In 1987, during the austere days of Thatcher’s Britain, a teenager learns to live life, understand his family, and find his own voice through the music of Bruce Springsteen.

Credits: TheMovieDb.

Film Cast:

• Javed: Viveik Kalra
• Eliza: Nell Williams
• Ms Clay: Hayley Atwell
• Malik: Kulvinder Ghir
• Roops: Aaron Phagura
• Matt: Dean-Charles Chapman
• Noor: Meera Ganatra
• Shazia: Nikita Mehta
• Yasmeen: Tara Divina
• Matt’s Dad: Rob Brydon
• Colin Hand: Frankie Fox
• Mrs. Anderson: Sally Phillips
• 1980’s Local Resident: Sofia Abbasi
• Butcher: Asheq Akhtar
• Billy: Vincent Andriano
• Mr. Evans: David Hayman
• Kathy: Lorraine Ashbourne
• Eliza’s Dad: Marcus Brigstocke
• Eliza’s Mum: Olivia Poulet
• Mr. Shah: Jeff Mirza
• Emma: Kit Reeve
• Matt (10): Billy Barratt

Film Crew:

• Editor: Susie Figgis
• Music: Bruce Springsteen
• Music: A. R. Rahman
• Writer: Gurinder Chadha
• Writer: Paul Mayeda Berges
• Editor: Justin Krish
• Sound Designer: Glenn Freemantle
• Costume Design: Annie Hardinge
• Producer: Jane Barclay
• Director of Photography: Ben Smithard
• Co-Producer: Alice Dawson
• Production Design: Nick Ellis
• Producer: Jamal Daniel
• Writer: Sarfraz Manzoor
• Art Direction: Grant Bailey
• Set Decoration: Lucy Howe
• Props: Richard Jackson

Movie Reviews:

• SWITCH.: Perhaps it was the “I feel like I’ve seen this before” factor, but ‘Blinded By The Light’ just didn’t resonate. It lacked the humour, the heart and the finesse of Chadha’s previous films, and therefore it falls short.
  – Jess Fenton

  Read Jess’ full article…
  https://www.maketheswitch.com.au/article/review-blinded-by-the-light-the-spiritual-sequel-to-bend-it-like-beckham

  Head to https://www.maketheswitch.com.au/sff for more Sydney Film Festival reviews.

• musty_reviews: The importance of representation isn’t to speak exclusively to one crowd but to demonstrate that deep down, we all deal with the same issues and problems, regardless of ability, race, gender, religion or any of the other attributes that are used to divide us. This movie isn’t just about a young boy discovering his identity as a British Pakistani Muslim, it goes beyond that and depicts a coming of age struggle between parent and child.

  Springsteen’s soundtrack works as a baseline around Javid’s transition from boy to man, through the pursuit of him achieving his dream, which beautifully represents mid 80’s Britain as this bleak and hopeless space that is being held together with prayers and dreams of better tomorrows.

  My favourite part is the moment Springsteen’s music is introduced, mirroring a similar reaction to mine, at a similar age to an unknown band, The Airborne Toxic Event, who were also greatly inspired by The Boss. Lyrics flash on screen while a storm brews outside, energy radiates from the screen while I’m on Fire rings in your ears. The magic of Cinema never felt more alive to me than it did in those few brief minutes.

  The final 30 minutes of the movie had me physically crying, an honour held by a select few, the most touching aspects were in relation to the cultural heritage of the characters and felt very close to home.

  Overall, this movie hits the spot if you’re looking for a feelgood film to break up the week but please don’t miss the opportunity to watch this in the cinema where you can truly experience the movie at its best.