Blinded by the Light

In late 1980s England, Javed, a teenager of Pakistani origin, lives with his parents in the sleepy city of Luton, which is close, but very far away, from London. Against the racial and economic protests of the times, he writes poetry to escape the locals’ despair and his father’s conservative rigidity. When a classmate introduces him to Bruce Springstein’s songs, Javed becomes obsessed with the American musician and gradually works up the courage to use his own voice and dream big. Gurinder Chadha’s (Play it Like Beckham) new film is an entertaining and bracing musical drama about resolution, love, hope, family, and the power of music to uplift the human spirit.