Ken Loach's film is a dark portrait of a boy growing up in
Scotland. We meet Liam, the film's protagonist, as he counts down the
final
weeks of his mom's prison sentence. His mother, who is set to be
released
on the eve of Liam's 16th birthday, was apparently busted for drugs
some
time ago. Liam decides to get things together to keep his mom out of
"trouble" after her release by arranging a new place to live away from
her
abusive boyfriend.
Not satisfied with the pace of earnings generated by selling stolen
cigarettes, Liam decides to steal some Heroin from her mom's boyfriend
and
sell it with his buddy Pinball. As you can imagine, hilarity ensues.
Having watched this film a few days ago I am still uncertain how to
react to
it. On one hand, it is a wonderful character study and really nails the
"teenage boy" mentality. On the other, it seems terribly jaded and has
that
Dead Zone-esque "I know what's going to happen but I can't do anything
to
stop it" feel. I really enjoyed the film, but something is nagging at
me
about it that I can't identify. While I recommend it, I can't
promise anything.
One final note: the film is
subtitled in english for those who have trouble with thick Scottish
accents. All slang remains intact, but it is easier to read than listen
to.
