imperfection is perfection
Sporadic film reviews by a wanna-be filmmaker
BROOKLYN [2015]
A small film festival is playing around Australia for the first time: The BBC British Film Festival. Most of the films are romantic comedies, which ruled most of the films out for me, buuuut I wanted to broaden my horizons a bit…
Directed by John Crowley, Written by Nick Hornby (screenplay), Colm Tóibín (novel)
Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Emory Cohen, Domhnall Gleeson, Matt Glynn, Jim Broadbent, Julie Walters
Brooklyn is a romantic film that offers something different. It ignores the standard cliches and the stale humour that puts me off most romantic comedies, and make no mistake, this is a romantic comedy. However it is also a touching coming-of-age story, another sub-genre that I’ve never been a big fan of. This film however manages to merge the two into a film that both my younger sister and I could enjoy. And let me say, that is a rare thing!
The film begins with Eilis (Saoirse Ronan) living a simple life in her hometown in Ireland. However, she doesn’t see much of a future in her hometown, and she makes the difficult decision to travel to the US by herself. The boat trip offers some interesting scenes as a fellow immigrant teaches Eilis how to act around the strict US customs of the time – the movie is based in the 1950’s. This makes for some amusing scenes, and they certainly are not the last. This movie is funny!
While having no family in Brooklyn, Eilis has organised a place to live and work. The boarding house that she stays at also houses four other girls of similar age, along with the housekeeper, Mrs Kehoe ( Julie Walters), a devoutly religious person. She is also stern and assertive, leading to many hilarious discussions around the dinner table. This is where most of the humour comes from and its effectiveness is thanks to the sharp dialogue and the pitch perfect acting. This is an extremely well written and produced film, from start to finish. The cinematography is subtle but effective; nothing flashy, just top notch work that helps immerse the viewer into the experience.
Upon first arriving in Brooklyn, she struggles at the shop she has secured work with. Her shy demeanour is remarked on by her boss, who tells her that each customer should be treated like a new friend.
Furthermore, around the dinner table at the boarding house she is quiet, especially compared to her gossipy roommates. The character arc for Eilis was done to perfection, as she starts the movie as a shy, soft-spoken person but by the end of the film she is a confident and assertive woman who knows what she wants.
Of course, soon into her stay in Brooklyn she meets a man. The romantic elements are handled well and there are no overly sentimental moments, which is probably why I enjoyed this film as much as I did. When she is able to afford it, she travels home to see her family and friends. There is an element of tension here, as the film does not give any clues as to where she will go next, as when she returns home she begins to realise things that she took for granted before moving away. We have no idea what the final conclusion will be, unlike almost every romantic comedy I have seen.
Brooklyn is of course more than a romantic comedy; the film touches on the toughness of immigration, as we see Eilis struggle to adjust to her new unfamiliar surroundings, having no friends or family in her new home city. We also see how homesickness can affect a person, both their original home and their new one. It is a simple narrative, but this 
simplicity is what makes it such a true to life film. Considering I don’t normally go for these movies, yet loved this, I can’t recommend this enough. It is a fantastic performance from Ronan and the rest of the cast rounds it off very nicely.
One beer short of a six-pack!
5/6
35 Comments on “BROOKLYN [2015]”
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imperfection is perfection 
I just saw the trailer for this a couple of days ago and my interest was immediately piqued. Now after reading your excellent review, I really want to see it!
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I’ve heard only good things about this one, Jordan. Nice job!
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Thanks Cindy! Yeah I had only heard good things too, it was Ruth at flixhatter who convinced me to see this hehe. I’m glad I did
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Great review Jordan 🙂
It’s always nice to see a movie that doesn’t have a lot of twists and turns, yet still manages to have an intriguing storyline.
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Thanks Raz! 🙂
And I agree, it remained interesting the whole time without having any crazy twists. A nice simple story, plus the lead was amazing. She should win an award for that performance
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Initially I wasn’t so keen on this for all the reasons you mentioned at the beginning of your review but you’ve managed to make it sound unmissable!
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I must thank Ruth, she was the one who turned me onto this and said I might like it despite not usually liking this sort of stuff. She was right 🙂
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Thrilled to hear you love this Jordan, considering this isn’t usually your cup of tea. Ronan is excellent isn’t she? But I love the supporting cast too, esp Julie Walters and Emory Cohen.
P.S. Have you seen 99 Homes yet btw? Just posted my review on it, if you have seen it, I’m curious to hear what you think.
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Ronan was amazing. And I’m glad I saw this, thanks to you!! If you hadn’t given me a little prod I probably would never have bothered seeing this
99 Homes releases here in a week or two I think, I’ll hop over and have a look at your site
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Awesome! I’m looking forward to seeing this one. Ronan is probably my favorite actress working these days. It’s been a joy to dig through her filmography. Cheers, Pauly
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I only saw her once before in Grand Budapest, I definitely want to see more of her now
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Yeah, that was the film which did it for me too. Pretty small role, but her presence was indispensable. Her best starring turn (in my opinion) is in the film Hanna. It is an ass-kicking masterpiece!!! Also recommended is the artful ultraviolence of Violet and Daisy. Cheers! –Paul
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oo both sound good! Thanks for the recs mate!
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I read the book and liked it but felt the movie looked boring. Well, gorgeous and boring. I’ll probably check it out because people have nice things to say about it, and I hope it’ll translate.
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Hope you enjoy it Jay 🙂 I found it much funnier than I thought it’d be, that’s what got me hooked
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Wanna catch this myself, more so after your review. Good job Jordan!
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Cheers mate 🙂
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Great work Jordan, I really enjoyed this too. Ronan had me completely captivated from start until finish, she’s excellent!
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She is, I need to find more of her work. I liked her in Grand Budapest, but she was so great in the lead role!
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Indeed! She’s really good in The Lovely Bones and Hanna (though I vaguely remember finding the latter movie a tad dull — might need to rewatch it).
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I’m gonna imdb that first title now, I think I have heard of it somewhere
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A sweet little piece that made me appreciate Nick Hornby a lot more than I already do. Nice review Jordan.
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Cheers mate! 🙂
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Sounds great. I’ve heard a lot of people praise the feel-good element of this movie and I love watching movies with heart and genuine feel-good moments so looking forward to seeing it
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Best thing is that it isn’t lame or cheesy or over sentimental and the humour is FUNNY! The script is amazing, the humour not your standard fare for this type of movie. It really stands out for me, cos like I said these really aren’t my sorta movies normally
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That’s heartening to hear, man. I’ll be checking it out for sure
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Look forward to reading your take on it mate
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Thanks for the review! I think I might be more interested in this movie than Jay. It looks good and I’m glad to hear it’s funny.
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I’m very picky with my comedy but this had me laughing many times. Very different from your standard rom-com, which is why I liked it so much 😀
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Wonderful post, Jordan. I think this film works best because, as you stated, there is actual tension between Ellis’ options! I found that engrossing.
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Me too man! It made a type of film I don’t normally like interesting… the humour helped a lot too! 🙂
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I was a bit sceptical about this one, but I’m actually excited about seeing it after reading your review! Great write-up! 🙂
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Thanks Veronika! 🙂 I loved it, and like I said this is reeeally not my sorta thing. But its so damned funny, and Ronan is amazing in it. I hope you enjoy it!
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