Sweet Sixteen

Liam (Martin Compston) is a young tearaway on the streets of Greenock, Scotland. He's only weeks away from his sixteenth birthday, which holds special significance as his mother, Jean (Michelle Coulter), is due to be released from prison the following day. She'd taken the rap for one of her boyfriend's dodgy dealings, and Liam is determined that won't happen again. In fact, Liam wants to find his mother somewhere nice to live. Money, of course, is a stumbling block, but Liam and his best mate Pinball (William Ruane) won't give up too easily.

'Uncompromising' is an overused word when it comes to film reviews, but it's the only one that really does justice to the output of director Ken Loach. Sweet Sixteen, his 18th as a director, doesn't deviate from his career trends. Loach's sense of social injustice is still intact and his targets still valid. For anyone unfamiliar with the great man's work, this might sound like honourable but dull fare, and in the hands of a lesser filmmaker it would be. But Loach and his screenwriter, Paul Laverty, both have a rare insight into the complexities of the human condition and the director elicits some remarkable performances out of his largely non professional cast. Tough and moving.