This is John Carney’s semi-autobiographical story of a 15-year-old lad in 1985 Dublin getting a scruffy band together and finding his first love. Although I thoroughly enjoyed Carney’s Once and Begin Again, this third time, and I’m in a minority here, was not the charm for me.

Admittedly toe-tapping in spots, I found it a tad twee, falsely quaint, and overly adorable; in short, trying too hard to be The Commitments (an all time favorite).

A slick crowd-pleaser where there used to be grit. Not necessarily an improvement on the writer/director’s work. Time to move on to something fresher. Japanese title: Sing Street: Mirai e no Uta. (105 min)