Luck is when preparation meets opportunity (or, when Saoirse got Brooklyn)
Film: Brooklyn (2015). Young Actress: Saoirse Ronan, age 20.
It's hard to speak highly enough of Saoirse's gorgeous lead performance in Brooklyn, just as it's hard to find anything bad to say about the film as a whole. It's also hard to remember when I've ever seen a former child actress make such a perfect transition into adult material. Yes, The Transition has been done before - by Natalie Wood, Jodie Foster, and Natalie Portman, just to name a few - but none of them made it look as easy or as natural as Saoirse does in Brooklyn. In her New Hollywood Award acceptance speech, she said, "Brooklyn came along right when I needed it to," and watching the movie, you can see how true that is. Solid lead roles for women have become so scarce, and most young actresses Saoirse's age would love to have a character who's seen and treated completely as an adult. She was lucky to actually get one
.
In Brooklyn, set in 1952, Saoirse stars as Eilis, a young woman - not a girl, but a woman - who immigrates alone from the small Irish town where she's lived all her life to New York City. The film delves a lot into her homesickness and identity crisis, although she does come to enjoy her new American life, especially after falling in love with a cute Italian-American plumber, Tony (Emory Cohen, four years Saoirse's senior). When she returns to her hometown, everyone in it expects her to stay, and she must decide for herself where she really belongs. There's a lot to enjoy in this movie, like the gorgeous scenery of both the rugged Irish countryside and the parks and department stores of New York City. There's the treat of Saoirse's natural Irish accent, which is so delightful to hear and which she rarely gets to use in her movies. There's the fact that Eilis is never gratuitously sexualized. There's the way that each character is treated not as good or bad, but as a real person. And of course, there's Saoirse's performance.
Eilis visits the Coney Island beach with her American boyfriend Tony
Saoirse herself was raised in both the Bronx and Dublin; she talked in some interviews about how strongly she identified with Eilis, and you can see that come through. Even if you've never immigrated to another country like Eilis does, if you've ever moved out of your parents' house, then you can identify with her, especially since Saoirse makes her so real and vulnerable. In two scenes that are almost hard to watch, Eilis is violently sick her first night onboard the ship crossing the Atlantic, and she breaks down in tears when she gets her first letter from her sister (Fiona Glascott) back home.
Eilis on a beach in Ireland with her friend Jim (Domhnall Gleeson, 11 years Saoirse's senior) during her trip back to her hometown
Saoirse turned 20 during filming, and her performance reminded me very much of Kate Winslet or Jennifer Lawrence at the same age. Remember that excited feeling you got when you watched their early roles and realized that you were seeing the emergence of a great actress? You get that feeling in every scene of Brooklyn. Even with all the excellent acting that Saoirse has done since she was a kid, she still carries this film with a strength that I never knew she had.
LINKS
Premiered at the 2015 Toronto Film Festival.
Screened at the 2015 New York Film Festival.
Other reviews of Saoirse's films: The Lovely Bones (2009), The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), Lost River (2014).
AWARDS
Academy Awards: Nominated for Best Picture, Best Actress (Saoirse), and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Critics Choice Awards: Nominated for Best Picture, Best Actress (Saoirse), and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Hollywood Film Awards: Won New Hollywood Award (Saoirse).
Screen Actors Guild: Nominated for Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role (Saoirse).
It's hard to speak highly enough of Saoirse's gorgeous lead performance in Brooklyn, just as it's hard to find anything bad to say about the film as a whole. It's also hard to remember when I've ever seen a former child actress make such a perfect transition into adult material. Yes, The Transition has been done before - by Natalie Wood, Jodie Foster, and Natalie Portman, just to name a few - but none of them made it look as easy or as natural as Saoirse does in Brooklyn. In her New Hollywood Award acceptance speech, she said, "Brooklyn came along right when I needed it to," and watching the movie, you can see how true that is. Solid lead roles for women have become so scarce, and most young actresses Saoirse's age would love to have a character who's seen and treated completely as an adult. She was lucky to actually get one
.
In Brooklyn, set in 1952, Saoirse stars as Eilis, a young woman - not a girl, but a woman - who immigrates alone from the small Irish town where she's lived all her life to New York City. The film delves a lot into her homesickness and identity crisis, although she does come to enjoy her new American life, especially after falling in love with a cute Italian-American plumber, Tony (Emory Cohen, four years Saoirse's senior). When she returns to her hometown, everyone in it expects her to stay, and she must decide for herself where she really belongs. There's a lot to enjoy in this movie, like the gorgeous scenery of both the rugged Irish countryside and the parks and department stores of New York City. There's the treat of Saoirse's natural Irish accent, which is so delightful to hear and which she rarely gets to use in her movies. There's the fact that Eilis is never gratuitously sexualized. There's the way that each character is treated not as good or bad, but as a real person. And of course, there's Saoirse's performance.
Click to viewEilis visits the Coney Island beach with her American boyfriend Tony
Saoirse herself was raised in both the Bronx and Dublin; she talked in some interviews about how strongly she identified with Eilis, and you can see that come through. Even if you've never immigrated to another country like Eilis does, if you've ever moved out of your parents' house, then you can identify with her, especially since Saoirse makes her so real and vulnerable. In two scenes that are almost hard to watch, Eilis is violently sick her first night onboard the ship crossing the Atlantic, and she breaks down in tears when she gets her first letter from her sister (Fiona Glascott) back home.
Eilis on a beach in Ireland with her friend Jim (Domhnall Gleeson, 11 years Saoirse's senior) during her trip back to her hometown
Saoirse turned 20 during filming, and her performance reminded me very much of Kate Winslet or Jennifer Lawrence at the same age. Remember that excited feeling you got when you watched their early roles and realized that you were seeing the emergence of a great actress? You get that feeling in every scene of Brooklyn. Even with all the excellent acting that Saoirse has done since she was a kid, she still carries this film with a strength that I never knew she had.
LINKS
Premiered at the 2015 Toronto Film Festival.
Screened at the 2015 New York Film Festival.
Other reviews of Saoirse's films: The Lovely Bones (2009), The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), Lost River (2014).
AWARDS
Academy Awards: Nominated for Best Picture, Best Actress (Saoirse), and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Critics Choice Awards: Nominated for Best Picture, Best Actress (Saoirse), and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Hollywood Film Awards: Won New Hollywood Award (Saoirse).
Screen Actors Guild: Nominated for Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role (Saoirse).