John Crowley’s BROOKLYN is a nice enough,
uncomplicated, straight-down-the-line romance. Nothing wrong with that, and
although it didn’t particularly resonate with me, it will be very much to the
liking of its target audience.
Adapted faithfully from Colm Tóibín’s
simple historical romance novel by Nick Hornby, we follow Eilis (Saoirse Ronan)
on her journey from 1950s Ireland to the New York borough as she goes in search
of better employment prospects. After a rough beginning and a strong bout of
homesickness for her dear sister, she finds a good job and falls in love in
local Italian boy Tony (Emory Cohen). But tragedy and complication will soon
strike, forcing Eilis to make some hard decisions.
There’s nothing particularly wrong with
what’s currently in BROOKLYN; it’s what’s missing that’s the problem. It’s an
enjoyable but purely vanilla experience, and a solid entry into the romance genre
(certainly a cut above anything recent from Nicholas Sparks’ now annual, tired,
pre-fab servings), but there’s very little that’s exceptional about
Crowley’s adaptation. Saoirse Ronan is easily the standout (a good thing too,
since the film rests on her shoulders) and the likes of Julie Walters, Jim
Broadbent and Domnhall Gleeson never disappoint, but the performances are about
it. Everything else is just… good. The
period-setting visual effects are passable, there’s nothing particularly
impressive about Yves Bélanger’s cinematography or François Séguin’s production
design. Michael Brook’s score is very nice, but from any given point Tóibín’s
story is wholly predictable, while Crowley’s direction remains wholly
unremarkable, and most deeply frustrating of all: there’s absolutely no subtext
to the piece whatsoever – particularly annoying given the ‘hot button’ status
immigration currently holds worldwide.
If you like curling up with an
unchallenging romance novel, then this is for you. If you’re looking for a bit
more complexity, see CAROL a second time – and don’t ask me how BROOKLYN beat Todd
Haynes’ utterly superior film to a Best Picture nomination: that is a mystery
for the ages…
BROOKLYN was released November 5 2015 in the UK, November 25 2015 in the US, and is released February 11 in Australia and NZ