User reviews

I think that Ken Loach has produced another winner here – it is a story of a Eric Bishop (Steve Evets), a postman going though some hard times and not being able to cope with life in general – with a painful break-up behind him, a dysfunctional home life, step kids that ignore him, he decides to escape from it all by driving the wrong way around a round-about … this prompts his friends to rally around to help him – suggesting self help techniques (very comical!) and adopting role models … and Eric B. adopts his main influence as Eric Cantona – who in his mind's eye becomes our Eric's life coach and mentor

Eric's friends and work colleagues from the Post Office are hilarious and whenever they are on screen it is very funny – especially the character "Meatballs" – played with great aplomb by John Henshaw. Other very good performances were portrayed by Stephanie Bishop (as Lily) and of course by Eric Cantona playing himself …

At times this film is sad, and at others truly funny – but you do take to the characters and ride along the emotional roller-coaster – because you actually start caring about the characters and what is happening to them

Just when it seemed all was lost for Eric B. and his family – there is then a superb twist in the plot (I won't give it away here) – and you won't see it coming! – that leads to a very fitting, uplifting finale to a very well told / acted / directed story I am not a Man Utd. Fan, but this film still has a lot to recommend it – and I must say, that Eric Cantona grows on you more and more as the movie goes along

This film's message is not really about football – it's more about the value of friends and people you can rely on when all seems lost … and as Cantona states "Trust your teammates – always – or your are nothing!"

I found "Looking for Eric" to be a very enjoyable film - recommended!

Man Utd fans will obviously love this and I'm not a Utd fan. However i have to say this is the most entertaining film of Ken Loach's since Bread & Roses nearly a decade ago. It has a good story and is realistically acted by a cast of unknowns and semi-familiar faces. For a film about a legendary and iconic footballer it doesn't ram football down the throats of the non-fans. What the film does do is bring up just how important football is for many people, the way it can unite and connect them in a way that has otherwise disappeared in Britain.

I won't give any of the story away but this film drags you down to a point where you wonder how the protagonist will get out of a very dire dilemma. Yet the ending is so well written you are guaranteed to come out of the cinema smiling at the way just desserts are dished out. The film is brutal in places and the language strong yet the excellent acting keeps it watchable and Monsieur Cantona himself seems very comfortable in front of a film camera (although sometimes his accent makes his dialog a little hard to understand). Cantona plays with his image wonderfully, being both self important and yet always likable and sometimes quite happy to deflate his own ego, being respectful about how lucky he was to have had such a memorable and legendary career without ever being truly arrogant (a fact a certain Mr C Ronaldo could do well to absorb) and acknowledging the role of the fans in his career. Lets put it another way, King Eric will always be remembered and respected in this country by all supporters for his great ability and the respect he had for the game and his club. Ronaldo will just be remembered as a talented but greedy young man who left probably the biggest club in the world for a larger pay packet.

Its difficult for me to say any more without giving away the plot but lets just say this is a film about never giving up hope when all seems lost because sometimes help will come from the most unexpected sources.

Don't believe a word of the hype. Looking for Eric is not a Ken Loach comedy. It is, in several places, a very funny film indeed. But it is not a comedy. At a far fetched push you might call it a rom-com or a social satire. Me? I just think it's another brilliant Loachian movie. (Can you believe he's been at it for 45, yes 45, years since he wrote three episodes for z cars)? It's so sad, so desperate in places and then, yes, so funny.

And then there's Eric (Cantona). Ooh ah! And his goals. Ooh la la! And his cod (sorry sardine) philosophising. Oops ah! The Cantona character is inspired, as it is so self-deprecating- not a quality one associates with the French.

I loved this film but why is it so good? I think it's the way Loach makes his characters so utterly believable and, particularly in this movie, sympathetic. And as I always, always say it's because of the writing which is nailed on by long time collaborator Paul Laverty).

One of the back stories, about the elder stepson of Eric the postman (our hero played to perfection by Steve Evets in, I think, his first Loach movie) is really the backbone of the film. The eldest stepson (Gerard Kearns of Shameless fame) gets embroiled in some nasty business with a local gangland thug and threatens to destabilise Eric's whole fragile existence. But what doesn't kill you makes you stronger and that is certainly proved here.

It's a gem. A true Brit movie classic with a wee bit of the Auld Alliance thrown in.

J'adore Eric Cantona!

