Musical Mondays Off-Week 2 (Tomspanks' Choice)

[firsttimecallerlongtimelistenr 3590]

clicked in here by mistake. you know i hate musicals but i saw ye were talking about sing street. i guess sing street proves there's an exception to every rule. i loved it. i talked about it before, how i grew up in 80's ireland, went to a CBS, had the older brother who introduced me to all things music ... i loved it.

 

ireland was a different place in the 80s. our biggest export was young people. my generation was the first to see a real future in ireland. to get to go to college, to get a proper paying career job. i worked on building sites for a while and the stories the older lads would tell about having to leave home at 18 to head to london ... to head to new york ... that ferry crossing in the film was the norm. those stories were heartbreaking. and then similar things happened after 1998. only instead of the ferry it was planes to every part of the world. i actually got abit emotional during it. not just the nostalgia to my childhood but the memories of friends who are in america now, or australia. they're all living amazing lives but i wish they were able to live here.

 

anyways, moving on to the reason i am writing this... john carney is only 4 years older than my brother so they would have grown up listening to the same music and one of the bands my brother listened to alot, which meant i listened to alot, was U2. Ive seen sing street a couple of times now and basically, as far as im concerned, the band in sing street is U2. the edge was a musical genius ... bono and his relationship will ali .. and i mean just look at them ...

 

 

the whole was through it i kept saying .. the kid playing eamonn is the spit of the edge. i love it.

 

and tomorrow is a massive day for U2 fans here. they are touring the joshua tree album to celebrate its 30th anniversary and the tickets go on sale in the morning ... i gotta get tickets... i gotta .. i'm on edge already .. only 12 hours 49 mins till they go on sale ... coldplay are playing the same venue this summer and those tickets were like cold dust. i didnt get tickets for them (the touts had no problem getting them though .. god damn ticketmaster/seatwave) so i'm more than a little worried about tomorrow. fingers crossed for a second U2 date ...

[taylor anne photo 11311]

Like, I get that, but I feel like that was kind of the point. She was his muse, and usually, a muse is someone unattainable, and that's because real life can too often shatter the perception of perfection. He even brings it up at some point when he's explaining one of his lyrics. He says something like, "Before you get to know someone, they can be anything. Getting to know them them ruins that illusion because you realize that they are just people with their own problems."

 

I like her journey as someone who is closed off, but eventually allows him in as being quite genuine. I also appreciate how he grows from "she's perfect," to "ugh-she's not perfect," to "she's not perfect, but I love her anyway." The way I read it, the movie essentially saying that to have a muse is pretty selfish because it confines the person of your affection into an unreasonable mold.

No, I understand that that is what the movie was ultimately saying, but I still didn't feel anything for them together. Even at the end of the movie there was just nothing there for me. *shrugs*

 

Maybe if I saw it again I would like it more? I mean I saw it with my mom cause that was the era she was in high school too so I knew she would love it and she did. So maybe I can be swayed off the edge of the fence lol.

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

I thought Sing Street was just okay

 

 

EDIT: I just read down a bit and see everyone's point re romance and muse and etc. But still. I loved every minute. Especially love firsttimelongtime's take on it.

[taylor anne photo 11311]

Believe me, y'all, I accept that I'm wrong about this lol.

[firsttimecallerlongtimelistenr 3590]

theres actually another irish movie out in the uk at the moment and it's getting

. which surprised me .. not because it's not a good film but because of the accents. this was shot in my city and the accents they used are basically the stereotypical cork accent. i dont talk like this but i know lads that do and i miss half of what they are saying but they the funniest and most down to earth people you'll meet and i think the young offenders captured that.

 

you might need subtitles or a cork slang dictionary to hand but it is well worth a watch, and you'll get to see some amazing footage of cork

 

[Cameron H. 23786]

Believe me, y'all, I accept that I'm wrong about this lol.

 

GET HER!!!

 

 

No, we don't all have to like the same things all the time. My wife didn't like the romance stuff either...

