Brick Lane (DVD)

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I don't usually single out casting directors, but Shaheen Baig and Loveleen Tandan deserve some applause for giving us the Ahmed family and the young man whose innocent-but-forbidden attraction threatens to tear them apart. Chatterjee is a joy to watch in every frame, her face a complex puzzle for us to decipher, while Kaushik as her fat husband is such a Gomer that it's hard to hang a villainous label on him--especially when he wears his Westernized garb and insists on people taking the family's picture. Even the girls go beyond the eye-rolling of teenagers to make us believe that being raised a Muslim woman is as much challenge as frustration. Nazneen recalls her own mother saying, "If God had wanted us to ask questions, he would have made us men." But her own mother met with a tragic end. "Brick Lane," in a way, poses one large question: how can Muslim women be true to their faith and tradition and still be true, somehow, to themselves? I'm not sure that the question is ever answered. Then again, "Brick Lane" is a beautiful film, not a simple one.

Video:
If this were to come out in HD, the picture would be breathtaking. In standard def it's already stunning, with bright and bold colors and so little grain that the surface has a glassy sheen, not unlike water in sunlight. The picture quality is simply wonderful. "Brick Lane" is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen.

Audio:
The audio is also solid--a Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround that's blemish-free and works effortlessly to sustain the film's poetic flow. Subtitles are in French, with English closed captions.

Extras:
Usually indie films don't come with a ton of extras, but "Brick Lane" has a relative wealth of bonus features. Gavron is joined by Chatterjee on a commentary track that's as good as they come, with a nice balance of enthused recollections and insights into the filming process. In addition, Gavron, Chatterjee, Simpson, and Koushik appear in three 15-minute on-camera interviews talking about their characters, how they were cast, and how they approached them. Then there are a half-dozen scene-specific commentaries from the cast and crew, a 10-minute making-of feature, and a handful of deleted scenes. In short, it's a great little package.

Bottom Line:
"Brick Lane" holds our interest in so many ways. The characters are endearing, the narrative tension is compelling, the cinematography and atmosphere are highly poetic, and the production design is superb. They all work together to produce a single effect: a film that's well worth our time.

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