In 'Looking for Eric' Loach takes a look at the complicated life of a down on his luck unhappy postman, Eric Bishop. He desperately struggles to cope with his dysfunctional home, ignorant kids and a sad breakup but all seems hopeless until he finds a way in the form of former football player Eric Cantona. Loach does a wonderful job by infusing humour, philosophy and football into the story.

The presentation itself is very raw and suitably toned down. The sets and setting look authentic. The actors look like the common people one would see in bars. The intense scenes are very effective as the stark portrayal of Eric's struggle and despair is raw to the core. The humour comes as a welcome comic relief as it balances well. I really enjoyed the sequences with the two Erics. This is where Eric Bishop finds solace, peace and answers and his friendship with his imaginary friend is easy to relate to.

Another theme that Loach beautifully presents in 'Looking for Eric' is the importance and love for football. Why fans excitedly watch a match and cheer or yell at the team they support, what football means to them, and the significant effect it has on the lives of fans are all wonderfully explored here.

Steve Evets is great as Eric Bishop. His nuanced portrayal stands out beautifully. Eric Cantona perhaps delivers one of the most sincere performances I have ever seen from a sports player turned actor. Even though some may argue that he's just playing himself, I'd say that he's playing Eric Cantona from Eric Bishop's point of view, not his own. I also liked how Stephanie Bishop downplays Lily. The rest of the actors do a brilliant job.

Ken Loach's little film is a winner all the way.

Arguably primarily of interest to Manchester United fans, Looking For Eric concerns itself with the life of a washed-up middle-aged postal worker, who made a mess-up of a relationship in his younger years and now wants to make things right. Thanks to a bunch of loyal mates and a platitude-spouting illusional Eric Cantona brought on by way too much crack smoking, he may have his chance...

It's a pretty entertaining film, with lots of stuff going on involving gangsters, footie jokes and a surreal climax you'll never see coming (unless you've spotted the screenshots on the back of the DVD box). But Ken Loach can definitely do better... I'm thinking of movies like Kes for example, where he balances his social commentary with down-to-earth comedy with pitch perfection.

Here, it just seems the entire plot is so is awe of Cantona and his no doubt impressive legacy, that everything else is almost a second thought. The conflicts and interactions feel a bit half-arsed, with almost everything dominated by the former soccer star who just exists in the picture as a delusion of this guy's drug-addled mind.

And while Eric is charming and occasionally funny in the role of playing himself, it seems to be to the detriment of the rest of the more dramatic scenes. There are plenty of good moments away and the last few minutes are a true delight in their imaginative oddness, but this ain't vintage Loach by any stretch. If you're a rabid Reds fans, it's a must see. For anyone else, you may want to have second thoughts. 6/10

I went to see this film as a colleague said it was good. I pretty much had no other idea what it was when I entered the theater.

The story is well narrated, put together in the "show not tell" method. You figure it out as you go along.

I found it fascinating on many levels. The character that Cantona plays adds depth and sparkle to the beginning of the story, when it all seems so lack luster. Seeing all the different stories coming together and seeing Eric pull himself together makes for a phenomenal story. At no point was I bored or did I lose interest in the movie.

It was only afterward that I found out who Cantona is and that he was even played by himself. The film completely worked even without knowing this beforehand.

Enjoyable, heartwarming and fascinating - I'll definitely be recommending this to friends.

From 'Cathy Come Home' to 'Kes through to 'Raining Stones' to 'The Wind That Shakes The Barley' the constant element of a Ken Loach film is striking realism. Everything is so natural, so ordinary that you stop looking at a story unfold on a big screen but look out at life going on through a massive window in the corner of the cinema. People talk like real people talk not to advance a story but to say what they're thinking, they talk over each other, round each other and sometimes stumble over their words. Events don't take place in a neat progressive order – they just happen, the way life happens. And yet Loach still manages to construct and set out these moments and these characters to tell a coherent natural story with a beginning, middle and end. Even when making a fantasy about a middle-aged man and his imaginary friend he doesn't alter the realism and naturalism of his approach one little bit.

Eric Bishop (Steve Evets) is on the verge of a complete breakdown moving from depression to despair. He lives with his two stepsons who treat him with contempt and use his house as a doss-house for their mates. He is still haunted by his biggest regret in his life – walking out on Lily (Stephanie Bishop) his first wife and first love nearly thirty years earlier when their daughter was still a toddler. When that now grown up daughter approaches him to help with looking after her child he realises Lily is going to become a part of his life again and he is terrified of how to deal with it or indeed if he can. His friends see that he is falling apart and rally around and try to help but it is his idol Eric Cantona (Eric Cantona) who he turns to for advice on how to cope. Cantona isn't there of course, it's all in his head but you get the impression that Eric B. knows that and that that's not the point anyway. It helps.

