Sing Steals the Spotlight

Read Time:4 Minute, 28 Second

*contains spoilers*

During the long Christmas vacation, I watched the movie Sing with my friend, Chloe (yes, the Chloe who came with me to see Moana. Don’t worry—I have other friends). Now, one thing about me and Chloe: we sing. A lot. And we are also very emotional. Thus, Sing was the natural pick for us.

Based in a city of animals, the film follows a manager named Buster Moon, whose theater is going bankrupt. Mr. Moon decides to have a singing competition to get the money to fund his theater and offers a cash prize of $1,000 to motivate people to sign up for the competition. However, due to a printing error, the flyer for the competition reads that the winner will receive $100,000 instead. Hundreds of people come for the auditions, and only four are selected to perform.

We are then introduced to the performing acts, which are given by animals from all walks of life. One artist, Johnny, is the son of a criminal who wants his son to be a criminal as well. Another performer is a mother of 25 pigs (yes literal pigs) named Rosita, who feels unappreciated for her work at home. Yet another musician is a porcupine named Ash, and there is an arrogant mouse named Mike. Another singer is a sly elephant named Meena, who cannot sing in public.

Meena tries to audition for the show but cannot sing and leaves the stage crying. However, when she comes back the next day to ask for a second chance, Mr. Moon gives her a job as a stagehand, instead. While the animals are practicing, Mr. Moon tries to find a way to get $100,000.

Between juggling practices and trying to help his father with his heists, Johnny is practicing. However, when he forgets that his father is in the middle of a heist, his father gets arrested. While visiting his father in prison, Johnny realizes that his father is upset with him for valuing singing more than the family business, and his father leaves Johnny, saying that he is a disappointment (cue the tears). So, Johnny breaks into Mr. Moon’s office to steal the reward and bail his dad out of prison. He has a change of heart, however, and decides to practice his piano skills so he can win the reward.

Meanwhile, Rosita cannot find a babysitter for her 25 children, so she makes a machine that can take care of her family while she is off practicing. Ash dreams about performing with her boyfriend; however, Mr. Moon wishes her to perform solo. Therefore, while she is at practice most days, her boyfriend cheats on her, making her upset and angry and prompting her to write a song about him. Meena, however, is still trying to work up the courage to go and ask Mr. Moon if she can sing on stage.

To find an investor for the show, Mr. Moon invites a rich actress named Nana Noodleman to invest in the show and pay the $100,000. However, because he cannot pay for the electricity, Mr. Moon invites squids that light up to power the stage, filling it and the walls with water. While the investor is there, the walls start to break, releasing all of the water and flooding the theater. After his theater is completely flooded, Mr. Moon feels sad and dejected and gives up hope for the show, allowing the bank to seize the property.

All of the contestants leave, going back to their mundane lives, feeling dejected. However, Meena does not give up singing. She goes back to the site of the theater, which is now in shambles, and starts singing, but only for Mr. Moon to hear. Mr. Moon then suddenly decides to have a performance rather than a competition. He rounds up all of the other performers, and they get to work building a stage and getting lights for the performance.

On the opening night, there are not that many people sitting in the make-shift rows, which leaves the performers discouraged. However, Mr. Moon tells them that when they start performing, the people will come. His words are correct. After Rosita’s performance, Mike’s performance, and Ash’s, more people start flooding the theater. When it is Johnny’s turn to perform, his performance is broadcasted in the prison where his father is held.

So, his father breaks out of jail and goes to the performance. When Johnny gets off the stage, he sees his father, who tells him that he loves him and has never been more proud of him (this is when Chloe and I started absolutely bawling). Then, Meena starts to sing, which is absolutely amazing. She spots her grandfather in the audience, who is grinning from ear to ear from being so proud (this is the second time that Chloe and I started bawling).

Also in the audience is Nana Noodleman, who was the potential investor for the theater. After seeing how much the people care for the theater and how passionate they are for singing, she decides to pay to have the theater rebuilt. Mr. Moon, along with his new performers, opens his brand new theater, and the film finishes off with a happily ever after.