Blinded by the Light: This inspiring Bruce Springsteen musical wouldn't exist without Brexit

The filmmaker behind Bend It Like Beckham and Bride and Prejudice returns with this heartfelt movie that's filled to the brim with music from The Boss.

"It's about Bruce. If you're a Bruce fan you'll see something different. And if not, you like it. You'll love it. You might become a [Bruce] fan as a result of the film."

That's author Sarfraz Manzoor talking about the film Blinded By The Light which is based on his teenage years. Manzoor and director Gurinder Chadha both stopped by CNET to chat with us about the film which opens Aug. 16.

Blinded By The Light takes place in 1987 in Luton, England (think Milwaukee or Detroit in the US). Times are financially and politically hard with many people out of work and neo-facism on the rise. In the middle of all this is Javed (played by Viveik Kalra), a 16-year-old who dreams of being a writer despite his very traditional Pakistani family insisting he pursue a more sensible job.

During a moment of despair, a classmate gives Javed two Bruce Springsteen cassettes: Born In The USA and Darkness on the Edge of Town. Javed's outlook on life transforms instantly. Springsteen's music speaks more about the struggles he and his family face than the traditional Pakistani music his father devotedly listens to.

Blinded By The Light is the latest film from Chadha who is perhaps best known for her 2002 film Bend It Like Beckham -- yeah the one with Keira Knightley. Blinded By The Light is as funny as it is authentic. Like Bend It Like Beckham, Chadha mixes humor (there's a lot), hope, social activism and full on musical numbers into a wonderfully balanced and entertaining film.

Springsteen's songs are expertly woven into the story sometimes quietly underscoring a scene and other times as full on musical numbers with singing and dancing by the cast. The film is shot through Javed's eyes allowing the audience to feel as ignited by Springsteen's lyrics and performances as he is.

The Boss' lyrics speak to Javed like writings from a prophet. And I found myself for the first time in my life deeply connecting to Springsteen's songs and wondering why I hadn't before.

"We could have used any of the songs," said Chadha during an interview at CNET. "I wanted to make sure we didn't make a jukebox musical. I sat there with all the lyrics in front of me as I was doing the draft and made sure each lyric would fit Javed's story."

In one scene the lyrics to Promised Land -- "take a knife and cut this pain from my heart" -- are literally projected larger than life over the top of Javed. I don't know if there will ever be a formal Bruce Springsteen musical or biopic, but Blinded By The Light is perhaps the best manifestation of his music you could hope for in a film. Hearing his songs played over a Dolby sound system is a real damn treat. Experiencing his music through this fresh perspective made me appreciate how much his lyrics resonate with our current politics, culture and economic struggles here in the US and UK.

Going back to Manzoor, most of what we see Javed go through actually happened to him. And in 2008, he wrote about his experiences growing up in a Pakistani family and becoming a Bruce fan in his book Greetings from Bury Park: A Memoir. For years, Chadha and Manzoor had loose plans to turn the book into a film, but it took a major political event to instigate the film actually being made.

"I didn't want to repeat myself after Bend It Like Beckham and then Brexit happened," said Chadha while sporting a Bruce Springsteen T-shirt. "I was so upset with all the xenophobia that was going on around us that I said, 'I've got to do something about it.' And that's when I said, 'We've got to make this film next.'"