BigList
Login / Sign up
Looks and Smiles (1981)

Looks and Smiles (1981)

Drama
Release Date: 1981, September 9
Directors: Ken Loach
Countries: France, United Kingdom
Production: British Lion Films, British Lion Films, MK2 Films, MK2 Films, Kestrel Films, Kestrel Films
Cast: Tony Pitts, Deirdre Costello, Rita May, Arthur Davies, Cilla Mason, Patti Nicholls, Phil Askham, Jackie Shinn, Graham Green, Carolyn Nicholson, Roy Haywood, Pam Darrell

Overview:

Thatcherism and the Irish troubles provide the backdrop for this study of Mick, a well-meaning youth in Sheffield, who has, unlike Dickens' Pip, no expectations. Mick lives with his parents, works on his motorbike, looks for work, and every two weeks gets his check from the dole. There are no jobs. His best mate Alan joins the army to fix tanks and is sent to Belfast to quell Catholics. At a disco, Mick meets Karen, who works at a shoe shop and lives with her recently-separated mom. Karen misses her dad. She offers Mick emotional stability and a route to adulthood; Alan pitches the army. Does Mick have a future?