Sing

Hayao Miyazaki compares filmmaking to assembling a Christmas tree. You create a structure - a story - then decorate it with tinsel and baubles and lights - these are the jokes and set pieces and especially in this case songs. The problem with Sing isn't a lack of story - there's way too much - but it's so thin that it can't support the decoration, and so what you end up with is a pile of shiny shit on the floor.

In the trend of Hollywood choosing small time indie directors to bully into making movies by committee, Sing is directed by Brit Garth Jennings, who did Son of Rambow and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. You can see some of his touches and the way it's edited is interesting and fun in lots of places. It's technically, visually pleasing in the way it's shot, despite sub-Disney character design. The committee must meddle, however.

It seems like instead of trying to make a good film, they tried to make a good trailer, with as many crazy animal characters and songs as possible to appeal to the widest audience. There are too many characters who share equal amounts of screen time for you to get to know and care about them, or laugh at their antics. For a film about singing and music there aren't any particularly stand out musical performances, and it's not really about any kind of music in the same way that something like School of Rock is. It would have been nice if they'd talked about music, how rock or jazz made them feel. But that's too specific and risks alienating children.

I wouldn't say a film produced by Sony's Illumination would ever disappoint me but it's kinda sad to see a talented, small-time, British indie directer make such a nothingy film. Apart from the small directorial flourishes and a few laughs, it's too vague, light and unfocused to be enjoyable, favouring quantity over quality story.