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FILM SUMMARY

Young Irish immigrant Eilis Lace (Saoirse Ronan) navigates her way through 1950s Brooklyn. Lured by the promise of America, Eilis departs Ireland and the comfort of her mother’s home for the shores of New York City. The initial shackles of homesickness quickly diminish as a fresh romance sweeps Eilis into the intoxicating charm of love. But soon, her past disrupts her new vivacity, and Eilis must choose between two countries and the lives that exist within.

ABOUT POST FILM DISCUSSION LEADERS KATIE CONNOLLY AND JULIE ABERGER

Pennington residents Katie and Julie have been friends and neighbors for almost 40 years, and for the past several years have watched movies together weekly. Besides the movie, they enjoy wine, food, talk and laughter. Oh, and did we mention wine? The women turned to the huge selection of movies, foreign and domestic, from the Mercer County and Pennington Libraries. While watching, they eat. And sometimes drink. Katie cooks vegan while Julie orders pizza. After the movie, the two discuss and often disagree about what they have seen, sometimes vociferously.

Julie’s faves: Nordic noir (e.g., “As It Is In Heaven”) and German (as in “The Lives of Others”), and other dark narratives that reflect foreign culture and flawed protagonists.

Katie’s faves: French film maker Francis Veber and his slapstick movies such as “The Closet” and “The Tall Blond Man With One Black Shoe”, as well as the often surreal movies of Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar.

This program is part of the 2022 NEA Big Read, which encourages the Pennington community to read the same book and participate in a wide variety of events. The Best We Could Do is an intimate and poignant graphic novel portraying one family’s journey from war-torn Vietnam. NEA Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest. Please visit PenningtonLibrary.org/2022BigRead for a full calendar of events and more information.

NEA Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.