Review in Brief: Bread and Roses

[Editor’s note: as always, the opinions expressed by Joe Moser, my contributor at large, are his own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of The Olive Press … boilerplate boilerplate …]

If you’re interested in labor unions, immigration, Los Angeles, Hispanic-American culture, or a good coming-of-age story, see Ken Loach’s Bread and Roses (2000). My only other exposure to his films has been My Name is Joe (1998). While that film really descends into abysmal pessimism in the final act, Bread and Roses offers a hopeful, though not happy, conclusion. As a professor once told me, almost all movies are about love, work, or, probably most often, both. In most good movies, the protagonist wins in one or none of these arenas, and such is the case with Loach’s film.

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