Stet (Garrett Wareing) is sent off by his hard-hearted father to the National Boychoir Academy—a real place, apparently—where he’s mentored by the troupe’s demanding choir master. The latter is played by Dustin Hoffman, and is the main reason to see this one.

Anyway, all this would undoubtedly have been more effective had it not been for the recent Whiplash, which approaches the musical mentor-protégé theme far more powerfully. Uplifting but highly predictable and unworthy of its great cast (Kevin McHale, Eddie Izzard, and Kathy Bates), this one falls into the “mostly watchable” category. Japanese title: Boy Soprano: Tada Hitotsu no Utagoe. (103 min)