Flashback: Kes (1969) – working-class boy trapped by social norms in Ken Loach’s early masterpiece
The director’s breakthrough feature paints teachers as oppressors and children as victims in an overwhelmingly sad tale of oppression, purpose and the futility of life without social mobility
British director Ken Loach’s Kes (1969) is an overwhelmingly sad movie that’s permeated by brief moments of youthful happiness and contentment. The story of a working-class British boy whose future has already been written off by his family, teachers and the wider sphere of society, and who finds a degree of happiness by looking after a kestrel – a species of falcon – set the template for the socially committed films Loach has been making ever since.
But Kes, Loach’s breakthrough second feature film, differs from the rest of his oeuvre, as the time the boy spends with the bird injects transcendental moments into the storyline. These scenes add a spiritual aura that is unusual for Loach, who generally deals with the issues at hand in a matter-of-fact way. It’s possible that, with Kes, the prolific director made his masterpiece early on.
The story is based on the novel A Kestrel for a Knave (1968), by Barry Hines. Fifteen-year-old Billy Casper (David Bradley in his debut role), a sensitive boy who has been hardened by life, is harassed by his family at home, bullied by schoolmates and picked on by his teachers. Billy’s main fear is that he’ll have to take a lifelong job down the coal mine like his embittered brother Jud (Freddie Fletcher).
