Sing

I saw a record 62 movies on the big screen last year. One of them didn't get a review out before year's end. Here it is. The end of my movie year 2016 begins 2017. This is the animated musical extravaganza Sing.

Buster Moon (Matthew McConaughey) the koala is the proud owner of the Moon Theater. At least he would be if he wasn't flat broke. He decides to host a singing competition to save the theater. A mishap with his assistant, Mrs. Crawley (director Garth Jennings), raises the prize money from $1,000 to $100,000 and sends the typoed fliers across the city faster than you can say "oversight." A lot of animal citizens turn out but only a few get chosen.

Those few are Johnny (Taron Egerton) the son of a bank robber gorilla, Rosita (Reese Witherspoon) the housewife sow, Gunter (Nick Kroll) the large ham, Mike (Seth MacFarlane), the insufferable Rat Pack singing mouse, Meena (Tori Kelly) the shy elephant and Ash (Scarlett Johansson) the punk rocker porcupine. Now it's time to rehearse for the big show. The acts' personal problems threaten to literally bring down the house. Buster needs the show to work or he'll have to find a new line of work.

The story is basically Babes in Arms meets American Idol/The Voice/Insert Something Here with funny animals. What makes it work is its ensemble. The film successfully juggles the stories of its animal cast. We get to know them all as a likable bunch of characters. Mike, though, stretches his likability thin, but he has his moments. Even the also-rans get a chance to pop up throughout the rest of the story.  Our main cast's stories resolve wonderfully during the finale. 

The film crams even more pop standards (roughly 60!) than Trolls. The song selections are fun even if you don't recognize them. They're sung greatly especially during emotional moments. A new song, Faith, begins the ending credits. An instrumental score by Joby Talbot also sets things going. The music sounds great thanks to the sound design.

The film's unnamed city is a cool animal metropolis. It's not as exotic as Zootopia, which the film may remind viewers of, but it's an appealing city nonetheless. Its citizens are a nice, eclectic bunch of species. The Moon Theater looks pretty good for a rundown institution. Overall, it looks like a nice place to live.

Sing is an awesome ensemble animated movie. It has great acting, visuals, music and sound. Its only real flaw is that it's a bit overlong at 110 minutes. But it's an earnest, feel-good film. It's definitely worth seeing at any price during the holidays and beyond.