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Cast

Paul Brannigan
as Robbie

John Henshaw
as Harry

Gary Maitland
as Albert

William Ruane
as Rhino

Jasmin Riggins
as Mo

Roger Allam
as Thaddeus

Siobhan Reilly
as Leonie

Charlie Maclean
as Rory McAllister

Lorne MacFadyen
as PC

David Goodall
as Angus Dobie

Jim Sweeney
as Policeman #1

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Critic Reviews for The Angels' Share

Audience Reviews for The Angels' Share

• Sep 14, 2014

  Considerably lighter than the typical Ken Loach fare, "The Angels' Share" is an accessible yarn more in line with director Bill Forsyth's gentle comedies. Robbie (novice actor Paul Brannigan) is a Glasgow lad in recurrent trouble with the law. He has noble ambitions despite his violent streak, and aims to reform as he and his girlfriend prepare to welcome a child. But for now, he's sentenced to a hefty chunk of community service with a small troupe of other shifty but likable youths. After their good-hearted coordinator takes them on an extracurricular tour of a distillery, Robbie is turned onto the elite world of whiskey tasting. Accepted as a knowledgeable upstart in this privileged circle, he enlists his new delinquent friends for a get-rich scheme that could lead them all to a better life. The class-struggle subtext keeps "The Angels' Share" from being a mere caper film, and the whiskey discussions are interesting. Now, if only Loach had resisted using the utterly worn-out "500 Miles" in the soundtrack. Is there anyone who can still bear to hear this song?
  

  Eric B Super Reviewer
• Jan 06, 2014

  Maybe it is just me, but I was completely bored. I only made it about 40 min in, and I had to turn it off.
  Cynthia S Super Reviewer
• Dec 29, 2013

  I believe this is a my first Ken Loach film, but even before this, when hearing upon his techniques of withholding certain key moments in the script so the actors' reactions feel more natural, filming everything in order so the actors experience everything as they would in real life, infusing social commentary involving the working class in his films, naturalistic acting, etc. I'm definitely a fan of that and this movie I think succeeds in doing that, I found the acting in the film to be completely natural and organic, almost as if he just decided to let the actors shoot the shit and just act as they would if they really hanging out. It really helps the story feel more authentic and natural, there's only few parts of the film that feel truly scripted, and that's when the group are about to take the whiskey from the cask. I thought it got a little too silly for my own tastes, considering what the film had been. I didn't really have a problem with it, as the film is really well-made and the acting is really good, but it felt like something out of a completely different movie. But I found the story to be really good and surprisingly touching, it's easy to root for Robbie as he's very much trying to make a change in his life in order to give his son a different life to his own. The social commentary comes in the treatment of people that have already served their time and the prejudices they face when trying to integrate themselves back into the community or the hardships they face when applying for jobs. And in most cases, the crimes these people commit are relatively minor. So, in a way, it's an indictment on the system that incarcerates you in order to get you to rehabilitate yourself, but will discriminate you even if you've really made a change. The process of distilling is certainly very metaphoric for the changes the characters are trying to make. So I really liked this movie, strong story and believable acting make this a very good movie.
  Jesse O Super Reviewer
• Aug 31, 2013

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  Directors C Super Reviewer

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