Sweet Sixteen

Ken Loach (2002)

As the Cannes film festival begins to wind down we happen upon- reportedly- Ken Loach's final narrative feature. Jimmy's Hall is a quaint sort of outing- and the acting at times can let it down- but as an impassioned, well researched and idealistic study, it’s up there with the director's best.

The plot follows the true life story of Jimmy Gralton, a socialist from Leitrim who moved to the States after the civil war only to return ten years later to his local town. At the bequest of his neighbours he decides to rebuild the village’s community centre; the Pearce & Connolly Hall. Jimmy reinstates painting, literature and singing classes along with nights of Jazz music (god forbid!) with the records he brought home. The hall seems to light the whole town up but, of course, falls foul of the local establishment. The priest (Jim Norton in full bishop Brennan mode) is first to denounce him as a communist before the blueshirts follow suit.

Loach hones in on a very delicate moment in Irish politics here, a crossroads of sorts between the war of Independence’s conclusion and the beginning of the troubles in the North. Similar to the post war years in Britain; a subject which has always been close to the director’s heart, his argument is of a missed opportunity for a socialist Ireland. The detail in clothing and the Offaly landscape are all presented beautifully through Robbie Ryan’s gorgeous photography but a sense of realism is hard to get a hold of and, regrettably, that's due to the surprisingly poor cast. It’s not a criticism you would normally level at Loach, the director often works wonders with nonprofessional actors, but here it really can’t be denied. The lines come out a bit too clunky, the speeches a touch too brash. This isn’t to say the film doesn’t work as such- it's still a fine, thoughtful, impassioned piece of work- but the flaws are still apparent.

A sure sense of pride was still on offer for any Irish attendees in the packed out Salle Lumiere. Dotted cheers could be heard for the Irish Film Board logo, as were belly laughs for some of the more colloquial lines, but all in all the response was warm. The film was met with a rousing applause and a good round of clapping-along could be heard as the credits' music rolled.

The director has been here a record 13 times before and if rumours are to be true this could very well be his last. He hasn't exactly ended on a classic per se but Jimmy’s Hall is still a pleasant end to the affair.

Ken Loach returns with The Angel’s Share, a modest but thoroughly enjoyable look at fatherhood and Fresh Starts in the Glaswegian Suburbs. Loach delivers his usual blend of realism and working class banter but this time with a road movie and heist story thrown on top.

We meet our four Scots in the Glasgow courthouse, each being tried for their various crimes. Mo, Albert and Rhino each receive community service stints for their misdemeanours and are sent on their way before main antagonist Robby takes the stand. Fighting a conviction of GBH he narrowly dodges prison thanks largely to the testimony of his heavily pregnant partner Lionee. Soon after the trial comes the arrival of baby boy Luke and a newfound sense of responsibility for Robby. Looking to build a better life for himself Robby goes under the wing of community service instructor and super-gent Harry (a reliably endearing John Henshaw). It proves difficult for Robby as skeletons from his old life lurk around every corner and threaten to destroy the family life he is trying to build. Harry introduces Robby to his passion for Whiskey tasting and here Robby finds, to his surprise, a hidden talent. When word arrives that a very rare barrel is about to be auctioned off, Robby sees his chance for salvation and hatches a plan to swipe the goods.

The film plays well on a number of fronts; the father-son relationship is explored wonderfully both through the friendship of Harry and Robby and the tender scenes of Robby with baby Luke. After a similar but smaller part in Loach’s Looking For Eric in 2009, John Henshaw is given a more central roll here and does an excellent job with it. He gives Harry a very believable sense of decency in his manner with the recently convicted foursome and the lovably earnest way he goes about his favourite past-time. But his relationship with Robby is where the film shines. With his kids having left home and probably seeing some of himself in Robby the pair begin a charming friendship. Alongside Henshaw, Paul Brannigan gives a terrific performance as a tough young man trying to leave his past behind him as he steps wide-eyed into fatherhood.

Shot on location in Glasgow and with a relatively amateur Glaswegian cast, Loach makes no effort to simplify the language with the city’s notoriously strong local dialect coming thick and fast. This will prove difficult even for those with the Queen’s language as their mother tongue. When the film premiered at Cannes the international audience were provided with English subtitles until about the halfway point when a final line appeared which read you’re on your own from here… Loach clearly seeing it as part of the fun and quite right he should. The laughs come easily throughout, particularly with the good old fish-out-of-water humour of the gang’s class trips to the distillery and later on to the wine tasting in Edinburgh.

With The Angel’s Share Loach delivers another good humoured slice of working class life but the film can in no way be compared to his better work. Since the release of Looking for Eric in 2009 there’s been a feeling that the director has been sort of stuck in neutral and despite this being a more than decent effort, the film does little to change that view. It was 2006 when Loach picked up the Palme Dor for The Wind That Shakes the Barley- an unrelenting and beautifully tragic take on the early days of the Irish civil war- and there’s almost a sense of that great film still looming over him. In that masterwork he was fearless in showing the true nature of the British army’s horrific Black and Tans and while I doubt very much that the great man has lost his appetite to provoke I do wonder when his next great work will arrive. This critic knows he has another one left in him and will be patiently waiting till that day comes.