Un bacio appassionato

Ken Loach has spent most of his career focusing on politically-charged issues in the United Kingdom: "Poor Cow" is about a woman on skid row, "Hidden Agenda" is about an assassination in Northern Ireland, and "Sweet Sixteen" is about a working-class teenager in Scotland.

This makes "Ae Fond Kiss..." an outlier. At the very least, it's the only one of Loach's movies that I've seen that focuses on a relationship. In this case, it's a Pakistani man and an Irish woman in Glasgow, and the challenges that their relationship faces from those around them. Seeing how the church treats the woman upon learning of her relationship with the man, it's no wonder that the British population has turned away from religion.

Just to keep a focus on political issues, the movie opens with the man's sister denouncing islamophobia and the invasion of Iraq (Loach called for hauling Bush and Blair off to the Hague). Of course, all these years later one could posit that things like the protagonists' relationship is what led so many ignorant people to support Brexit (the feeling that the "original" version of the country had gotten "taken" from them).

All in all, worth seeing.

British filmmaker Ken Loach is a rare commodity. The man should be revered. He consistently makes superb films, movies that comment on important social issues. And he's never been tempted to go Hollywood.

He's appreciated in Europe, but he should be in the United States, too. I consider Loach and fellow Briton Mike Leigh to be the most socially conscious filmmakers working today. Just look at some of Loach's remarkable films - "Kes" (1969), "Riff-Raff" (1990), "Hidden Agenda" (1990), "Raining Stones" (1993), "Ladybird Ladybird" (1994), "Carla's Song" (1996) and "My Name is Joe" (1998). They may not all be masterworks, but they're more emotionally satisfying, funny and poignant than most Hollywood films.

It's a shame Hollywood doesn't have an equivalent to Loach or Leigh. We have the marvelous John Sayles, but he's alone and he, too, doesn't work in the Hollywood system.

In "A Fond Kiss," Loach and screenwriter Paul Laverty tackle the age-old conflict of star-crossed lovers. In this case, it's Casim Khan (Atta Yaqub), a second-generation Pakistani immigrant, and Irishwoman Roisin Hanlon (Eva Birthistle) in Glasgow, Scotland. Casim's a DJ with lofty plans to open his own club; Roisin's a music teacher at the Catholic school attended by Casim's sister, Tahara (Shabana Bakhsh). As expected, Casim's family made plans for him to marry a cousin. And he's caught between obligations to his family and his love for Roisin.

This might seem familiar. And it is. But what Loach and Laverty do is elevate their story to another level, stripping off any artifice and making it as sincere, human and believable as possible. Biracial couples, especially, will understand and appreciate the genuine storytelling. The movie's final scene is beautifully written and acted.

There's something deeply honest about Yaqub and Brithistle's performances. These aren't Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan pretending to be normal people. There's nothing artificially cute or movie-like about Casim and Roisin's romance and relationship. These are two people extremely comfortable with each other. Their conversations are frank; their problems are real; their anguish and joy ring completely true. Even their lovemaking has nothing artificial about it.

Yaqub wasn't a professional actor when Loach cast him. So Yaqub brings certain rawness to his role that's very welcome. But that also exposes his shortcomings. There are moments that require a bit more emotion from Yaqub, scenes that would play better if he were stronger. But he gets ample support from Birthistle. This really is her movie.

From the first moment we see her, Birthistle captivates us. Her reactions to everything that happens to her - from ecstasy with Casim to pain with his sister - there isn't one thing false about her performance. It's so easy for us to sympathize and empathize with her because she draws us in with a wonderfully subtle, nuanced and open performance.

There's also a superb cameo from Gerard Kelly as a sanctimonious priest.

We rarely get to see films such as "A Fond Kiss" in the U.S. Films that bravely tackle social issues, expose our prejudices and force us to think and understand other people and cultures. Loach's oeuvre includes one movie made in the U.S. - "Bread and Roses" (2000). He hasn't returned to make another one. Pity. Just imagine how much richer the American film industry would be if it had filmmakers of Loach's integrity and caliber.

I saw this at the Edinburgh Film Festival last night. I'm not a natural fan of Loach's work, although grew a little warmer to it after Sweet Sixteen.

What he's made here though is a believable, warming love-story. Aside from 'location-spotting' the Glasgow geography, there was a feeling throughout the film that's difficult to pin down (or articulate!); just a kind of "yeah, that's right, these people and these feelings are real".

Lead-wise, a great line up, Atta Yaqub plays a quiet Casim, and Eva Birthistle a brilliant but natural Roisin - there's nothing that stops you believing that this is a couple in love.

As for the rest of them - some excellent characters and some good acting. One criticism is Loach's practice of using non-actors - sometimes this leads to an almost TOO natural delivery of the script. The strength of the whole cast comes through though, and there's certainly no feeling of any tokenism or stereotype characters.

One actor who doesn't appear to have had much notice in any write-ups I've seen is Shabana Bakhsh, who plays Tahara Khan, Casim's youngest sister. She's fantastic. Again, falls a little foul of sometimes sounding overly natural... but what a star though. She was very believable as the rebellious, starting to get politically active, younger sister.

All-in-all, a great film, worth seeing. I think it's out on general release sometime in the early autumn - well worth the ticket.

"Ae Fond Kiss" embodies all and more that we are used to from director,Ken Loach. The film is entertaining and moving from start to finish and makes interesting and true social comment about the way we live. Loach approaches the subjects of religion, race, national identity and cultural differences in a way that is sensitive, gritty and real to the audience. "Ae Fond Kiss" does not shy away from the truth and attempts to deal with issues in a far more serious and believable way than such films as "Bend it Like Beckham". An enjoyable film, and one which should gain huge attention and recognition from the U.S. However, we shouldn't hold our breath as we know.

I was taken to this film sort of against my will, I wanted to see something else, and from the first five minutes I knew I was watching something special. Not to give anything away, but this film has a political side that is not often seen in films in the states, but it's not 'heavy handed' about it at all- the political comes out of the family situations. The actors are all wonderful, particularly the woman lead, and I completely believed every situation they were in. The music was unobtrusive and the camera work felt more like a documentary than a film.

But overall I was left with a feeling of joy that there are still films that try to say something, that aren't based on comic books, and that have real concerns that people struggle with. Bravo to Ken Loach and co.