Taglines: Two countries, two loves, one heart.
John Crowley’S historical period drama film “Brooklyn” tells the story of Eilis Lacey (Saoirse Ronan), a young Irish immigrant navigating her way through 1950s Brooklyn. Lured by the promise of United States of America, Eilis departs Ireland and the comfort of her mother’s home for the shores of New York City. The initial shackles of homesickness quickly diminish as a fresh romance sweeps Eilis into the intoxicating charm of love. But soon, her new vivacity is disrupted by her past, and Eilis must choose between two countries and the lives that exist within.
Brooklyn is a historical period drama film directed by John Crowley and script written by Nick Hornby, based on the novel of the same name by Colm Tóibín. The film stars Saoirse Ronan, Emory Cohen, Domhnall Gleeson, Jim Broadbent and Julie Walters. Set in 1952, the film tells the story of a young Irish woman’s immigration to Brooklyn, where she quickly falls into a romance. When her past catches up with her, however, she must choose between two countries and the lives that exist within them for her.
Brooklyn premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival to critical acclaim. It opened in limited release on 4 November 2015 in the United States and the UK on 6 November 2015. The film has been nominated for three Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Actress and Best Adapted Screenplay.
About the Story
In 1952, Eilis (pronounced AY-lish) Lacey is a young woman from Enniscorthy, a small town in southeast Ireland. She works weekends at a shop run by the spiteful Miss Kelly. Eilis’s older sister Rose has arranged for her to go to the US to find a better future. She departs but begins to suffer from seasickness and food poisoning and ends up being locked out of the toilet by her cabin neighbors. The woman in the bunk below her, an experienced traveler, helps her, giving her advice and support for Eilis’s entry to the US and life in Brooklyn, the new home to many Irish immigrants.
Eilis lives at an Irish boarding house where she dines each night with the traditionalist landlady and her fellow residents, all young women. She also has a job at a department store but is shy and quiet when interacting with customers, earning the gentle scolding of Miss Fortini, her supervisor. Her letters from her sister Rose, back in Ireland, give her homesickness. She is visited by Father Flood, a priest who arranged for her job and accommodation, and he tries to help by enrolling her in bookkeeping classes. At a dance she meets Tony, from an Italian family, who is quickly interested with her and becomes her boyfriend. With these developments, Eilis begins to feel more comfortable in New York, although she is slow to return Tony’s declaration of love.
Father Flood informs Eilis that Rose has died suddenly of an undisclosed illness. After a trans-Atlantic phone call with her mother reveals that she is struggling to cope, Eilis decides to return home for a visit. Tony insists that if she is leaving they must get secretly married first. They enter a civil marriage without telling family and friends.
Back in Ireland, everybody seems to be conspiring to keep Eilis from returning to Brooklyn. Her best friend is getting married a week after her scheduled return journey, and her mother has already accepted the invitation on her behalf. She is set up on dates with eligible bachelor Jim, who is about to inherit property. She takes her sister’s place as a bookkeeper on an emergency basis. Eilis starts to feel that she now has the future in Ireland that did not exist when she left and stops opening the letters she receives from Tony.
Brooklyn
Directed by: John Crowley
Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Domhnall Gleeson, Michael Zegen, Emory Cohen, Julie Walters, Eileen O’Higgins, Emily Bett Rickards, Paulino Nunes, Eve Macklin
Screenplay by: Nick Hornby, Nick Hornby
Production Design by: François Séguin
Cinematography by: Yves Bélanger
Film Editing by: Jake Roberts
Costume Design by: Odile Dicks-Mireaux
Set Decoration by: Suzanne Cloutier
Music by: Michael Brook
MPAA Rating: PG – 13 for a scene of sexuality and brief strong language.
Studio: Fox Searchlight Pictures
Release Date: November 6, 2015
Visits: 65
