Yet another great Ken Loach film. It begins as a somewhat gritty comedy. Bob (Bruce Jones, aka Les Battersby) and his mate Tommy (Ricky Tomlinson) are out of work and desperate for money. They decide to capture a sheep, and sell the meat in the local pub. They also go and steal the turf from the local Conservative Party club grounds (if anyone deserved it then...!).
The heart of the film, though, is Bob's desperation to get the money together to pay for his daughter's Catholic Communion outfit. He ends up borrowing money from the loan sharks, and things begin to go downhill. There is one scene, where a loan shark "pays a visit" after Bob misses his payments. Bob is out, but his wife and daughter are in. There is no serious physical violence in this scene, but plenty of verbal threats. For me, this is one of the most menacing scenes in film I have seen in years. Loach directs it to perfection.
As often with Loach, behind an ostensible political message, lies a complex moral analysis of real people's lives, handled with great sensitivity.
The heart of the film, though, is Bob's desperation to get the money together to pay for his daughter's Catholic Communion outfit. He ends up borrowing money from the loan sharks, and things begin to go downhill. There is one scene, where a loan shark "pays a visit" after Bob misses his payments. Bob is out, but his wife and daughter are in. There is no serious physical violence in this scene, but plenty of verbal threats. For me, this is one of the most menacing scenes in film I have seen in years. Loach directs it to perfection.
As often with Loach, behind an ostensible political message, lies a complex moral analysis of real people's lives, handled with great sensitivity.