Although this is not necessarily a comedy it has like all of Ken Loache's films some very funny moments and some very funny characters. It has some very brutal ones too. A gentle domestic scene is suddenly interrupted by a shocking and very noisy home invasion – Eric's stepsons get caught up with gangland killers – and Eric himself gets (very) publicly humiliated by that gang's leader. But at its heart this is a feel-good film and leaves you with a satisfied grin and a real sense of justice being done. – And Cantona is damn good too!

I found this film extremely good fun. The plot was a little surreal, but it held you. The acting was excellent and there were lots of laughs. Cantona acquits himself perfectly respectably. As usual with Ken Loach, there was a bleaker side to the fun and the realities of ordinary people's lives were not glossed over or "prettied up". As is also the case with Loach films, one had the sensation that this was not being "acted" by professional luvvies, but conveyed with sincerity. This must be extremely difficult to achieve and I am full of admiration for the skill involved. Manchester United fans and other football followers will enjoy some of the documentary footage. But this is not just a film for football enthusiasts. I thoroughly recommend it.

Steve evets is eric, and he's having a really bad week. A car accident, and trying to watch over two stepsons who treat him like dirt. The kids are totally out of control, and don't listen to anything he says. Even his co-workers have noticed that he's down, so they try to cheer him up. Eric talks to the poster of his footy hero eric cantona. So they compare stories about life, good times and bad times. Cantona gives lots of advice on how to get on with life. So much swearing and yelling. When thugs from the hood start messing with his family, eric isn't sure what do do. Can he get any of this straightened out? It's pretty good. Cantona has really found a second career in tv and film! Directed by ken loach. He has won several baftas!

The recent World Cup in South Africa brought everyone's attention to soccer (which most of the world calls football), but movies such as "Bend It Like Beckham" and "Looking for Eric" show why we should pay more attention to it. The Fall's Steve Evets plays down-on-his-luck postman Eric Bishop, who in his mind gets advice from footballer Eric Cantona (playing himself). Through this, Eric reconnects with his family. But when his son gets involved with a group of thugs, Eric has to take charge.

This is only the third Ken Loach film that I've seen (the others were "Poor Cow" and "Kes"). As I understand it, Loach usually focuses on political topics in his movies. While this one isn't really political, it's still one that I strongly recommend. Everything about it feels so realistic. I'd never even heard of Eric Cantona before this. Without a doubt, the best scene in the movie is the home invasion towards the end.

A quintessentially English film, but with a Gallic twist, this story should appeal to an audience far beyond the denizens of the Stretford End. In essence, a modest morality tale, a first half which fades dangerously is kick started by a plot development which sees things through to a happy, and satisfying conclusion.

Steve Evets plays, Eric, a down trodden, down on his luck Postman who is saved by his namesake Eric Cantona finding minor redemption from his life's trials and tribulations. Cantona is impressive and convincing, playing himself with a wistful enigmatic quality that legend determines he has.A solid cast includes Everyman Northerner John Henshaw as best mate Meatballs and an enjoyable cameo by Lucy-Jo Hudson as daughter Sam whom many will recognise as Katy from Coronation St.

The humour is wry, rather than laugh-out-loud, and the first half succeeds so well in creating an impoverished, crushed, defeated air that it almost implodes.By contrast,the second half, with a purpose,means the minutes zip along as the pace, dialogue, editing and story advance.The running time at almost two hours gives ample time for the characters to breathe, pretty much a trademark of Director Ken Loach.This work leans more heavily on the verite of his early documentary "Cathy Come Home" than the lushness of The Wind That Shakes The Barley".Yet Cantona lifts proceedings with his every appearance suggesting that a serious film career may beckon.

Authentic, well observed, raw in places, this film puts people first and is faithful to both Northern life, and the enigma which is Cantona.

Loach's Looking for Eric combines some of the best work he's previously done in regards to a realistic, low-level set aesthetic combined with some universal themes of contemporary middle aged men in crisis, all the while filtered through the light comedy and crime drama genres. It's to the film's great credit that it doesn't linger too often on one of the items Loach explored here, while this project in the hands of a lesser director may well have come across as more misguided than it actually does here. As a journey of self-discovery; a horrifying urban crime tale and a study of mental illness, the film covers enough ground on most levels without ever feeling like it caters for any of the above.

