Instant Favorite.

To all those who have watched it: I hope you enjoyed it as much as I do.

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

The striking perspective in Ken Loach's films seems to be that the characters are just like us --- they are struggling to get clear and articulate their thoughts as they go along --- they haven't learned a smooth script. Ian Hart as Liverpudlian "Dave Carr" is marvellous; it could be you or me, on the ground right then and there, having to say something very important, and trying to convey it across another language. The reality of war and revolution, in which everyone has slightly different ideas, as opposed to being an absurdly 'unified' body, is starkly presented.I could have done without the sexism and swear words, though I've no doubt they were there too, especially among insecure men in macho roles.The "household debate" in the evicted landowner's house, is a marvel. I haven't read up the screenplay, but any viewer would swear that fifteen people were shoved (gently!) into that room and told to "debate it", with no guidance and no script --- but of course that's what all Loach films look like.Powerful; and the almost wordless granddaughter in Liverpool, appearing at the start and the end of the film --- Suzanne Maddock, is absolutely convincing: on the surface uninformed, but at the very end (I did tag the spoiler), her brief salute at the graveside bowled me over ---- powerful unexpected stuff.

The United States does a lot of good in the world. No one can deny that fact. But, anyone who believes in the canard that America is a believer in democracy only has to look at our government's support of the fascists in Miami, in Chile and in Franco's revolt in Spain.For a good history of the military overthrow of the democratically elected government in Spain in 1936, the BBC put together a six-hour miniseries that shows what happened. For the American side, see the documentary "The Good Fight: The Abraham Lincoln Brigade in the Spanish Civil War." Of course, the NAZI's and Italian Fascists used the war as training for their invasion of Europe as they supported Franco's revolt.This is a romantic story of David (Ian Hart) who joins the fight on the side of freedom against the forces of Franco and the Catholic priests, who used women as shields and abused them in their service of the rich landowners. He stays until the end even though he is disillusioned after the involvement of Stalin, which results in the breakup of the Republicans and, of course, the eventual loss of the war.Hart (Breakfast on Pluto, A Cock and Bull Story) was superb in his portrayal of the disillusioned freedom fighter and Rosana Pastor showed great promise as Blanca.Director Ken Loach (McLibel, 11'09''01 - September 11 ) was honored at Cannes for this film.

This is an interesting little film starring Ian Hart as an Englishman, David Carr, from Liverpool who goes to Spain to fight on the socialist/communist side during the Spanish Civil War.You know it's a Ken Loach film right from the start when you see the typical bleak urban landscapes of modern Britain – council tower blocks, ugly roads and traffic – as David Carr dies in the ambulance on the way to the hospital leaving behind a vast collection of letters, photographs, newspaper cuttings and mementoes from his time in the conflict fifty years before.Every seemingly old, boring person may have led a fascinating and remarkable life; his grand-daughter trawls through this personal time-capsule and the generation gap is no more.The depiction of the civil war itself is beautifully and painstakingly recreated with authentic uniforms (or lack of), rustic farmhouses serving as HQs and plenty of bandit/partisan-style shoot-outs, presumably the essential nature of the conflict in its early stages (before the International Brigades took over). In some ways it is like a prelude to the 1960s, with free love, communal living and an easy-going lifestyle prevailing.Rosana Pastor is beautiful as Blanca, a young, idealistic yet romantic firebrand serving as the love interest for David Carr. It's not really necessary for the plot and a bit un-Ken Loach. Nevertheless, she is worth it! There are also some fine scenes of grass-roots democracy in action, with the revolutionaries debating and voting on a number of issues, such as collectivisation of farming and whether or not to throw their lot in with the regular Popular Army. They discuss the impact of Hitler and Stalin on the conflict and the nature of capitalism and the international workers' struggle. The participants comprise Spanish, English, Americans and a few others and they all worry about their struggle becoming corrupted.Ian Hart puts in a thorough, impressive performance, even suppressing that awful Liverpool accent to display quite some skill in the Spanish language. However, all of the swearing is ludicrous, probably anachronistic and completely unnecessary: did people really exchange insults in 1936 involving 'ass'? Does it improve the film? I would like to see Land and Freedom based on the life of George Orwell and perhaps a greater, less idealistic political exploration of the circumstances and events of the Spanish Civil War. Orwell is the man.

It is, perhaps, surprising that more films about the Spanish Civil War haven't been made. The Spanish landscape, the sheer ruthlessness of any civil war, and the perceived Spanish emotions all combine to make what would appear to be an attractive proposition for a film-maker. The names of Picasso and Lorca will forever have an association with the war, yet where are the artists representing cinema? All the more surprising then that it should have been British director Ken Loach who took up the cudgels. Loach is probably best known for his gritty portrayals of the British working class (and under-class), something that has, perhaps, made him more approachable outside his own country. In tackling the Spanish Civil War any writer is faced with the overwhelming complexities that underlie the events. The regionalism (think only of the Catalan and Basque regions, let alone Galicia and Andalusia), the monarchy, the Catholic Church, landowners, trade unions, anarchists plus the leaderships of the Nationalist and Republican movements all combined to create a very tangled web. Add to that outside involvement, principally from Mussolini and Stalin, the vacillation of Britain and France and, of course, the omnipresence of Hitler, and anyone might wonder where to start.Loach and Allen take their approach through the eyes of an unemployed Liverpudlian, David Carr (admirably played by Ian Hart) who, as a card-carrying member of the Communist Party, answers the call to fight for the Republic. We follow his exploits through a number of episodes, involving battles, falling in love, injury and, ultimately, a degree of disillusion as the reality of Stalin's views eventually come to dominate, and eventually destroy, his cause. The film is supremely well-made, highlighting the horrors, the camaraderie, and the political divisions. In particular, the debate amongst the militia about collectivisation after they have taken a small town takes no sides, but simply allows a number of valid arguments to be exposed within the context of the shifting sands of the war.There is still ample material for the industry to go on to make more films on this important period in history. But Loach has set the benchmark.