Riff Raff (1991)

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Movie
German title Riff Raff
Original title Riff Raff
Country of production Great Britain
original language English
Publishing year 1991
length 95 minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director Ken Loach
script Bill Jesse
production Sally Hibbin
music Stewart Copeland
camera Barry Ackroyd
cut Jonathan Morris
occupation
synchronization

Ken Loach (Director)
Robert Carlyle (2011)

Riff-Raff is a1991 feature film by British director Ken Loach . As with most Ken Loach films, Riff-Raff is a true-to-life portrait of Great Britain. Riff-Raff means "rabble" in German. So this black comedy revolves around the dregs of English society andrelentlesslyexposes the decline of the British working class during Thatcherism .

action

This grim comedy is set on a construction site in a dreary environment on the outskirts of London during the reign of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher . The tone is rough here. The working conditions are breakneck. Scaffolding is not secured. Due to sheer need, however, many unemployed people allow themselves to be exploited for starvation wages under poor conditions. Regardless of whether they are belligerent hotheads, ex- prisoners or illegal immigrants - there are no collective agreements here and nobody asks for official papers. All underdogs are welcome, as you can do whatever you want with them and don't have to worry about safety precautions.

The story revolves around a couple of such losers. The film tells how they pull each other over the table and still stick together, how they cope with the dreary everyday life with crude jokes, because they never know what tomorrow will be.

The focus of the film is Stevie, a quiet, hard-working guy who has been in jail for theft and has now found work in London with a non-union construction team who are converting an old hospital , the Princess of Wales Hospital, into luxury apartments. His construction buddies jokingly call him " Billy Connolly " (after the famous IRA member).

Like most of his colleagues, Stevie is homeless and finds an apartment in an empty building. His colleague Larry Reilly helps him with other construction workers to prepare the apartment for him.

One day, Stevie accidentally finds a lost handbag full of letters, a book, and a picture of an attractive young woman. That makes Stevie curious. With the help of the letters he locates the owner: the Irish Susan Miles. Stevie is fascinated by her and at first develops a shy love. Both try to escape the misery based on their dreams for the future. The eccentric Susan dreams of a career as a pop singer. Stevie wants to make a lot of money selling boxer shorts and socks.

When Susan appears in a pub , Stevie drags his friends from the construction site to their concert, where she is whistled because of her weak voice. Eventually, Larry ( Ricky Tomlison ), Stevie's older friend, forces the boisterous audience to applaud Susan. Since Susan is behind schedule with her rent payments, she soon moves in with Stevie and decorates the shabby apartment with oriental cloths and all sorts of kitsch. He hopes that one day they will get married. But the relationship is increasingly being put to the test, as Susan's dreams, from Stevie's point of view, have little to do with reality. So one day you throw at Stevie: “Depression? They're for the middle class. We get up early. ”Stevie finally finds out that his girlfriend takes drugs on a regular basis.

Meanwhile, tensions on the construction site are increasing. The construction workers are exploited by the foremen, the construction site is unsecured and the pay is so poor that the men do not give their real names in order not to have to pay taxes. The illegal workers therefore need someone to cash the weekly checks for them at the bank. There is an African who gives himself up for it, but he wants a five pound commission for it. The white black workers are outraged that a black man wants to rip them off.

At the same time, construction workers are increasingly concerned about safety on the construction site. Larry, never mincing words, suggests that everyone unionize. When he brings his concerns about safety to the unscrupulous, lying boss, he is fired. Stevie and other construction workers eventually take revenge on the construction company and set the site on fire.

criticism

“A grim but sympathetic comedy about the decline of the British working class. A snapshot from seemingly hopeless times, which convincingly argues not to give up right now. "

- Lexicon of international film

“Ken Loach's Felix-winning film could be a social study commissioned by a commission examining the rotting of British industrial cities in times of rigorous downsizing. But, strangely enough, it's more of a comedy. A comedy, however, that renounces yuppie charm and party demeanor because it is set on one of the dreary fringes of London "

- Der Spiegel 2/1992

“In order to reduce the accumulated frustration supply at all, Loach resorts to a tried and tested solution from the English revolt films from the sixties. It reads: light it up! The building, tried a bit as a symbol of the social reconstruction (from hospital bed to luxury bed), has had its day. In the end, the construction site is a single sarcasm, the utopia of brotherhood an impotent revolt. The dream of ascension is just a spark in the fire of annihilation. The rats dart through the ruins, lively as in the first picture. You are the only creatures in 'RiffRaff' who are very happy "

- The time

background

Screenwriter Bill Jesse was a construction worker himself and died while the film was being made at the age of 48. The film is dedicated to him.

Ken Loach only hired actors for Riff-Raff who had already worked on the construction site. The film was the stepping stone for Robert Carlyle , who later with The Full Monty ( The Full Monty fame) (1997).

Prices

Nominations

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d In Maggie's welfare state on Spiegel Online from January 6, 1991, accessed on May 5, 2012
  2. ↑ a b Article about Riff-Raff on www.unicum.de
  3. ↑ a b c Article about Riff-Raff in the Los Angeles Times (English)
  4. ↑ a b c d Table of contents by Riff-Raff on www.fandango.com
  5. ↑ a b c Table of contents by Riff-Raff on www.movieguide.org
  6. ↑ a b c d e Carsten Witte: Simply stunning on zeit.de from January 17, 1991, accessed on May 5, 2012
  7. ^ Riff-Raff. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used