[FisterRoboto 7499]

theres actually another irish movie out in the uk at the moment and it's getting

. which surprised me .. not because it's not a good film but because of the accents. this was shot in my city and the accents they used are basically the stereotypical cork accent. i dont talk like this but i know lads that do and i miss half of what they are saying but they the funniest and most down to earth people you'll meet and i think the young offenders captured that.

 

you might need subtitles or a cork slang dictionary to hand but it is well worth a watch, and you'll get to see some amazing footage of cork

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qK-JHjKJRmw

This played at Fantastic Fest this year, and the only chance I had to see it was a midnight show after I had been at the festival for about 17 hours for 3 days in a row. I was falling asleep waiting for it to start, so I ended up going home because I knew I wouldn't have been able to stay awake. But everyone said it was really great and very funny!

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

No, I fully see what you mean, Taylor Anne, about the romance. She was set up as this ideal figure throughout but without much substance, and clearly Connor was given the opportunity to see more in her than we were, because aside from being stunningly beautiful, she never got much of a chance to be the girl he described. Neither of them seemed 15-16 years old (a few of the bandmates did but not the leads) in terms of their decision-making or means of processing adversity, and while I found myself falling plenty in love with Connor as he performed with the band, the A+B=C formula that the 'unattainable girl loves geeky guy because he has a guitar' trope is in service of didn't make this a stronger film. The decision to cross the Irish sea in essentially a rowboat meant I honestly thought for a second that the film would end with their funerals. At the very least, the only things of value they brought on the trip (her headshots, his demos) would be ruined in that journey! The romantic gesture of the crossing, of them running away together, was the inevitable crowd-pleasing ending, but aside from inspiring Brendan, it only set up an almost certainly terrible future for them both. I know this is missing the point of the happy-sad ending, but the more I think about it the more it bugs me. She leads him on a bit, keeps seeing the other fella, is given little agency aside from being beautiful, and then the grand romantic gesture for this kid who's devoted his entire musical career to the idea of her is to show up for the last minute of the last song and run off in a boat. Hm.

 

I much, much preferred the ending of 'Once', where you think she's running downstairs to kiss Glen Hansard as he's realised he wants to be with her and you realise he's still on his way to London and instead bought her a piano. Beautifully handled. I furiously hated the Broadway musical for all the liberties they took with that story to turn it into yet another pedestrian romance. I know I am very much isolated in this opinion, but I loved the movie too much.

 

With all this said, I thoroughly loved 'Sing Street', the music particularly (even though they got really good REALLY fast...) and much of the storytelling. Your critique is not misplaced, Taylor Anne.

[Cameron H. 23786]

The romantic gesture of the crossing, of them running away together, was the inevitable crowd-pleasing ending, but aside from inspiring Brendan, it only set up an almost certainly terrible future for them both. I know this is missing the point of the happy-sad ending, but the more I think about it the more it bugs me.

 

This is one of the reasons I like this movie so much though. The truth of the matter is that she isn't really a model and all he has under his belt is one live performance and a couple of demo tapes--which I don't believe are as polished as the movie would have us believe. We only see them being awesome, because they feel like they are awesome (e.g. "Drive it Like You Stole It" scene). His brother even tells him about one of the music videos something like, "No, it's not great, but it's something you can build off from." And that is, to me, what this movie is about. There isn't a promise of a better life in London for either our heroes or any of the people on the ferry, just the hope of a better life.

 

I think this is illustrated in a beautiful visual metaphor in the last few shots. As they race across the water the water gets rough, the rain begins to pour. Their laughter fads. The crossing will not be easy--if they can make it at all. Suddenly, the ferry appears, nearly crashing into them. However, this near disaster becomes a beacon of hope they can follow it all the way to England.

 

She leads him on a bit, keeps seeing the other fella, is given little agency aside from being beautiful, and then the grand romantic gesture for this kid who's devoted his entire musical career to the idea of her is to show up for the last minute of the last song and run off in a boat. Hm.

