Sing 2

“Sing 2” is a charming and enjoyable follow-up to the 2016 “Sing” and in many ways is the rare sequel that surpasses the original. The new film finds Buster Moon (Matthew McConaughey) and his performers enjoying a run of sod-out shows in his theater. Unwilling to settle for success in a regional locale; Buster and crew set off for the big city to produce and perform a show for Bigshot Jimmy Crystal (Bobby Cannavale); who is as ruthless as they come. After conning his way into an audition; Buster claims their new show will feature the return of reclusive Rock Icon Clay Calloway (Bono); who has been a recluse for the past fifteen years. Jimmy is intrigued and gives Buster a chance and inserts his daughter Porsha (Halsey) into the show despite the fact that while she is a gifted singer; her acting is cringe-worthy. What follows is a madcap tale filled with music and humor as the crew desperately tries to get the show ready and stay away from the very dangerous Jimmy Crystal. The music is very good and the cast is as enjoyable as ever. I would have liked to have seen Seth Mac Farlane return but the performances from Taron Egerton, Reese Witherspoon, Scarlett Johansson, and the ensemble more than deliver. For those who enjoyed the first film and are looking for some fun entertainment for the family; “Sing 2” is a winning performance. 4 stars out of 5

Illumination has made some really fun sequels over the last couple years, and *Sing 2* is no exception to this rule. Besides having stunning animation, the movie's story continues the themes of overcoming setbacks to achieve dreams and understanding the challenges along the way. This time, Buster Moon and his crew are taking their performances to Redshore City to impress media mogul Jimmy Crystal, who hears about Gunther's idea of a space-themed performance with Clay Calloway, an elderly lion who is a former rock legend, and immediately lets the gang cook. Clay honestly stole every scene he was in. His bitter, disgruntled attitude stemming from losing his wife, Ruby, makes his behavior very personal, while simultaneously highlighting how real musicians struggle to continue working whenever tragedy or something difficult strikes them. Thanks to Ash, who is revealed to be a big Clay Calloway fan, he manages to snap out of his bitter attitude and come back to the stage. I also really liked Porsha, as she felt very relatable-someone wanting to achieve the dream of being famous but never succeeding. In a way, her arc mirrors Buster's, with them both having to push boundaries to get what they want. While Buster already has that, Porsha needs to prove she can handle it. However, the scene where she thinks that Buster fired her when he gave Rosita the part back of being the captain of the ship is a bit dramatic, and that leads me to my biggest pet peeve with the movie-that being Jimmy is a flat, one-dimensional villain written to add pointless stakes to the movie. If the story kept him as a ruthless but lenient media mogul who uses his status as the head of Crystal Entertainment to achieve dominance while simultaneously still having care for Porsha and not wanting to kill Buster over a misunderstanding-coupled with Porsha's frustration instead coming from a new role she has to play that she warms up to-I think he would've been a much better character. The soundtrack was an absolute banger, and U2's song "Your Song Saved My Life" is a perfect mashup of emotional and catchy without feeling too much like a radio "Top 40" number. Coincidentally, Bono, the head singer of U2, voices Clay Calloway, and two of the band's earlier songs-"Where the Streets Have No Name" and "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"-also appear in the movie as ensemble covers, with the latter being a duet between Bono and Scarlett Johansson (the voice of Ash). Overall, *Sing 2* is huge improvement over the first movie, but Jimmy Crystal's villainy and how it leads to a pointless "I've been fired" sitcom trope shoehorned in does keep it from being a perfect 10. Still, I would recommend it and I hope *Sing 3* is even better.