Director Gurinder Chadha burst into prominence with her 2002 hit Bend It Like Beckham, a zesty coming of age story that broke the mould for Asian representation in British cinema... and introduced the world to that modern English Rose Keira Knightley, of course. Since then, Chadha has produced a filmography, wide-ranging in both genre and quality. Whilst 2010's It's a Wonderful Afterlife was creaky and her latest period piece Viceroy's House rather uninspiring, Chadha appears to be back on surer ground with Blinded by the Light, an ode to Bruce Springsteen based on the memoir of real-life fanatic of the Boss and journalist Sarfraz Manzoor. Like many of Chadha's films, Blinded deals with themes of race, culture and integration in a brazen manner... but first and foremost, like her 2002 breakout, it's a feel-good coming of age comedy, easily accessible and perhaps somewhat trite as a sacrifice.
The story follows 16-year-old Javed (a fictionalised version of co-writer Manzoor), the bookish and rather awkward son of first-generation Pakistani immigrants (played superbly by Goodness Gracious Me alumnus Kulvinder Ghir and Meera Ganatra). It's the middle of Thatcher era austerity in Luton; jobs are low, far-right skinheads roam the streets and the music of Bruce Springsteen has been relegated unceremoniously to "the sort of thing your dad listens to". Javed's life is on a definite downturn, as his aspirations to be a writer are refuted by his traditional father and his luck with the girls loiters in stupor. As soon as a friend encourages him to plug Springsteen into his Walkman (you can feel Chadha nostalgically grinning with the period detail) it takes but a few lines of Dancing in the Dark for Javed to be smitten. What follows is a coming of age tale that hits familiar beats (not least from Bend It) with shameless confidence. There's much to appreciate in Blinded by the Light; Chadha is brilliant at conjuring likeable characters, ones with whom we can laugh, cry and dream effortlessly. Virtual newcomer Viveik Kalra holds the film up with unbridled charisma as Javed, whilst Ghir plays his father with gusto, most impressive in the more dramatic moments. The film deals (if all too broadly) with some weighty themes; in the midst of the fun, there's lingering political angst and even scenes of shocking racial abuse. Chadha handles history thoughtfully; the comparisons to today's Britain, for example, are present for those who want to see them but don't feel forced. Ultimately, however, the meat of the film lies in the relationship between Javed and his father, one portrayed convincingly by both lead actors. Central to the plot also is Springsteen himself, of course, a constant Messiah in Javed's life; here I was reminded of Danny Boyle's Yesterday, a recent release that blindly expects you to take the Beatle's iconic status for granted without ever exploring what makes them so great. It's pleasing then that here Springsteen's importance is conveyed judiciously; the way his anthems to blue collar America chime very personally with a young Pakistani from Luton is utterly believable.
Despite this, Blinded by the Light is not a film quite worthy of heralding; amidst the cleverer aspects of Chadha's work, there's plenty of poor choices made that leave a strangely jerky end result. Clear-cut narrative is dismissed in favour of messier storytelling; romantic subplots meander in vague directions, characters become important for ten minutes then entirely disappear and the whole affair resolves in a rushed and corny conclusion. Chadha, Manzoor and Paul Mayeda Berges' script is problematic too; padded and cliched, it becomes increasingly lazy as the film progresses, choosing to have characters blindly quote Springsteen lyrics in an attempt at profundity that feels very stilted. The filmmakers' love of the Boss becomes painfully clear too to the point of overindulgence (for instance we are treated to pretty much the entirety of Born to Run in a particularly stretched montage sequence). The incorporation of the music in the story as well becomes increasingly odd, with quasi-musical numbers and distracting graphics of lyrics floating across the screen. It appears to be an unfortunate trend in Gurinder Chadha's films that there is an abundance of flavours all thrown into the pot without enough thought into how well they will taste together. The conjunction of comedy and drama in Blinded by the Light stands starkly obvious; whilst both Goodness Gracious Me-esque humour and political commentary are done well here, the marriage between them feels slightly jarring throughout most of the film.
One might be able to overlook some of these errors if the film had the same level of charm as Bend It Like Beckham and other similar fare... but despite its unabashed earnestness, Blinded feels a little stuck in the mud and even its better aspects can't trump a progressively perfunctory and scattered delivery. No denying there's enough fun here to put a smile on the face... but no amount of goodwill can distract from one too many misfires.
Review of Blinded by the Light