 

I'm afraid I have to disagree with you here as well. In terms of "agency" I think she has just as much as anyone in the movie. Just because she doesn't always make the best decisions doesn't mean that they aren't her own. More so than any other character in the movie, her future looks pretty bleak. Sure, she leads Conner on, but I feel like she was using the other guy she was seeing just as much as he was using her. Had Conner presented a better prospect, she would have jumped ship in a heartbeat. At this point in the movie, there isn't a romance at all. She doesn't love either of them, although she kind of "likes" Conner. However, she know that liking him isn't going to get her out of her current situation. It's when her pragmatism starts to falter (specifically when she jumps into the water despite not knowing how to swim for the sake of, I believe she says, "our art") that the romance tentatively begins. Something in Conner makes her want to believe in a better future, but the cynicism that has calcified within over the past seventeen years of endless bullshit won't allow her, at that moment, to abandon what appears to be a legitimate way out. To me, as opposed to two people falling into each other's arms, their relationship is just as complex as any real relationship and reinforces that love (whether true or not) isn't without its hurdles and without its imperfections.

[FisterRoboto 7499]

I don't take a lot of stock in filmmakers' intentions, as I believe that what's on screen should speak for itself. But I did find Carney's explanation of the ending rather interesting in this interview:

 

http://www.theverge....nce-begin-again

 

Well, I don’t see it just as a happy romantic ending. I think that’s the tone of the piece, but I think it’s more like… they’re setting off together, that’s true, but I wouldn’t say that’s some huge relationship that’s going to last forever. They’re kids. I sort of hope the scene at the end would look a little like a fantasy sequence. You’re supposed to wonder where the reality ends and the pop video begins. But people are actually taking it very seriously, and people are presuming it’s fully real, which is interesting. That wasn’t the intention.

[jarrycanada 2483]

who knew Jack Nicholson was such a musical genus.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzuKpKRd9MY

 

Jack Nicholson doesn't need autotune!

 

I take it back what I said about tommy, because I sort of remember it being a good movie but and I love

[jarrycanada 2483]

can we please do Clambake at some point in time?

best worst elvis movie. Told to me by a REAL! las Vargas Elvis impersonator who was dating my sister at some point in time or another, His name was gary and that is a long story to tell. In memory of my sister please! the one that got away. she was runaway bride. I'm not joking here.! I love my sister, wish she was here with me right now, you would think that was the worst of times for-sure. but you would be wrong!. she found a

! and that dentist caused her to lose her life with his carelessness and wilful neglect. sad part is that is so true.

.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7INCZHjrng

 

Fuck it! can we please do Little Shop of Horrors!

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

 

This is one of the reasons I like this movie so much though. ... without its hurdles and without its imperfections.

 

Pretty tough for me to argue with anything you've said here - all logical, all well reasoned. At the time of watching I had no real issue with the ending even if it felt like the greatest of leaps to go from 'moderately successful gig where we burned our bridges at the school' to 'let's emigrate without a clue'. I liked the youthful hope, the naivety that an idea like that could actually work. As someone who emigrated as a young adult without much thought about what that would mean I can identify with it, absolutely. I also appreciate that the filmmaker isn't making this into some kind of 'true love prevails' story, and suggesting that it'll all turn out well in the end. I really did love the movie - taking a minute to think it over again today my memory has been that of all of the brilliant strengths of the film - the relationship between Conor and Eamon, the band recruitment, even the salvation of Barry and the self-immolating takedown of the Christian Brother - the root to the whole thing was 'i want to impress that girl.' Raphina says late in the film that the older boyfriend only told her all this stuff about modelling and took her into town on their way to London in order to get her into bed, but surely that's part of the reason Conor starts the band in the first place too? Looks before he leaps in terms of saying he has a band, lies to her incessantly, then makes it all work?

 

I'm arguing here against a film I loved: maybe I should stop before I start trying to pick holes in it. I think i need a second viewing, to wash 'Tommy' out of my brain.

