Brooklyn
DVD
Review
by Kam Williams
Saoirse
Ronan Impressive as Irish
Immigrant in Poignant Period Piece
Eilis
(Saoirse Ronan) and Rose Lacey (Fiona
Glascott) have stayed home for the sake of their widowed mom (Jane
Brennan) who is still grieving the loss of their late father. The
devoted daughters have had to put their dreams on hold, since job
prospects aren't great for young women without higher education in
tiny Enniscorthy, County Wexford.
Although
Eilis has exhibited an affinity for math, she had to settle for a
part-time gig as a clerk at a grocery where she's under the thumb of
a vindictive shrew (Brid Brennan). After all, this is the early
Fifties, a time when any ambitious local lass would set her sights on
America, a land of opportunity with a proverbial pot of gold at the
end of the rainbow.
Salvation
arrives in Father Flood (Jim Broadbent), a Catholic priest willing
to sponsor Eilis' emigration to the United States. She grudgingly
agrees, aware that this means that the entire burden of caring for
their mother will now fall on her sister's shoulders. Nevertheless,
after an exchange of tearful goodbyes, she boards the New York-bound
steamship and descends to a bunk in steerage for what proves to be a
seasickness-inducing voyage across a roiling ocean.
Awaiting
Eilis in Brooklyn is a room in a female-only boardinghouse run by an
eagle-eyed landlady (Julie Walters) obsessed with protecting the
reputations of the gullible, young Irish immigrants placed under her
supervision. The naive newcomer's also handed a job at a department
store, as well as tuition to study bookkeeping at college.
Despite
being the beneficiary of so much good fortune, Eilis misses her
mother and sister terribly. And she seriously considers repatriating,
over the assurances of Father Flood that the feelings of homesickness
will eventually pass.
Everything
does change the night she meets handsome Tony Fiorello (Emory Cohen)
at a dance. The two fall in love at first sight and embark on a
whirlwind romance which finally enables Eilis to make the adjustment
to life in the States.
But
just when she's ready to put down stakes on American soil, fate
intervenes in the way of a
tragedy that mandates her immediate return
to the Emerald Isle. And wouldn't you know it, that while back in
Enniscorthy, Eilis finds herself pursued by a wealthy, eligible
bachelor (Domnhall Gleason).
Which
suitor will she choose? The answer to that question arrives at the
moment of truth in Brooklyn, a touching historical drama directed by
John Crowley (Closed Circuit). Based on Colm Toibin's best seller of
the same name, the film features an elegant, understated performance
by Saoirse Ronan which landed the emerging ingenue her second Oscar
nomination at just 21 years of age.
A
poignant period piece about an American Dream delayed, derailed and
possibly denied.
Excellent (4
stars)
Rated PG-13
for brief profanity and a sex scene
Running time: 111 minutes
Distributor: Distributor: 20th
Century Fox Home Entertainment
Brooklyn Extras: Deleted scenes;
interviews; and a featurette.
To see a trailer for Brooklyn,
visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15syDwC000k
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