Route Irish

With such a small output of British-born filmmakers working today, Ken Loach is one of only a handful of directors who has remained just that; astutely British. Yet he is one who is regarded by his nationality but remains such a great interrogator of it. Loach uses his position to constantly challenge social ills and unexplored stories that reflect individual members of society. As such, one of the hallmarks of his style, which Loach obviously has a conscious pride about, is his eccentricities in enabling levels of realism and authenticity within his films in the most challenging and grounded British subjects. Cathy Come Home didn’t just help change British television; it also provoked some formal social renovations and is still widely discussed today. His drama Kes about a young boy who forges a relationship with a kestrel in the mining-town of Sheffield (pre-Thatcher) remains his most beloved. Startling realism was infamously forged when the protagonist Billy had to find his kestrel after it having been killed by his brother. The kestrel found was in fact an already dead bird specially flown in (…) for the scene. The actor was not told otherwise, and the reaction we see on screen is genuine.

With his latest film, Route Irish, Loach employs his recognised methods in the pursuit of realism in the execution of a narrative that involves a rather understudied subject, the idea of mercenaries operating in Iraq. Although the war in Iraq may be seen as ‘over’, new observations and criticisms are constantly being uncovered every day. As such, Route Irish may place strong concentration upon its foreign setting, its effect is still one intrinsically tied into contemporary British society. The film follows the investigation of former mercenary Fergus after his best friend Frankie dies in Iraq. Fergus pertains to have some guilt over his friend’s death as it is he who suggested working in Iraq due to its great financial benefits. However, it becomes obvious that Frankie’s untimely death is not entirely due to the circumstance of working in such a war-torn area, and is in fact more involved with the corrupt officials that employ him.

Loach also employs distinct technologies in the depiction of the narrative, Real footage of the army shooting Iraqis helps convey a level of authenticity in its political messaging. The Skype/ video-call is used an imperative communicative tool as Fergus tries to pursue investigations of events in both Iraq and the UK. What this reflects is the Loach is not a director that is afraid to move, but an attempt to adapt and integrate with each subject and the period it is involved within. Filmmakers should always be encouraged to continue to diversify, and not continue making the same type of films in the risk of monotony and subject staleness. There can be no greater contrast between Route Irish and Loach’s previous film, Looking for Eric, aside from their dedication to perhaps the two most interesting and cinematically unexplored cities in Great Britain (in Liverpool and Manchester). While the content of each film cannot be more antithetical, where Looking for Eric succeeded as an outrageous appraisal of the common man and the idolised legend, Route Irish fails in placing the common man in a complicated politicised world that cannot be fully understood in the small tripartite structure that theoretically exists between Fergus, Frankie and Rachel. Loach always devotes his time to the individual, but in this case it hinders the subject and its conglomerated intricacies, and can be seen to decrease the intended effect of the film.

Several glimpses of the Liverpool skyline given access to a decreasing image in British culture, and informs that beauty is still retained in the modern city. It’s hard to remember when the Liver Building looked so impressive on film. But it is never fully explored, and the apartment block in which Fergus means that action is somewhat taken away from the rural vibrancy of the overlooked society and familial relationships suggested by Loach’s other films. The script and performances do not substantiate the intense drama of an undoubtedly complex subject. Mark Womack as protagonist Fergus is entirely able, but does little to evoke any sympathy due to a strong lack of charisma, particularly when he goes all ‘Dead Man Shoes’ on the people responsible for his mate’s death. A relationship between Fergus and Frankie’s girlfriend Rachel could be anticipated from a pessimistic reading of a short synopsis. The villains of the piece are punctuated by completely stunted dialogue and characterisations as Southern outsiders (apart from one Mancunian beefcake who is unfortunate enough to be water-boarded), depicted as the manipulators of a conflict in which people constantly lose their lives and obviously intended for us to “boo” and “hiss”.

As a result, as a viewer it often feels like we’re being subjected to the same experience as the character interrogated with the water-boarding technique. It’s like we’re being pummelled with a profound message that never seems to provide a resolution. A moral message seems to be forced down our throats and continues to sit awkward long after the film finishes, leaving us disorientated and confused but one that leaves little interest to pursue.

The final moment where a character jumps into the Liverpool Bay is almost comical, the diegetic sound of the splash, offering an unsatisfying, somewhat ‘easy’ finality that doesn’t reflect the constant open-ended political interrogation the Route Irish has continuously tried to illustrate. One of the defining problems with Route Irish as no matter what direction the film goes in, or what shocks or turns it tries to provide, it existence its undermined by the idea that we know Loach can do better.

The film, like Fergus’s apartment, is well-presented and attractive, yet cold and empty. When Fergus shuts out Rachel by placing the chain on his front door reflects the entire mood of the film; the viewer is only always allowed to observe, never engage. Loach demands to be seen as a political filmmaker. His films which support such a case are always messages first, entertainment second. It is expected and greatly anticipated. But with Route Irish, his approach is too heavy-handed, which doesn’t reflect such an experienced and renowned filmmaker. Loach should always be encouraged. He remains perhaps the most intensely interesting British filmmaker, and the greatest thing to take away from the experience of Route Irish is that his next film will probably be a whole lot better.