Sing Street (2016)

The best case for starting a band to impress someone. John Carney grew up in 1980s Dublin and went to the Synge Street school that gives the film its name, and his teenage hero forms a band of misfits mostly to win over a glamorous older girl. What lifts it is the music: the originals by Carney and Gary Clark move through the New Romantic and post-punk sounds of the era as the boys find their own voice, and they are good enough that the soundtrack earns repeat plays on its own. Jack Reynor, as the opinionated older brother handing down musical wisdom, is a scene stealer. A warm, slightly rose-tinted take on a hard-up decade, and a great first watch for anyone who just bought their first guitar.