Let (s)he who is not guilty cast the first stone...
9/10
Author: Immersion from London
25 September 2007

First of all, I think this film quite rightly got the plug it deserved on all of the Broadsheets in the UK. This might be partly due to the involvement of Ken Loach himself but also because it is a rather poignant essay of the one crucial aspect of globalisation – the richer countries exploiting the availability of the cheap labour available from the poorer countries.This is not the first of its kind to be done, but this film had sympathy, warmth, objectivity and class and a viable plot.

The whole film, however, is carried by Kierston Wareing, with no real development of other characters such as her business partner or even her dad, who both could have highlighted the different shades of the argument and perhaps externalised some of the conflicts that we all face when we encounter the by-products of such exploitation.By this, I mean the cheap strawberries in the supermarkets, casual builders, the "baristas" working behind the various Coffee chains and basically all of the other unsung victims who go to subsidising every aspect of our material life.

The basic kernel of the film does succeed to some extent in showing the different facets of the human character such as sympathy for the individual versus the indifference to the abstracted group; highlighting the similarities in the trials and tribulations of people in both the 'host' and the 'donor' countries; the fact that a lot of people are up for making a quick buck off the suffering of others; and that people exist who will try and be fair to others regardless of their backgrounds.

However, the reality might not be so clear cut and easily digestible. Perhaps not all of the immigrant workers are so docile and placid; perhaps not all immigrant workers are so subservient and accepting when the roles are reversed and the female becomes the sexual predator; perhaps not all immigrant workers insist on "passing on the favour instead of returning it".

While it is a noble effort and some effort has been made to highlight the plight of such immigrants, it is still just a snapshot of a much more knotty problem – a problem that we are all, to some extent, responsible for.That said, "Bravo" to the fantastic Mr. Loach for agreeing to get his "hands dirty" with such a current and contentious subject.