Kes (Ken Loach, 1969)

Seeing Kes for the first time 50 years after it was made (yes, I acknowledge the magnitude of the omission), I'm rather unfortunately struck at once by how many comic Northern stereotypes it has played a part in engendering. Men going down t'pit, people eating nothing but fish suppers, working-class people who seek to grind down anyone displaying signs of independent thought and terrible music acts at the local working men's club etc.
This is wholly unfair on the film, which is a bleak but sensitive portrayal of a teenage boy bullied on all sides finding solace with a kestrel that he nurtures. The dialects of the largely non-professional, local cast (a standard practice for Loach even then) present somewhat of a challenge to follow, even for locals 50 years down the line with all the dilution of regional differences that has occurred and there isn't much hope on offer for a waning community. But the sincerity and indignant passion burn strong, and David Bradley as the young waifish lead is a revelation.

7/10