The local pub is virtually the last community gathering place in an impoverished town in the north of England, one of those places that never recovered from the demise of the mining industry. Here, TJ (Dave Turner) is hanging on by a thread. When an influx of Syrian refugees stokes xenophobic backlash, he’s ready to step up and help the newcomers as best he can — to the disgust of some of his regulars. The word “Brexit” is never spoken in this very moving melodrama from Ken Loach and his regular screenwriter Paul Laverty (I Am Daniel Blake; Sorry We Missed You), yet the film is set in 2016 and it’s an attempt to wrestle with the implications of that referendum, a low point in the history of British socialism. The overt racism the refugees encounter is shocking, but its been seeded by decades of poverty and neglect, and Loach finds embers of hope in acts of courage, kindness and solidarity. It’s a plain and honest account of a time of discord and division.
Media Partner
Dave Turner, Ebla Mari, Claire Rodgerson
UK
2023
Special Presentations
English
Depictions of Racism, Coarse Language
Book Tickets
Indigenous & Community Access
Indigenous Access Tickets Community Access Tickets Ticket Donation Requests
Credits
Executive Producer
Pacal Caucheteux, Grégoire Sorlat, Vincent Maraval
Producer
Rebecca O’Brien
Screenwriter
Paul Laverty
Cinematography
Robbie Ryan
Editor
Johnathan Morris
Production Design
Fergus Clegg
Original Music
George Fenton
Director
Ken Loach
Ken Loach was born in 1936 in Nuneaton. He attended King Edward VI Grammar School and went on to study law at St. Peter’s Hall, Oxford. After a brief spell in the theatre, Loach was recruited by the BBC in 1963 as a television director. This launched a long career directing films for television and the cinema, from Cathy Come Home and Kes in the 1960s to The Wind that Shakes the Barley (Palme d’Or, Cannes Film Festival 2006), and I, Daniel Blake (Palme d’Or, Cannes Film Festival 2016).
Filmography: Kes (1969); Raining Stone (1993); The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006); I, Daniel Blake (2016); Sorry We Missed You (2019)
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
Pulp Fiction + The ReViberators
In the spirit of Quentin Tarantino, we're going to launch our summer series 90s, Baby! smack in the middle, with 1994's Pulp Fiction, the most exciting and influential movie of its era. On 35mm. Preceded by surf guitar sensations The ReViberators live!
Madonna: Truth or Dare
A year in the life of Madonna at the height of her fame, touring Blonde Ambition through 1990. There's concert footage, but the movie is also daringly truthful about life behind the scenes — not that Madonna is every really off-stage.
Hanami
On the volcanic island Cape Verde, young Nana is on the cusp of self-discovery. When her long-absent mother returns, the lyricism and magic of Nana's childhood take a different shape. Winner of the Best Emerging Director Award, Locarno Film Festival.