Adapted from Monica Ali's novel, Brick Lane,"" director Sarah Gavron's new film by the same name is the dramatic tale of Nazneen Ahmed, an 18-year-old Bengali woman attempting to fit in amidst London's secular society.
Set in Bangladesh, the film's opening scenes contain spectacular cinematography from the talented Robbie Ryan. With a creative mixture of lighting and varying shots, the film instantly transports viewers from their seats to the marshy jungles of Bangladesh, introducing us to Nazneen (Tannishtha Chatterjee) and her sister, Hasina (Zafreen).
However, tragedy quickly strikes and Nazneen is forced to leave her home in Bangladesh to marry Chanu (Satish Kaushik) - a man twice her age - and move to London. A devout woman, Nazneen struggles for her own survival as well as the survival of her faith in the streets of London.
""Brick Lane"" explores ideas of women's rights and social justice through the weaving of this powerful tale. Chatterjee, who plays Nazneen, provides powerful acting which helps drive the story and transport the audience into the minds and experiences of the characters. Her stellar performance is even more important since it helped offset the less-than-stellar acting of Christopher Simpson, who plays opposite Nazneen as her lover, Karim, for much of the film. His delivery lacked emotion and seemed forced at times, delivering awkward dialogue and never fully developing his character.
In addition to the poor performance from Simpson, the story contained disturbingly obvious foreshadowing throughout most of the movie.
While Chatterjee's wonderful acting and Ryan's powerful cinematography are slightly offset by Simpson's poor performance and transparent plot progression, ""Brick Lane"" is still definitely worth a viewing.
Grade: B
