Kes Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

Kes Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov October 30, 2016

Ranked seventh in the British Film Institute's Top Ten (British) Films of the 20th Century, Ken Loach's "Kes" (1969) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film; archival filmed lecture by Ken Loach; archival footage from a reunion panel; new cast and crew interviews; and more. The release also arrives with an illustrated booklet featuring new writing on the film and archival material. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".

Come to me...

No one seems to like fifteen-year-old Billy Casper (David Bradley, Malachi's Cove). His mother (Lynne Perrie) does not have time for him, his older brother (Freddie Fletcher, The Nature of the Beast) constantly beats him, and at school older boys harass him as often as they could. Even the teachers do not like having him around.

One day on the moors, Billy finds a small kestrel hawk. He names the bird Kes, and trains it to hunt. Eventually, the two become friends and Billy begins spending more time with Kes than he does with his family. But the oppressing world Billy and Kes share soon puts their relationship to the test.

Based on the Barry Hines novel A Kestrel for a Knave, Ken Loach’s Kes is a warm, deeply humane film about a poor misfit whose life is more or less predetermined. For the better part of the film he looks defeated and disillusioned, unwilling to confront those who mistreat him. During the few occasions when he does, he is quickly dealt with and told to always remember where he belongs.

Things temporarily change when Billy encounters Kes. Billy’s new friend profoundly changes his life. It gives new meaning to it. It inspires and energizes him. It makes him feel needed.

At school, he attempts to explain exactly how he feels but no one understands him. Billy’s classmates laugh at him, while his teachers refer to him as "hopeless case". So, he retreats back to his world where Kes is always willing to listen to him.

Loach is arguably one of the greatest living directors. Unlike most directors, he understands people, and shoots a film only when he has something meaningful to say. His characters are always real people with real problems. They live and die in places where real people live and die.

With Kes, Loach offers a glimpse at a world that he has been fascinated with since the 1960s -- the world of the poor, the unprivileged and oppressed. And indeed, the focus of attention is as much on Billy and his relationship with Kes as it is on the world they share. Like Billy’s family, it is a broken, dysfunctional and incapable of change world that slowly but surely destroys those who have been forced to live in it.

Loach shot Kes in Barnsley with a predominantly unknown cast of non-professional actors (hence, the authentic accents). The acting, however, is fantastic. Bradley is exceptional as the dreamy loner whom no one seems to like or understand. The boy also has some of the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen. Even though his time in front of the camera is limited, Fletcher is also outstanding as the abusive older brother.

Cinematographer Chris Menges’ lensing is simple but enormously effective. Some of the very best sequences in the film are the ones where Billy teaches Kes how to hunt. The town’s gray streets, tiny shops, and the coal mine where most of its residents are employed also look terrific. Kes is also complemented by a beautiful music score by Oscar-nominated composer John Cameron (A Touch of Class).

Note: Kes is ranked seventh in the British Film Institute’s Top Ten (British) Films of the 20th Century. In 1971, the film won two BAFTA Awards, for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles (David Bradley) and Best Supporting Actor (Colin Welland).

Kes Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.67:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Ken Loach's Kes arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment.

The release appears to have been sourced from the same restored master which Criterion accessed in 2011 for their release of Kes. It was supervised by Ken Loach and cinematographer Chris Menges.

I like the master quite a lot. Initially, I had only a copy of the old R2 DVD release of Kes in my library and the Blu-ray truly made it possible to appreciate the film in an entirely different way. The improvements in depth and clarity are quite substantial; the documentary qualities of the film are also a lot more effective. The color scheme is also superior, though I have to say that I think that some of the primaries come off a bit too aggressive. Grain is well exposed, never appearing unhealthy, and there are no compromising digital corrections. Lastly, overall image stability is excellent. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked' Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Kes Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English/Original LPCM 1.0 and English/Redubbed LPCM 1.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The original soundtrack is the one I prefer, but I think that regardless of which one you choose you are almost certainly going to have to use the optional English subtitles. To be clear, they are quite different but on both the accents can be be very thick. Depth and clarity, however, are excellent. Some minor dynamic fluctuations remain, but they are part of the original sound design. There are no pops, cracks, audio dropouts, or digital distortions to report.

Kes Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - original trailer for Kes. In English, not subtitled. (3 min).

• 2006 Reunion Panel - presented here is archival footage from a reunion panel held at the Bradford Film Festival on March 9, 2006. Director Ken Loach, producer Tony Garnett, writer Barry Hines, actor Colin Welland, and Life After Kes author Simon Golding discuss the lasting appeal of Kes and its production history. The conversation is moderated by Anthony Hayward. In English, not subtitled. (58 min).

• Ken Loach Guardian Lecture - presented here is an archival filmed lecture by Ken Loach that was held at the National Film Theatre in 1992. The discusses the production history of Kes and its distribution and success, its redubbing, various issues he faced while trying to secure funding for different projects (including TV projects), the relationship between facts and fiction in his work, the political elements/overtones in select films, the film culture in the United Kingdom, etc. In English, not subtitled. (71 min).

• Interviews - a collection of interviews in which various people that contributed to Kes recall their involvement with the film and discuss their appreciation for it. In English, not subtitled.
  
  1. David Bradley (actor). New video interview. (21 min).
  2. Tony Garnett (producer). New video interview. (27 min).
  3. Richard Hines (kestrel advisor). New video interview. (32 min).
  4. Chris Menges (cinematographer). New video interview. (9 min).
  5. Bernard Atha (actor). New video interview. (12 min).
  6. Penny Eyles (continuity). New video interview. (6 min).
  7. John Cameron (composer). New video interview. (9 min).

• Music and Effects Track - presented as LPCM 1.0.

• Booklet - an illustrated booklet featuring new writing on the film and archival material.

Kes Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Ken Loach's Kes arrives to Blu-ray in the United Kingdom quite late, but I think that its fans will be very pleased with Eureka Entertainment's release. It is sourced from the same restored master that Ken Loach and cinematographer Chris Menges supervised and it has a very good collection of bonus features. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.