The film plunges the viewer head first into the world of a certain Eric Bishop (Evets); who's a single and ageing postman living in Manchester with son Jess (Gumbs) and stepson Ryan (Kearns), in a small house that results in messy and cramped living conditions. The film begins and concludes with two very different, but somewhat equally frightening, sequences with the first thing we're presented with being a suicide attempt that sees Eric driving the wrong way around a roundabout. The film finishes off its narrative with a sequence that resembles what a number of 2004 film Dead Man's Shoes' scenes might've looked like had it been co-made by Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright.

But Bishop isn't the only Eric of the film, indeed footballer Eric Cantona makes a number of brief appearances as himself in both found footage format, when the film displays a number instances in which he is playing football, as well as in hallucinatory form when postman Eric sees him and talks to him. In decoding the title of the film, we establish the sort of arc its lead will go on. Whatever initial 'looking' in regards to Eric anybody does is postman Eric's searching for some kind of way to make sense of everything; this is then followed by a 'looking' for himself, a searching of one's self and how one can overcome the obstacles such as marital issues; maintaining healthy relationships with one's friends and family members as well as an alarming situation which arises to do with a firearm.

Bishop escapes to his own space, his bedroom, when things get tougher than they ought to be when at home with his sons and their own friends whom clutter things up even more. Further still, he uses Cantona, and memories of Cantona as a footballer, to escape to a happier time and place. He hasn't been to a match at his beloved Manchester United for many years, and can only gaze on in a forlorn state at his sons as they clamber into a black jeep with their own contacts, match bound. Eric's despair; suicidal ideation and what we have to perceive as his schizophrenia, are all handled with the greatest of respects. When Cantona first appears and begins to communicate with Eric, he takes him through the process of confronting both the past and his flaws in a very realistic and down to Earth manner; asking him to explore what is inside of Eric's bedroom trunk, which mostly houses memorabilia from Eric's marriage to now estranged child-hood sweetheart named Lily. This premise of forthrightly confronting one's fears is relatively simplistic but works well. From here, the film beautifully spaces the interactions between either Eric, and allows the character of Bishop to naturally progress.

In addition to the principal study running throughout, Loach retreads some old ground that recalls the sorts of work he did in both 1991's Riff Raff and 2001's The Navigators; this when he enters a comfort zone which provides some fascinating, dialogue driven cinema in some everyday locations as those of a working class sit around and just talk in that ultra-realistic manner Loach seems to execute with consummate ease, every time making for riveting viewing and desperately straddling that fine line between documentary and fiction. You know the instances I mean; those times when it's as if the actors are still talking on the set but the cameras have been accidentally left running. But I think Loach identifies the severity and sensitive nature of his primary subject matter, thus he limits these sorts of scenes to only one or two occasions. The comedy is additionally blended in well, with no aim to exploit the respective situations; with instances such as Eric accidentally spraying paint onto his work clothes and his stepson encountering him in the kitchen shouting "No!", in French, after Cantona told him to.

Looking for Eric is a tasteful observation of a man in crisis, someone whom you think is able to enjoy what life has to throw at him, but finds it difficult to channel it towards the surface and therefore express it. The notion of hallucinating a figure to help you through times of distress is something that has been explored before, but Loach brings something different to it; something I wouldn't describe as 'lighthearted', more-so 'delicate', or just down to Earth. Refreshingly, the sensation that a person is seeing and actually communicating with something that's not there isn't overplayed or put across as this amazing; fantastic event that everyone's attention should be drawn to. Loach observes the USP, but does not make it the centrepiece of his film; rather, he allows it to play out around a story of identifying meaningful friendships and rectifying marital mistakes. Well handled; well executed and not over-egged nor patronising, Looking for Eric buries the proverbial volley with aplomb.

Being an armchair Manchester United fan now for almost 20 years i had a lot of interest in seeing Ken Loachs' film when i first got wind of it.The presence of Eric Cantona still looms large over Old Trafford and indeed fans still sing his name to this day.In a way,watching Looking For Eric made me fall in love with Cantona and Manchester United all over again. This film does what all good fantasy films should do , it makes you feel good. We start the film with our central character in the depths of unhapiness and witness a transformation,thanks to life coaching by Eric Cantona (watch out Paul McKenna) . Cantona is a man with undeniable presence.Those who might sneer and scoff at his attempts to break in to the film world will be made to eat their words as Cantona brings every ounce of mysticism and humanity to his performance. It's true that it pays to know about Cantona and the impression he made upon the English game of football. In all the years since he has left the game, no one has quite replicated what he achieved. He will be remembered by Manchester United fans alongside greats like Best and Charlton and now also by movie fans for a touching and memorable performance in a film that deserves high praise.

