Movie Review: Sing Sing

 

Michael's Movie Grade: A-

An absolutely beautiful movie.

This film is about an acting program in Sing Sing prison that helps give these prisoners something to look forward to and be happy about while they are there. This may sound like your typical feel-good movie, but it is so much more than that. This is a film that truly looks finding light in your darkest moments. The film does not sugarcoat anything and while this can provide them with a purpose, it cannot make the pain of being in prison go away or allow them to see their loved ones. There are scenes here that are downright heartbreaking. Yet these heartbreaking scenes are mixed with hope and love being found among the darkness around them. These men become a family to one another and created a bond that help fill a space prison had put in their hearts. The acting program also allows them to be real and vulnerable with both each other and themselves, allowing them to feel human again. This becomes all the more real due to great documentary style filmmaking during many of the scenes. It is also helped by performances from real former prisoners who had acted in these programs. The film also has a lot of comedy, some of which is very silly. I found myself laughing much more than I expected to during the comedic moments. However, this comedy never distracts from the drama and seriousness of the story. Rather it does for us what it does for the characters. It provides us with a little release. This helps us understand just why this is so important to them and why it should be important to us. 

What makes this film so special though is that all its elements come together perfectly. This is a movie that is extremely uplifting, very sad, laugh out loud funny and quite thought provoking. It manages to be all of these at the same time in a way that feels completely natural.