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

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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.

Blinded By The Light opens Aug. 16 and stars (left-to-right) Nell Williams as Eliza, Viveik Kalra as Javed and Aaron Phagura as Roops.

Nick Wall

"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."