Responding to the call of duty, Ken Loach makes a great English film, with a bit of French help from Eric Cantona, and a fine leading part played by Steve Evets.

Let’s look at ‘LOOKING FOR ERIC’ by director Ken Loach. Well done Ken, we like it – very much indeed!

The lady in the ticket office who handed us our tickets remarked: “For someone who doesn’t care for football, I thought the film was pretty decent.” After seeing it, my question is, “WHAT’S THIS FILM GOT TO DO WITH FOOTBALL?!”

Well, on the theme of football we do have the pleasure of the sublime Eric Cantona in this film; yes, the Cantona – the legendary French football player who adorned Manchester United in the 1990’s. He’s a Frenchman for the English to be very proud of indeed, we can say safely. Then, we have other ‘footballish’ elements in this film, think of typical pub scenes with the telly on, and variations on that theme (I’m not spoiling here). The film makes a strong effort to be as if it were about football, but I suspect that without it you probably just wouldn’t have a proper English film. That is, if you were wanting to make a film about Real People, and not just about some celebrities or upper-class snobs with overrated social problems.

Thus I believe it is safe to say that the film “LOOKING FOR ERIC” is about compassion and bravery and despair, and about light in tunnels and true friendship, and about understanding teenage kids with no mother, and not about football at all. In fact, Ken Loach has made a film that succeeds with great skill and simplicity to touch upon some of the vital human virtues which sustain us in life, both in times of happiness and in times of confusion. The film captures the less illustrious aspects of life and the struggles of regular people in a subtle but gripping story which reveals dignity and respect to be the factors which ultimately make it all happen. Very nicely done!

I just have to get back to Eric here, because until I saw him, I didn’t know I was looking for him: the presence of Eric Cantona (do they still make them like that????), who carries the film like the smiling prophet of wisdom and motivation himself.  (“In life, you always have more choices than you think” he declares in his delightful French accent to the main character, who is a postman going through personal crises, and who is also called Eric.)  Well, when a smiling prophet comes in that kind of form I am all ears, and of much motivation indeed. So is Postman Eric, though perhaps not for the same reasons.

I feel it is important to add, that in this film there are no nasty surprises of excessive violence, ‘just because films can’. I do not know any other of Loach’s films (you’ve got to start somewhere!), but in this film, from the start, you feel a sense of trust. With this sort of setting – the daily struggle of individuals on street-level – trust is a good thing, perhaps even an essential thing. In my opinion, when a story is so close to the possible reality of everyday life, relaxing your audience is a key factor in order to release the deeper meaning of the story. This is achieved only if the viewers are not cringing under the threat of pending violence though out.

‘LOOKING FOR ERIC’ is also categorized as ‘drama’ and ‘comedy’ in various listings. Well, that’s life again, isn’t it? Because, how do we categorize life, at its best? Well, a little laughter and a few tears is just fine by me.

This film is now a favourite. Go out and enjoy!