In the year 1987, a British teenager of Pakistani decent immediately develops an obsession with Bruce Springsteen. Upon listening to a tape, he becomes inspired to pursuit his dream as a writer as struggles with personal issues such as father & a hard time adjusting to society due to his Pakistani heritage at the time when there was racial tensions in London. The plot I’m referring to is none other than “Blinded By The Light.”
Blinded By The Light is currently out in theaters. It received positive reviews from critics and movie goers alike. So far, it is currently generating revenue at the box office.
I’m gonna come clean, the first time I was exposed to Bruce Springsteen’s music, is when Adam Sandler impersonated Bruce on SNL singing “Dancing In The Dark” while Courtney Cox was hosting. Don’t believe me? Look it up. Besides Adam, I also think of the Viva La Bam” episode called, “Rockstars” is when Bam Margera’s deceased uncle, Don Vito, who used to be my favorite up until he went to jail, applied a tattoo of Bruce’s name on one of his buttcheeks.
This review does not feature any crucial SPOILERS whatsoever. If you haven’t got a chance to see Blinded By The Light, feel free to read my non-spoiler article. Is it really a sleeper hit as a lot of critics claim? Time to find out shall we?
Clear & Foggy Elements
Clear: Viveik Kalra did a fantastic job for his performance as Javed Khan.
Other Cast Members such as Dean-Charles Chapman, (Tommen Baratheon from Game Of Thrones) Hayley Atwell (Peggy Carter from the MCU) both did a good job for their respective performances.
Gurinder Chadha (Bend It Like Beckham) did a decent job directing, co-producing & co-writing the film.
Bruce Springsteen’s songs were perfectly executed to synchronize Javed’s pursuit to become a writer and trying to get along with his father.
Fun Fact: An unreleased song by Bruce titled, “I’ll Stand By You,” was originally gonna be the theme song for “Harry Potter & The Sorcerer’s Stone.” Unfortunately, J.K. Rowling rejected the idea in favor of John Williams’ music. I believe J.K. wanted her vision to feel unique, because she already listened to Bruce’s Oscar winning song, “In The Streets Of Philadelphia” used in Tom Hanks’ film, “Philadelphia.”
Blinded By The Light takes place in 1987. The year “RoboCop” came out. My parents were in high school back in The Mid To Late 80’s. By the way, “The Flintstones Meet The Jetsons” crossover aired in 1987.
The time period of The 1980’s is recreated.
Character Development involving Javed. As the movie progresses, he becomes a creative writer to follow his dreams. His father also earned Character Development as well.
The movie’s title is obviously named after Bruce’s song.
Primary Themes are “Family,” “Pursuit,” “Inspiration,” “Racism,” & “Tradition.” Each one is handled maturely.
This biopic is basically described as Bend It Like Beckham with music, yet based on real life.
Javed is a likable individual struggling to pursuit his dream as a writer. I find him relatable, because I want to pursuit my dreams to make it big. Like Javed who idolizes Bruce Springsteen, I idolize Christopher Nolan, because he inspires me to pursuit my dreams.
A “where are they now” epilogue reveals the real life Javed, his friends and family.
Foggy: Cinematography can be shaky at times. Why can’t anybody learn how to keep a camera still? Who’s in charge of filming, the Coca Puffs mascot?
The Final Verdict: A-
Blinded By The Light is a feel-good film with an inspiring message to encourage people to follow their dreams. If you try hard enough, it could happen. If you’re curious to see this surprise hit, I highly recommend it. Bruce Springsteen’s latest album, “Western Stars” is out now. He’s also adapting his album into a full-length motion picture, so don’t forget to check it out this October. I’d rather see Western Stars, not Tom Hooper’s upcoming “Cats,” because the C.G.I. is butt ugly like the trailer from “Sonic The Hedgehog.” Not the video game, the movie coming out in 2020. The producers are fixing Sonic’s face, which is good.
I’m gonna predict that Cats will be an epic failure.
Nickthemoviecritic.com 