The novel Brick Lane by Monica Ali was  a huge success, not only a bestseller, but also applauded by the literary world when Ali’s novel received a nomination for the prestigious Man Booker prize. Though I hadn’t read BrickLane, an advert for the movie captured myimagination; I was intrigued by the British made film and rented it on DVD.

Adapting apopular book into a film can be controversial; a director can cut key parts of the story out to fit a timescale or lose the essence of a novel with less wordsand more pictures – frustrating for a  reader whose expectations are usually high; longing for the dialogue and movement to give a true representation of the characters. Having not read the novel, I was able to watch the DVD without nervous anticipation, though it means I cannot comment on whether the film is indeed true to the novel...

London’s area of Brick Lane is seen through the eyes of Nazneen Ahmed (TannishtaChatterjee),a Bangladeshi woman who arrived in Britain for an arranged marriage aged 17. Now with teenage daughters and an older husband, who is kind but dull and obsessed with self-improvement, Nazneen reminisces about Bangladesh and the sister she left behind. With luscious cinematography we see flashes of a simple, happy childhood in Bangladesh that contrast with the dark housing estate that is now her home. Nazneen’s sister writes letters of love and dreams that slowly begin to entice Nazneen tolook for more than the life she has settled into. Her unsatisfactory life is made even more frustrating as an elderly money lender puts pressure on thefamily. By gaining a sewing machine and earning money sewing for her family, Nazneen finds a small piece of independence but enters a dangerous relationshipwith a younger man.

Set in multicultural Britainagainst the backdrop of 9/11, BrickLane shows the frustrations of young Muslim men who long for acceptance in the country they were born. It shows the confusion of Nazneen’s teenage daughter who wants to fit into British youth culture while her father Chanu (SatishKaushik) isdetermined for her to become educated and a success.  The development ofthe main characters, in particular Chanu’s struggle to unify his family, makesfor a thought provoking film that explores cultural identity and personal beliefs.

Yet whilst I assumed this would be a film of oppression and cliché – the arranged marriage and the demure wife, Brick Laneis far from this stereotype of British Asian culture; it illustrates the complex hopes and dreams of Nazneen, her husband and their children – all determined to stay true to themselves and true to their culture. As a result of intelligent performances from Chatterjee and Kaushik, we see the many faces of love – hard to portray in any art.

Review by: Catherine Niven

Email (will not be published)

Name

Title

Comment
 remaining characters

Post