[Cameron H. 23786]

 

 

Pretty tough for me to argue with anything you've said here - all logical, all well reasoned. At the time of watching I had no real issue with the ending even if it felt like the greatest of leaps to go from 'moderately successful gig where we burned our bridges at the school' to 'let's emigrate without a clue'. I liked the youthful hope, the naivety that an idea like that could actually work. As someone who emigrated as a young adult without much thought about what that would mean I can identify with it, absolutely. I also appreciate that the filmmaker isn't making this into some kind of 'true love prevails' story, and suggesting that it'll all turn out well in the end. I really did love the movie - taking a minute to think it over again today my memory has been that of all of the brilliant strengths of the film - the relationship between Conor and Eamon, the band recruitment, even the salvation of Barry and the self-immolating takedown of the Christian Brother - the root to the whole thing was 'i want to impress that girl.' Raphina says late in the film that the older boyfriend only told her all this stuff about modelling and took her into town on their way to London in order to get her into bed, but surely that's part of the reason Conor starts the band in the first place too? Looks before he leaps in terms of saying he has a band, lies to her incessantly, then makes it all work?

 

I'm arguing here against a film I loved: maybe I should stop before I start trying to pick holes in it. I think i need a second viewing, to wash 'Tommy' out of my brain.

 

Oh! I agree. Conner isn't exactly an innocent. Everyone has an ulterior motive--not that that's a totally bad thing.

 

I also agree that you should totally watch it again to purge Tommy from your brain. And get the soundtrack...like me.

[Cameron H. 23786]

can we please do Clambake at some point in time?

best worst elvis movie. Told to me by a REAL! las Vargas Elvis impersonator who was dating my sister at some point in time or another, His name was gary and that is a long story to tell. In memory of my sister please! the one that got away. she was runaway bride. I'm not joking here.! I love my sister, wish she was here with me right now, you would think that was the worst of times for-sure. but you would be wrong!. she found a

! and that dentist caused her to lose her life with his carelessness and wilful neglect. sad part is that is so true.

.

 

Fuck it! can we please do Little Shop of Horrors!

 

Hey man, if you want to make requests you've got to put a ring on it....

 

 

After Tom we have Taylor's pick. Cakebug is after that. If you want, you can join in the rotation after that...we'll watch anything you want to recommend. This isn't HDTGM where all you have are pipe dreams that they'll eventually get to one of "your" movies. We get shit done around here. Everyone leaves satisfied!

[Cam Bert 8145]

I just watched Sing Street the other day. Afterwards I really enjoyed it. Loved the music and loved a lot about the movie. However now that I've had a day or so to think about it there are some minor things that bothered me a little. The romance, I won't touch upon because everybody has pretty much articulated their thoughts of it and I have nothing new to add other than my interest waver on in throughout the film. I still don't know if I fully buy the second half of the Barry story line and its resolution. Also that they start to develop characters for the other members of the band, but then they all just stop talking or mattering halfway through. Just little things, but I still greatly enjoyed the movie.

[jarrycanada 2483]

After Tom we have Taylor's pick. Cakebug is after that. If you want, you can join in the rotation after that...we'll watch anything you want to recommend. This isn't HDTGM where all you have are pipe dreams that they'll eventually get to one of "your" movies. We get shit done around here. Everyone leaves satisfied!

 

I get yeah, I get ya. what's Taylor's pick? my only problem with this is I would like a heads up of what's picked so I can pre-order it / download it from craptunes or dare I say it download it from some other guys place.com.

 

BTw didn't need to go all Darth Vader on me.

[Cameron H. 23786]

 

 

I get yeah, I get ya. what's Taylor's pick? my only problem with this is I would like a heads up of what's picked so I can pre-order it / download it from craptunes or dare I say it download it from some other guys place.com.

 

BTw didn't need to go all Darth Vader on me.

 

We do it like HDTGM with an off week in-between. So, Taylor will announce her pick next Monday, then you have a week to see it (if you so choose).