Director : Ken Loach
Cinematographer : Robbie Ryan
Genre : Drama
Country : Belgium
Duration : 113 Minutes
🔸A feeling of tiredness always sticks with the people and places we see in the movie 'The Old Oak', like it has seen its own fair share of sufferings and does not expect anything better, even from future. Eventhough I have thoroughly enjoyed the previous Ken Loach outings, for some reason this tiredness feels absolutely amazing in a Ken Loach setting. Even the pub, which is the central part of the story is not celebrated or romanticised as we think it will be and carried more memories than moments of its own. Ken Loach absolutely delivers with this setting and sets the table perfectly for what would be an amazing two hours of cinema.
🔸The story is set in a former mining town that has been on a decline for some time. The pub owner tries to keep the pub up and running barely as a reminder for his and towns glory days but the word 'barely' often pops up many times to announce its significance. Eventhough the community has lost its hope of a better future what keeps them together is a feel of togetherness, which itself gets questioned when a new set of immigrants set foot in their county. Slowly and steadily the hostility rises between the immigrants and natives and the story changes pace and hooks the audience on the ride.
🔸The one thing I loved more than anything is the director staying away from portraying the hostility due to ideological differences, he portrays the hostility through moments of kindness and moments of bitterness to coexist without eliminating the others. Yes, the film is slow in places, have some pacing issues and even some problems in some characters story developments, but being a Ken Loach fan and having great love for his style of film making all those problems didn't create any sort of distraction for me. A thoughtful work that believes in compassion and humanity still works for me.
Verdict : Good
DC Rating : 3.75/5
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