Brick Lane (DVD)

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Relatively new and unknown director Sarah Gavron puts it all together in "Brick Lane," a beautiful and poetic story about a Bangladeshi woman in London whose arranged marriage stands in sharp contrast to the freedoms and other men her sister writes she's been enjoying back home. The cinematography is gorgeous, the through-narrative is strong but subtle, and Gavron coaxes performances out of her actors that blend well with the overall tone and atmosphere.

Based on the novel by Monica Ali, "Brick Lane" tells the story of Nazneen Ahmed (Tannishtha Chatterjee), a dutiful wife in an arranged marriage who lives with her lazy and portly husband Chanu (Satish Kaushik) and her two daughters, Shahana (Naeema Begum) and Bibi (Lana Rahman). In terms of its conception and scenic construction, "Brick Lane" bears a strong resemblance to "The Color Purple," with Nazneen's voiceover readings of letters to and from her sister providing a running contrast. Nazneen had been forced to marry a man 20 years her senior, and just as Celie in "The Color Purple" has never known the pleasures of sex because of the way that her husband services only himself, all Nazneen can do is think of her beautiful and carefree childhood while her portly husband is on top of her. He's as controlling as he is slovenly, and as much of a do-nothing dreamer as he is controlling. He's benign enough, insomuch as he's mostly bluster and not otherwise abusive, but soon he's out of work (again) and Nazneen is striking a deal with the woman in the projects on Brick Lane who manages a sweat-shop operation relying on women who work in their apartments.

This story steers clear of clichés, and nothing in it is simple. Chanu is the insistent man of the house, and a scene in which we see his young and beautiful wife dutifully trimming his grotesque toenails reinforces everything that is gross and demanding about him. Yet, as deluded as we see his dreams to be, there's something about him that remains upbeat and cheerful and always ready to pounce upon the next "make it" scheme that's hard not to admire (or at least be amused by). And for all her isolation, Nazneen still feels something for the man she's spent some 20 years with.

Things change, though, when handsome and much younger Karim (Christopher Simpson) knocks on her door to deliver a box of jeans that were cut and ready to be sewn. Though it is improper for a Muslim woman to be alone with a man, as you can see from Nazneen's discomfort, this is business--illegal business--and it has to transpire behind closed doors. While the scenic construction and conception are straight from Alice Walker's novel-turned-film, the sexual tension of forbidden love and adultery is handled like something straight out of D.H. Lawrence--which is to say, poetically and very effectively. It would be tempting to consider this a mid-life crisis story, but from the voiceover narration one suspects that Nazneen's regrets have been a part of her life in London for the past 20 years. In the end, it's as much of a story about place (and a person's place in the world) as it is love.

The one thing that casts a shadow on the narrative is the incorporation of a 9/11 sideplot which tries to convey the tension and additional prejudice that the Muslim community in London (and everywhere) felt when the World Trade Center towers were reduced to rubble. We see community meetings, tension on the streets, and a sideplot that uncomfortably straddles two worlds: the film's background and the main plot. That's my only criticism, because it pulls us out of the film's poetry and inserts an element that feels not nearly as organic as the rest of the film.