Ken Loach's latest deserves plaudits for taking on the issue of immigration from such an unexpected angle.
It's a Free World (2007)
Runtime: 1 hr 33 mins
Genre: Dramas
Starring: Kierston Wareing, Juliet Ellis, Leslaw Zurek, Joe Siffleet
Reviews
Newcomer Wareing delivers an award-worthy performance as the steely Angie, who is impossible to hate even as she descends deeper into the moral abyss.
Loach is offering commentary, not solutions, so this one could be the feel-bad film of the week. In the best way, of course.
The film's bleak but powerful ending is a wake-up call to Britain and a measure of the pessimism of Loach, one of its most trenchant critics. I fear things must be really bad over there.
Even if it collapses in on itself a bit, there's still a rough power underneath everything that makes it worth a look.
Realistically filmed, but limited by narrative cuts that hopscotch through time, "It's a Free World" is a flawed film that overflows with ideas. You should never pass up a Ken Loach movie, and this is no exception to the rule.
Free World doesn’t need to manufacture tension; its critique of corruption by association is compelling enough.
It’s a free world, Ken Loach asserts in his latest film with well-practiced disgust and unfortunately little hope.
Works on every level -- the performances are compelling, the drama feels grounded and real, and we brush up against an issue so large and overwhelming that you can easily see why no one thinks it's their problem to solve.
In this free world things might be ugly, but at least it's sunny.
Wareing stands out among the slate of typically Loachian/genuine performances, managing to be both unlikable and empathetic at the same time.
The hot-button topic of exploited immigrant labor forms the backdrop of It's a Free World .... , the latest collaboration between helmer Ken Loach and scribe Paul Laverty.
[Director] Loach is in excellent form making the most of a shrewd screenplay by Paul Laverty and drawing a winning performance from newcomer Kierston Wareing as a brassy but misguided entrepreneur.


Top Critic