The Angel's Share (film review)

Director Ken Loach and screenwriter Paul Laverty join forces once again to bring us 'The Angel's Share', a comedy drama set in Glasgow and the Highlands of Scotland. Robbie, played by newcomer Paul Hannigan, is a young father who narrowly escapes a jail sentence and is sentenced to 300 hours of Community Payback. With the responsibility of fatherhood weighing on his shoulders Robbie is desperate to make a clean break from the cycle of violence and drug and alcohol abuse which he has found himself entrenched in for most of his young life. But his history of violence catches up with him and the future looks increasingly bleak for Robbie. His only shot at redemption and freedom comes in the unlikely form of the whisky industry. At a whisky tasting event he not only discovers that he has a good nose for whisky but a financial opportunity opens itself up to him and his group of friends, a payoff that could offer a fresh start in life. Ken Loach brings his trademark social realism to the film, which is a welcome relief from the mass produced artificality of many Hollywood films. Casting non-actors is a regualar Loach method to attain naturalism and he does this again to very good effect in 'The Angel's Share'. In real life Paul Hannigan used to run about in street gangs and it was through a community help group that Ken Loach offered him the part of Robbie. One wonders if the scar on his face is real or the work of a makeup artist. His acting debut is very impressive and despite his character's thuggish past and appearance the viewer grows to really root for him and you really want him to overcome the odds stacked against him. Equally impressive is John Henshaw who plays Harry, a kindly Community Payback supervisor who helps Robbies out in a difficult situation and subsequently introduces him to the world of whisky appreciation. The screenplay is sharp and funny, providing much light relief and genuine laughs when the darker side of life threatens to overshadow. The language is fruity to say the least. The film had to be edited to receive a 15 certificate, but for some reason the swearing does not offend too often, which is maybe to the credit of Loach, Laverty and the cast. The characters are great, believable and human, and some of the banter between them is very funny. The plot takes many surprising and pleasant twists and turns, again take a bow Paul Laverty. The social issues raised in the film are highly relevant and Loach does not pull his punches in depicting the underbelly of Glasgow, but ultimately 'The Angel's Share' is a feelgood tonic of a film. One of the best Scottish films I've seen in a long time and one of the best films of 2012. 8.5/10