. SING brings together a talented cast and writers for a movie that transcends some of the animated movies out there. The whole family loved it so feel free to bring anyone from 5 on up. Even the younger ones may enjoy it when it's available at home.

Every voice actor delivers and the animators nailed it. The pacing and directing are also very well done. In fact, I could have done with even more of the "auditions" at the beginning.

'SING': Four Stars (Out of Five)

The new hit computer-animated comedy musical; about a bunch of anthropomorphic animals that enter a singing competition, hosted by a koala bear that's trying to save his theater. It was written and directed by Garth Jennings (who also helmed 2007's 'SON OF RAMBOW', and 2005's 'THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY'), and it was co- directed by Christophe Lourdelet (a veteran animator, and first time filmmaker). It stars the voice talents of Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Seth MacFarlane, Scarlet Johansson, Taron Egerton, Tori Kelly, John C. Reilly, Nick Kroll, Jennifer Saunders and Jennings himself. The movie received mostly positive reviews from critics, and it's a blockbuster at the Box Office. I enjoyed it quite a bit.

The story is set in a world inhabited entirely by humanoid animals. Buster Moon (McConaughey) is a hard working koala; who owns a classic theater, which hasn't been doing well financially (in quite some time). Buster is extremely optimistic that he can save it though, if he puts on a singing contest. When the $1,000 prize money is accidentally advertised as $100,000, many animals are eager to audition. Buster is determined to press on, despite not having the reward money that's promised. Multiple talented misfits ambitiously pursue their dreams, by participating in the competition.

I'm not a big fan of most animated kids' films, these days, but this is one of the better ones. It's entertaining, beautiful to look at, and it's pretty emotional, at times, and inspiring as well. The music is all catchy, and fun to listen to, and the voice cast all does a good job. The film is funny, without being too overly silly too. I really enjoyed it, and I think most kids will as well.

Watch our movie review show 'MOVIE TALK' at: https://youtu.be/xGBv2IpDjDc