Like me, director John Carney is a confirmed believer in music’s power to unite people. In his first film, Once (2007), it is music that brings our Dublin busker and Czech flower seller together; in his second, Begin Again (2013), it is music, again, that reconciles our disaster of an A&R man with his estranged family. However, in the case of his ’80s-set third effort, Sing Street, the stakes are a little higher, the music having to bridge not just family and class divides, but geopolitical ones too. We are in Troubles-era Ireland, after all.

Rest assured, though, the height of these hurdles makes the music’s ultimate triumph all the more euphoric. Sing Street really is a joy, with one of the best original soundtracks to a pop movie you will ever hear. If you have any love for ’80s music at all, you will love this film. Gather round and watch.-George Cochrane