Kes (1969)

Kes (1969)
Directed By: Ken Loach
Starring: David Bradley, Freddie Fletcher, Brian Glover

Plot: A socially awkward boy, Billy (David Bradley), who does poorly in school and has an abusive brother (Freddie Fletcher) discovers a kestrel/hawk in the woods, and decides to take it home and train it. After some particularly bad days at school, one of Billy's teachers has him talk about his bird, named Kes, to his class. Afterwards, Billy allows the teacher to watch him fly it, after training Kes for a few days. Unfortunately, Billy's abusive brother discovers the bird, and kills it.

Review: This movie is shot very, very conventially. There are very few moments when camera movement is used during shots, however, there are impressive moments e.g. Billy gives his monologue to the class about Kes - one of the shots lasts close to 2 minutes, if not, a little over that. The editing is quite typical of a movie this old- the way a shot may fade to black, or to another scene, which is used very little today. There are very few musical cues, usually just during dramatic or exciting scenes e.g. when Billy flies Kes for his teacher.