Brooklyn (2015)
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A young Irish woman must navigate the complexities of choosing between her new life in Brooklyn and her roots in Ireland.
The story
In 1951, Eilis Lacey, a young woman from Enniscorthy, Ireland, seeks a better life and migrates to Brooklyn to find employment. After settling into a boarding house and finding work at a department store, she struggles with severe homesickness. While attending night school to become an accountant, she meets Tony Fiorello, an Italian-American plumber. As their romance blossoms and she begins to feel more at home in New York, the unexpected death of her sister, Rose, forces Eilis to reconsider her future and the possibility of returning to her homeland.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In 1951, Eilis Lacey lives in Enniscorthy, Ireland, working part-time for a spiteful shop owner. Her sister Rose arranges for her to immigrate to Brooklyn, where Eilis lives in a boarding house for Irish women and works in a department store. Despite severe homesickness, Eilis begins taking bookkeeping classes and meets Tony Fiorello, an Italian-American plumber. Their romance grows as Eilis adjusts to New York. Following Rose's death, Eilis tells Tony she must return to Ireland. Tony offers her a plot of land to build houses, and they secretly marry at City Hall before she departs. Back in Ireland, Eilis avoids her old life but takes a bookkeeping job. She meets a well-off bachelor, Jim Farrell, who wants to propose. However, after being bullied by her former employer, Miss Kelly, Eilis reveals her married status and decides to return to Brooklyn. On the voyage back, she mirrors the advice she once received from a fellow traveler. Upon her return, she reunites with Tony.
- First release year
- 2015
- Runtime (minutes)
- 112
- Production countries
- United Kingdom; Ireland; Canada
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- John Crowley
- Writers
- Nick Hornby · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Saoirse Ronan · Eilis Lacey; Emory Cohen · Tony Fiorello; Domhnall Gleeson; Jim Broadbent; Julie Walters
- Genres
- romantic period drama; independent; historical romance
- Themes
- immigration; identity; home; romance
- Tone and mood
- heartfelt; absorbing; innocent
- Premise and plot tags
- historical romance; period drama; immigrant story
- Source material / true-story basis
- 2009 novel by Colm Tóibín
- Reception
- The film received overwhelmingly positive critical response, with many reviewers praising the performances of Ronan and Cohen. It was featured on more than 120 film critics' "Top 10" lists of the best films of 2015 and was ranked 48th on the BBC's 2016 list of the 100 Greatest Films of the 21st Century.
- Reported review scores
- PostTrak · score: 92%
- Awards and nominations
- BAFTA Award · Best British Film · won; Academy Awards · Best Picture · nominated; Academy Awards · Best Actress · nominated; Academy Awards · Best Adapted Screenplay · nominated; BIFA · Best Performance by an Actress in a British Independent Film · won; Canadian Screen Awards · Best Cinematography · won; Canadian Screen Awards · Best Musical Score · won; Quebec Cinema Awards · Best Cinematography · won; Quebec Cinema Awards · Best Art Direction · won
- Production trivia
- Only two days of filming took place in Brooklyn.; The film's gross in Canada gave it the highest cumulative domestic gross of any Canadian film released in 2015.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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