While it is rare that Hollywood stars imprint their love for cinema on their offspring, it’s always fascinating when two generations of actors share the screen for a project. That’s the case with You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder, a minimalist road trip movie in which real-life father and daughter Ewan McGregor and Clara McGregor explore intergenerational conflict and the enduring damage parents cause their children. While there’s nothing explicitly biographical about You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder, its lead stars sharing the same connection as their characters give Emma Westenberg’s debut feature a mesmerizing authenticity.
The setting of You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder couldn’t be simpler. In the movie, McGregor plays the role of a father driving his 20-year-old daughter to the distant house of a faraway friend after the girl almost overdoses. Father and daughter are reuniting for the first time in years, which means the road trip forces them to spend time together and reflect on the past. Along the way, the duo will have to overcome unexpected obstacles and will cross paths with various characters that vary from quirky to dangerous. So, essentially, a road trip movie.
The barebones approach to You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder script makes the journey a little too predictable, which could have doomed a different project. And yet, both McGregors give such powerful performances that their presence alone is enough to sustain the story. You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder is a work of fiction, but it’s spellbinding to watch it and wonder how much their acting was inspired by real life. That's because, while both McGregors are remarkable actors, a good chunk of the movie is just a father sitting by his daughter's side and enjoying their time together. And as Ewan McGregor has said in interviews, there's no escaping the meta aspect of the project since You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder allowed the duo to spend quality time together, something that's not always possible in a superstar's busy schedule.
'You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder' Mixes Fact and Fiction
Image via SXSW
McGregor plays a regretful father figure, aware of his mistakes and hoping there’s still time to make amends. There’s a mix of joy and worry in his performance as the character realizes his daughter inherited so much from his personality, both the good and bad. In her turn, Clara McGregor captures the struggle to forge an identity away from her father’s shadow, desperate to become her own person while still conscious she may be fated to follow in his footsteps.
While You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder doesn’t tell the McGregors' biographical story, it still taps into the universal conflicts between father and daughter, which gives the leads plenty of material to work with. After all, they are human, and regardless of the stability of their real-life relationship, these are things any family experiences in some measure. It’s not random that the main characters of You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder don’t even have names, being only presented as Father and Daughter. That creative decision makes it even easier to mix fact and fiction when it comes to lead performances. Furthermore, Clara gets a writing credit in You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder, as the project was born from a story she developed with scriptwriter Ruby Caster.
As a writer, the young McGregor pours some of her real frustrations and joys into the film, meaning that Clara's real relationship with her father informed her work of fiction. The uniqueness of the situation is not lost on the duo, with Ewan McGregor revealing that he only jumped aboard the movie after his daughter revealed that You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder was a story about them. How much is fact or fiction, only the McGregors can know. Yet, the curious way the road trip movie was developed only makes the project more entrancing.
On that note, it’s curious to think You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder is about a father and daughter who share a past with drug abuse when Ewan McGregor’s international breakout role came with Trainspotting, where he played a drug addict. Since Clara McGregor nails the part of a young addict in You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder, she may too land more prominent roles from now on, which would make her following her father’s footsteps in quite a similar way.
'You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder' Is Too Predictable for Its Own Good
While everyone’s mileage might vary depending on how surprising they need a movie to be, the fact You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder tells a familiar story does free Westenberg to find beauty in the mundane. There’s nothing fancy in how the movie is shot, with Westenberg pointing a shaky camera at Ewan and Clara McGregor’s faces and letting their emotions be captured in film. It’s a grounded approach that focuses on the microexpressions of the father and daughter duo, highlighting their impressive acting skills. To keep the handmade atmosphere of You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder, flashbacks are also presented with a yellow filter and flares that mimic home videos. The strategy helps to give scenes set in the past a distinctive look while remaining true to the goal of shooting the film in the most intimate way possible.
Of course, all of that can only work for people willing to invest the time into following the father and daughter on their journey, knowing after a few minutes how everything will end. While the road is frequently more important than the destination, the lack of surprises may test the audience’s attention span, especially in the third act, when both characters are already well-established and we understand their inner struggles. That said, You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder is still a powerful family drama enhanced by phenomenal performances.
Rating: B-
You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder had its international premiere at 2023’s Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.