I've just been to see an advance screening of this film, without really knowing what it was about, other than obviously Eric Cantona would be in it. I'll admit from the outset that I am a Manchester United fan and was looking forward to seeing Eric on screen. It would have been worth it if only to see some of his goals again. I won't say too much about what the film was about for risk of spoiling it, because you should see it for yourself. It is filmed and based around Manchester and follows the life of a postman. At times it's sad, amusing and hilarious. The characters are extremely well played by actors both known and unknown and the audience should be able to identify with them easily. I would tip this to be big and hope it does well at the box office.

Quite a funny movie, tender and wise. Ken Loach is somehow derided in the UK as a Trotskyist always playing the anti-Thatcher role but this time he surprised everyone with this comedy. Politics has maybe driven this story as well but in the context of people's lives. In this plot a strong sense of humanity comes out very powerfully. As usual Loach's way of describing his characters consists of showing them as ordinary people finding themselves in extraordinary situations. Nevertheless the director never forgets to show their vulnerabilities and flaws but, unlike other Ken's stories, this one ends up being both a witty and an almost feel-good movie.

The concept of a downtrodden man getting his life back on track has been done many times before, but Ken Loach has managed to put a unique spin on it, as well as imbuing it with a lot of pathos.

Having Eric Cantona in a main role puts this film in a unique position, as there aren't many players like him who are so embedded into the psyche of a city. He in a way represents Manchester, which makes sense for Eric Bishop to visualise him specifically to help him out. Cantona's own story of struggle and then redemption makes him especially suited to helping out someone who is having a tough time in their life, which is why this story works so well.

Cantona himself has a decent screen presence, but Steve Evets puts in a powerhouse performance which really makes the film worth watching. He can really explode with fury, but his quieter scenes of disappointment, anguish and hope are also brilliant.

Loach does well to manage the magical realism side of the story along with his usual kitchen-sink drama, and any conversation is exceptionally interesting because of that. Paul Laverty should also get a lot of credit for his screenwriting work here.

This is something I would definitely recommend.

Ken Loach has been making films about gutsy working class people struggling with unpromising lives for decades; but his movies can have a same-y feel about them. Of his recent films, my favourite is 'Bread and Roses', perhaps because it took him abroad, outside his comfort zone. 'Looking for Eric' has it's own uniqueness; an unlikely cameo from Eric Cantona, footballer turned occasional actor, but who here features as himself, or at least, as a popular version of himself, appearing magically to a postman who considers him a hero and who is thereby inspired to turn his life around. In spite of this twist, the overall plot arc is more typical of Loach, although it's hard not to enjoy the surreal (though not fantastical) climax. It's not the director's greatest work; but as always it's honest, and is also (in a way not all his films are) fun.

The last Ken Loach film I saw was "The Wind that Shakes the Barley" which was a disappointingly simplistic historical epic. He's best when he drops the partisan politics and focuses on the lives of ordinary, flawed people trying to live their lives in harsh working class environments, and he's back to that here, in this tale of a Manchester postman whose life and family are in bad disrepair. The Loach film "Looking for Eric" reminded me most of is "Raining Stones": both seem comparatively light for quite a while, gritty and realistic (and wonderfully foul-mouthed) but also very funny, almost in a "Full Monty" mode. And then a huge shock that we should have been expecting suddenly raises the stakes and our emotional involvement. "Eric" differs from "Stones" in finding a more upbeat finale, by way of a climactic confrontation that must be seen to be believed. Throughout, the football fan camaraderie provides Loach with an infectious and fun way to make his point about friendship and community. Best of all is the rapport between the two Erics, protagonist Eric Bishop and real life Man U. footballer Eric Carmona, who appears as himself. His role in the plot is much the same as Humphrey Bogart's in Woody Allen's "Play It Again, Sam", but the context here raises the gimmick to something far more urgent and finally moving. Highly recommended.

This film is about a football fan who faces many difficulties in various aspects in his life. He gets a lot of help from an unlikely and imaginary hero.

I heard "Looking for Eric" is funny and is really good, but unfortunately I cannot agree. The story is confusing, and it is not helped by the northern accent which I cannot comprehend at all. As a result, I constantly have no idea what is going on. Though the film is down to earth and unpretentious about every day life, this does not help with building empathy and connection with the viewers. I cannot feel for any of the characters. I was bored and confused throughout the film, and in fact I am still looking for what it is about.