Ladybird Ladybird

Kenneth Loach ,among all the great directors in the world,has always been one of the very few who depicts the "riff raff" ,to quote one of his works.In his universe, you will not find the young lawyer ,the yalie,the dynamic executive,the journalist with good prospects or the handsome detective with his gorgeous assistant.All his characters are individuals struggling against the authorities and who cannot win:the little boy from "kes",the young girl from 'family life",the two buddies on the dole from "looks and smiles",and the unfortunate mother from "ladybird ladybird". "Ladybird,ladybird" is a harsh movie,sometimes unbearable,definitely not for all tastes.Crissy Rock is absolutely astounding,she does not play the part,she really lives it,leaving us on the edge of our seat.Her screams,her tears,her anger are so real that,had Loach not said it was a true story,we would believe in it anyway.Loach's treatment is stripped of any embellishment.No need for strings when fate strikes once more the heroine.Her partner,an immigrant,is a good man who loves her sincerely ;he suffers because he feels helpless,and when she beats him,he does not complain:his despair is so deep he contemplates suicide.We are far from the immigrant macho cliché. The heroine must come from a poor social background,so she was never taught the rules of the game,so she is bound to fail.But Loach avoids to show us the people from the social services as "baddies":it's for her own good,they say.They reason by the establishment's rules,but they never try to communicate with the mother,deemed irresponsible,unable to get a place in the community.The end of the movie preserves the viewer from despair though.Every dog has his day,they say.May it be true for this poor couple!

I have seen several Ken Loach films in the past like BREAD AND ROSES and MY NAME IS JOE and I really think that Loach is one of the most talented directors around.His social films are very intense and miles away from your regular Hollywood or Pinewood movie.

I thought that MY NAME IS JOE was an intense drama(and it is very much so)but LADYBIRD LADYBIRD is the absolute powerhouse of drama and despare.The acting performances of Crissy Rock and Vladimir Vega are so intense that it seems to be really happening.Loach uses a lot of unexperienced actors to play in his films and this time around it's no different.Both Rock and Vega make their cinema debut here.The fact that Loach uses these unfamiliar people enhances the reality of his films.

The verbal fights between Rock and the social workers are almost unwatchable as are the fights she has with her former boyfriend. The way that Loach uses flashbacks to tell the story is very well done.

Still there are some points of criticism.I know that the film is based on a true story but some things are not very realistic.For instance why should a political refugee of Paraguay start an affair with a sad and unbalanced woman from Mersy Side.Also the parts with the social workers are slightly overdone,but maybe it's the truth.If it is,then I'm afraid to say that these folks are absolutely cold hearted.

LADYBIRD LADYBIRD is the most intense film I've ever seen.It's very hard to watch but even harder not to. 9/10

Crissy Rock gives it her all in this. She plays Maggie. A single mother with 4 kids to 4 different blokes, each of them taken away by social services. She has clear behavioural problems and lives a life of poor choices and bad decisions on repeat. A woman that "smells trouble and goes to bed with it", as her neighbour describes her.

Im conflicted because the film encourages us to be more sympathetic towards the protagonist and her plight but I have no sympathy whatsoever for Maggie, and while I detest the social workers they were 100% necessary here. Maggie is an unfit mother incapable of supporting her litter, let alone herself. She is just as volatile as the men in her life, and her choice of nasty and abusive men that she chooses to subject her own children to was my main reason for thinking her a terrible mother. Clearly her own worst enemy yet the blame always lies on someone or something else and it always will because of that "poor me" mentality.

Another thing that annoyed me and it's something you see all the time sadly. Maggie tells the social worker to stop giving her child condiments with their meals because she can't afford to buy them. Fair enough right? Then you see her lighting a fag, then another, and another. If you can't afford table sauce for your children but you have money to smoke you need to recheck your goddamn priorities.

We've all seen and met people like Maggie. I've lived next to a Maggie or two in my time. The type of person that can't support or even handle the kids they have already yet they keep having them and getting them taken away. Zero aspirations in life other than getting pregnant and living off of benefits. The kind of neighbours that scream constantly and have police at their door routinely but never seem to learn or want to help themselves.

A good Ken Loach flick but far from his best. Still worth a watch but before the film starts you might want to take an aspirin for that inevitable headache.

I challenge any parent who has been questioned over the care of the children or any person who has been unjustly accused of neglect as I have have once been, to sit and watch this disturbing powerhouse of a film. I paused it twice during my original sitting and had to take a moment to deal with what I was being confronted with once again. Rarely . . . yes VERY RARELY does a film or a movie engage me to this point. I have seen several Ken Loach films and I live in admiration of this artist/man, but yet I wasn't prepared for what I sat and watched. I give this 10 out of 10 and am shocked that it hasn't been recognised further by any awards society such as "The Bafta" and "Academy Awards".

Chrissy Rock, I take my hat off to you to have the guts to give all that you gave for your performance, the the actor that played "Jorge" . . you have delivered a standout performance. Ken Loach, you are my hero.

Indeed I stand by my title, possibly the most powerful and disturbing film every made. Magnificent. Ambitious. It delivers.

A very anger-driven film powered by a sense of outrage for it's short-tempered lead, it's attempts at railing against the social service system in the UK are somewhat undercut by the behaviour of the mother at the centre.

She has 4 (later 6) kids from 4 (later 5) different fathers. She constantly returns to one partner who likes to smash her head in, putting her and her offspring in danger. She leaves them at home to sing karaoke while her flat burns down, seriously injuring them. Can you blame the authorities for wanting to take her children away?

Yes, she had a hard past which impacts her decisions in the present. But, at least in my view, this doesn't give her the license to put her kids at risk, even if you do have sympathy for her situation. The fact she lashes out at everyone trying to help her doesn't help matters either, so the blatant attempts by the director and writer to be on her side aren't ever all that effective.

Oh well. The performances are great, with Crissy Rock handing some intensely emotional scenes with aplomb, and Vladimir Vega as her too-nice-by-half Paraguayan boyfriend providing good support. It's based on a true story too, though the only 'happy' ending to be found here is in the final text.

Overall, it's a moving and somewhat absorbing drama in the typical Mike Leigh vein, but one where the protagonist is too flawed to make it truly great. This wouldn't be a problem, but when the movie is always 100% in her corner and expects us to feel the same way, perhaps you can see where the disconnect might cause a problem. 6/10