Endearing charms
Story of Irish immigrant in 1950s who feels torn between two worlds is told with heartfelt beauty
The American immigrant story comes to life in the lush and lovely In 1950s Enniscorthy, Ireland, young Eilis Lacey (Saoirse Ronan) strives for more than she can find in her small town. With no job or marriage prospects at home, she takes the leap across the Atlantic to seek her fortune in New York — Brooklyn, to be exact. • Living in a boardinghouse filled with other young Irish women and working in a department store, Eilis is desperately homesick for her sister, Rose, and everything else familiar and comfortable.
That changes when her kindly immigration sponsor, Father Flood (Jim Broadbent), gets her into accounting classes at Brooklyn College — an opportunity to move up from the sales floor. It also helps that she meets a charming Italian guy, Tony (Emory Cohen), at an Irish dance.
Cohen, who first gained attention playing Bradley Cooper’s rascal son in The Place Beyond the Pines, is transformed in this role: He is
revelatory as the hopelessly romantic Brooklyn plumber smitten with Irish rose Eilis.
Of course, there are cultural obstacles.
James DiGiacomo almost steals the film as Tony’s little brother, Frankie, who declares, “We don’t like Irish people” at the dinner table. Eilis has to learn to eat spaghetti like an Italian, but their love gives her a life in America — a reason to stay, a spark that allows her to thrive.
All too soon, a family death calls her back to the motherland, and Eilis finds that what she left behind wasn’t so bad after all. There’s her best friend, getting married; a wealthy eligible bachelor Jim (Domhnall Gleeson); new job opportunities. The comforts of home call to her.
The town is small but could provide a nice life, easier than scrapping and scraping by in the big city.
Crowley.
Directed by John
PG-13 (for a scene of sexuality and brief strong language)
1:41
at the Crosswoods, Drexel, Lennox 24 and Polaris 18 theaters
Still, her heart belongs to Tony, despite her Irish home and history.
Brooklyn — directed by John Crowley, with a screenplay adapted by Nick Hornby from Colm Toibin’s 2009 novel — tells an evergreen, universal story.
It captures the struggles and heartache of any immigrant living and learning in a new country; and it rings entirely, almost painfully true for any young person who has left behind a small-town life for the siren call of the big city.
The movie depicts some indelible moments that are so honest about being new somewhere: lonely lunches at a new job, a lump in your throat that never goes away, isolation in the crush of a commuter crowd.
The film is gorgeously shot, with rich, crisp, naturalistic colors. It feels a bit like a colorized historical photograph, showcasing Ronan’s fresh-faced gorgeousness. She serves as the anchor of the film with a smart, soulful performance.
Eilis is a person who feels and thinks profoundly. She never takes anything lightly, and her tortuous dilemma of having to choose between two lives is tangible.
The drama doesn’t extend beyond that single choice, but it’s one that’s beautifully rendered and deeply felt.
Brooklyn is swooningly romantic at times, but it’s hardly just a love story. It is a coming-of-age tale woven into America’s coming of age — an experience that any person who has set off for a bigger life can relate to on a molecular level.