Brooklyn

In the 1950s, Eilis Lacey leaves a small Irish town and sails to Brooklyn in search of steadier work and a chance at a new life. There she makes a careful adjustment to a different culture, a different pace, and a new accent. A romance with Tony Fiorello, a warm and practical Italian American, blossoms as she builds friendships, takes night classes, and sends money home to her family. Back in Ireland, she is pledged to Jim Farrell, a steady suitor who embodies the familiar life she left behind. Torn between two worlds and two kinds of happiness, she confronts what home means and what she must sacrifice to pursue it, without spoiling what lies ahead. Its choices echo outward.

Directed by John Crowley, Brooklyn adapts Colm Toibín's novel with a screenplay by Nick Hornby. The 2015 drama follows an Irish immigrant's life in New York, anchored by Saoirse Ronan's performance as Eilis Lacey alongside Domhnall Gleeson and Emory Cohen.

It grossed $62,076,141 worldwide on an $11,000,000 budget, reflecting solid audience interest in a restrained period romance. The film drew praise for its quiet intensity, rigorous period detail, and the emotional honesty of its central romance.

Brooklyn resonated as a finely observed look at immigration and belonging. Ronan earned widespread acclaim for delivering restraint and warmth, while the film's attention to Irish and American communities helped spur renewed interest in literary adaptations on screen. Its era feel and grounded performances linger with viewers.

Critics praised the film for its quiet meditation on home, memory, and choice. The story contrasts the pull of a close knit Irish town with the lure of a new life abroad, offering a humane look at how small decisions shape a life and sense of self.