''Brooklyn'' (2015 film)- Review

Directed by: John Crowley
Released: 2015
Country: Canada, Ireland, United Kingdom

Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Emory Cohen, Domhnall Gleeson, Jim Broadbent, Julie Walters

Genre: Romantic drama

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Review

''Brooklyn'' tells the story of Ellis Lacey, a young Irish woman, who leaves her small Irish town for the United States in search of a better life, leaving behind her widowed middle-aged mother and supportive elder sister. Life in New York, at first, feels unfamiliar to Ellis, making it difficult for her to adjust there. She longs for home and her life in the small idyllic town. However, things change when she meets Tony, a handsome young Italian man played by Emory Cohen, at a dance. Falling in love with him, she finds it easier to adjust in her new home, in her new country. She becomes more socially adept, more friendly than before, and on the other hand, her love for Tony flourishes. However, their relationship faces a challenge placed by distance when Ellis suddenly has to go back to Ireland after  a dreadful tragedy.

 ''Brooklyn'' is a charming and sweet film. I enjoyed and loved it from the beginning to the end. The screenplay is excellent and I loved how beautifully it touches the subject matter, making the film a fresh and beautiful one. Romance is such a genre that can become cliched if it is mishandled, but this film avoids the cliches, it is beautiful and thought-provoking, touching and sweet. I find it hard not to mention one particular scene. There is this scene where Ellis and Tony are on a bus, and at one point, they are both smiling, without looking at each other, smiling at life, happy for having met each other. I found this this scene to be one of the most beautiful and charming scenes in the film.

Saoirse Ronan is so wonderful in this film! I have admired her ever since I first saw her in ''Atonement''. Then came films like City of Ember, The Lovely Bones, The Way Back, Hanna and The Grand Budapest Hotel. I loved her in all of these films. But in ''Brooklyn'' she delivers a performance so magnificent that it rivals her own excellent performance in ''Atonement''. As Ellis, she is sweet and strong, expressing all of the emotions of the character with precision and strength. I felt so proud of her in the confrontation scene with Miss Kelly, possibly one of the most important and well-written scenes of the film. Emory Cohen, as Tony, is perfect as well. Domhnall Gleeson, Jim Broadbent and Julie Walters deliver excellent performances as well.

Excellently acted, directed and written, ''Brooklyn'' is definitely a magnificent and charming film, a lovely love story.

4.5 out of 5