A stunning, romantic drama, Brooklyn brings together two of our favourite rising stars: Saoirse Ronan, whose debut in Atonement was one of that film’s many talking points, and Domhnall Gleeson (son of mighty character actor Brendan). In Brooklyn – adapted by Nick Hornby from a novel by Colm TĂłibĂn – Ronan plays a young Irish girl growing up during the austere early 1950s who emigrates to America in pursuit of a better life.
But, alas, that better life is not immediately forthcoming. A mix of coming of age drama and warm-hearted nostalgia, Brooklyn shares DNA with Frank McCourt’s Angela’s Ashes and Ken Loach’s Jimmy’s Hall. There are brilliant supporting performances from Jim Broadbent, as a Catholic priest, and Julie Waters, as an Irish immigrant who runs a boarding house in New York, and at its centre, a strong performance from leading lady Ronan who anchors the more sentimental aspects with intelligence and wit.