Review: Blinded By The Light is all rock'n'roll and all Bruce Springsteen

Yet another big-screen movie riffing on a musical icon hits our cinemas this weekend. This one is for fans of The Boss and is called Blinded By The Light.

As the lyrical title suggests, the beat of this story is all rock'n'roll and all Bruce Springsteen and it will change our leading man Javed's life forever. 

Based on a true story, the film is set in Britain during the tumultuous times of the Thatcher administration. The 1980s have much to answer for, and Thatcher is the least of our worries when you consider the fashion of the day. 

Javed is struggling through sixth form, his inner monologue way out of step with the world around him, particularly his very traditional Pakistani father.

As the rising social and racial unrest seethes and swirls around his small-town world its clear it will all come to the boil soon enough. And waiting heroically in the wings is the music of Springsteen.

What we have here is a film with a tonne of heart and important messages of tolerance, love and the power of music. It's a film which did everything in its power to win my heart, failing miserably. 

It's forced me to confront the very real possibility that perhaps the cynic in me might be responsible for that.

So here I sit warming my hands on the charred remains of my stone-cold heart, secure in the knowledge that while Blinded by the Light did not bring me joy, there's a good chance it may for others less jaded.

Two-and-a-half stars.

Newshub.