Coming out Dec. 22, “Sing 2” is a remarkable sequel to returning director Garth Jennings’ first animated musical comedy. This movie captures it all from talented singing, comedy and an inspiring theme. 

In the first movie, over-optimistic and ambitious koala, Buster Moon, saved his own local theatre by hosting a singing competition in which the audience was introduced to a multitude of unique characters. The same familiar and favorite characters are back, with a clan consisting of the two pigs, aspiring singer Rosita and humorous Gunter; Johnny, the shy gorilla; Meena, the even shyer and timid elephant and Ash, the rockstar porcupine. 

Buster takes his magnificent team to a big city full of creativity and spirit in hopes to create their own stage extravaganza at the luxurious entertainment center run by Jimmy Crystal. Buster convinces Jimmy to finance their sci-fi stage production called “Out of This World.” Here’s the catch, the only reason Jimmy agreed was because Buster assured him that he had connections to the reclusive rock star lion, Clay Calloway, and could get him on stage to perform in the musical. Per usual, Buster promised something that is actually not true, as he does not know Clay at all. 

While Ash is on a mission to recruit Clay, the rest of the crew prepares themselves for their grand production. Rosita was originally cast as the lead role but is demoted when she is too scared to try a stunt. Instead, the new character Porsche, Jimmy’s daughter who can not act, is given the role. Johnny takes on a dancing role, however has difficulties overcoming his abilities to dance due to his mean instructor. He eventually meets Nooshy, a hip street performer, who gives him lessons to improve his craft. As for Meena, she has a love interest role. She has to overcome the obstacles of her first kiss and working with a self-absorbed yak, Darius. 

Ash is set out to convince Clay to join the show, though it proves to be harder than it sounds. Clay had been in seclusion from the world for 15 years, ever since his wife passed. The audience sees a new soft side of Ash as she kindly comforts Clay through his emotions and instills motivation into him. 

In the meantime, Jimmy finds out Buster does not have any real connection to Clay and essentially fires him. But this does not phase Buster. As per usual, he does not listen, goes against Jimmy’s word and insists the show must go on. 

By the time opening night rolls around, Jimmy is not pleased with Buster. The cast is essentially performing in secret while Johnny’s criminal father keeps him out of the theater. The final performance ends with Clay Calloway performing for the first time in 15 years.

During the final show, each character’s unique and diverse personality is guaranteed to keep the audience entertained. The inclusion of such popular songs to today’s generation makes the movie more than enjoyable and quite engaging as an audience member. The second movie continues to bring forth the same karaoke charm the first one did. 

The amount of personality within this movie is astronomical, with tremendous character development that allows you to really get to know each of them. Each character comes from different backgrounds and is evolved to tell an inspiring story. 

In “Sing 2,” we see each character face their fears. This sends a significant message to the audience, including teaching people to not give up, chase their dreams, stop worrying about what could go wrong and live in the moment. In particular, the most significant message brought across the screen was to dream big, be true to yourself and remember anything is possible. 

“Sing 2” was a mixture of comedy, storytelling, dynamic character development and inspiration. This exceptional and noteworthy film will hopefully lead to a third movie as this series could create a perfect trilogy.