Brooklyn Movie Analysis

Brooklyn: A Study of Homesickness and of One’s Happiness
From its first moments, Brooklyn is both helped and blunted by its accessibility. John Crowley’s reworking of Colm Tóibín’s novel about a young Irish immigrant’s journey to America and combat with adaptation to her new world is subdued, in ways that this art form is lacks thrill but is full of emotion. The story is set in Eilis Lacey’s humble Irish hometown which is everything that us Americans would not think it would be. The town does not suffice to the painted picture of impoverished postwar immigration, but rather holds great emotion and subtle satire. Which is passionately and sensitively accomplished by screenwriter Nick Hornby and author Crowley. The movies originality is also many times saved from formulaic territory by our anchor Saoirse Ronan who portrays our modest and passionate Eilis.
When bringing a story like Eilis’s to the big screen there is a constant fear of being too straightforward and lacking personality. Eilis, an intelligent hometown girl who is tied down in her prosaic town of economically depressed Ireland. Eventually she sets out to Brooklyn, New York in search

of a fresh start, leaving her mother and sister behind. All of this is accomplished on her sponsorship of her local parish (set up by her most loving sister). When times become more strenuous her pastor in Brooklyn gives her some purpose and sets her up with night classes to become a bookkeeper. Eilis resides at a boarding house with a plethora of varying female personalities run by a well-meaning matron (Julie Walters, who can do this in her sleep), and eventually meets a nice Italian plumber named Tony (Emory Cohen) who clumsily tries to sweep her off her feet before realizing she’s too level-headed for all that. Though homesickness pulls at her heartstrings, Eilis is not a tormented figure, but she is a universal one: She’s caught between her comfortable, traditional upbringing and the land of opportunity.
In a less experienced actress’s hands, Eilis might seem vapid or dull—she always takes a few seconds to react to every query lobbed at her, processing each new life experience through the many filters of guilt and cautiousness she’s built up through her journey to America. But Ronan has been holding the camera to rapt attention since her astonishing debut as the mercurial young Briony in 2007’s Atonement, and she imbues Eilis with warmth and ambiguity. Eilis’s romance with her Italian sweetheart Tony is hardly swooning, but rather sweet and caring; through the most careful cinematography and acting you can tell that Eilis herself is unsure of whether she loves him at first, or merely appreciates the company he’s brought to her previously lonely life. This could feel like an airport romance novel about a girl whose life is transformed by love, but Ronan complicates Eilis’s otherwise simple story arc as much as she can.
There is a reason that many young girls flock to watch this critically acclaimed novel being transformed into a movie, because it brings you hope. Crowley creates an honest story that is unashamedly romantic; but also infused with confidence. However, it takes a certain type of actor, like Ronan, who can give us the ability to feel great empathy for mere characters of a story. With each subtle grimace or smile slipped from Ronan’s lips we are instilled with the full emotion of the story.
In most movies the entirety of the film fails us by giving us a foreseen ending.

The guy gets the girl, or Darth Vader is Luke’s father (I mean c’mon Vader in German literally means father). But, Crowley had something different in store for us. At a certain point in the movie (or rather several points) the actors had us believing that our most wanted ending was not meant to be. This of course could not have been accomplished without our leading lady, Ronan. However, it’s the beautifully casted supporting actors that makes this movie one of the greats. When circumstances lead Eilis back to Ireland actors such as Domhnall Gleeson (irishman Jim Farrell) portrayed a wonderful love interest of hers, that ultimately confuses her heart, but also is a source of clarity. Clarity to understand where the source of her happiness

lies.
Also, in regards to casting, the directors created a beautifully vibrant authenticity provided by the collection of actors and actresses. It was refreshing to be immersed in a film and story where the accents and the culture is honest and true to the given characters. You could feel the great Italian pride of Tony when he brought Eilis home for a homecooked meal of spaghetti and meatballs and for a proper introduction to his family. You can feel the loyalty to Eilis’s Irish mum and country when she flees back to her homeland for some heavily needed hellos and goodbyes.
Ultimately, Brooklyn has the power to make you explore happiness, sadness, maybe even subtle laughter. It is old-fashioned entertainment like this that is so hard not to love due to its mastery in craftsmanship and heartfelt completion.