In 1987, during the austere days of Thatcher’s Britain, a teenager learns to live life, understand his family, and find his own voice through the music of Bruce Springsteen.
Perhaps it was the I feel like Ive seen this before factor, but Blinded By The Light just didnt resonate. It lacked the humour, the heart and the finesse of Chadhas previous films, and therefore it falls short.
Read Jess' full article... https://www.maketheswitch.com.au/article/review-blinded-by-the-light-the-spiritual-sequel-to-bend-it-like-beckham
Head to https://www.maketheswitch.com.au/sff for more Sydney Film Festival reviews.
The importance of representation isn't to speak exclusively to one crowd but to demonstrate that deep down, we all deal with the same issues and problems, regardless of ability, race, gender, religion or any of the other attributes that are used to divide us. This movie isn't just about a young boy discovering his identity as a British Pakistani Muslim, it goes beyond that and depicts a coming of age struggle between parent and child.
Springsteen's soundtrack works as a baseline around Javid's transition from boy to man, through the pursuit of him achieving his dream, which beautifully represents mid 80's Britain as this bleak and hopeless space that is being held together with prayers and dreams of better tomorrows.
My favourite pa...
A gentle, funny, story about a lad whose outlook on life is totally transformed after his pal introduces him to the music of Bruce Springsteen. Viveik Kalra is on engaging form as the young "Javed" as is Dean-Charles Chapman as his aggrieved mate "Matt" and the music serves as a memorable narrative for a coming-of-age tale set against a backdrop of racism, bigotry, hormones and angst. It reminded me of late 80's Britain when you did actually have to queue up in one of the many (now long gone) record stores to get your tickets for a concert - sometimes at 00:01 in the morning. Look out for "Peggy Carter" as his teacher.
