Ae Fond Kiss…

Movie poster

Directed by
Ken Loach

Produced by
Rebecca O’Brien

Written by
Paul Laverty

Starring
Atta Yaqub
Eva Birthistle

Music by
George Fenton

Cinematography
Barry Ackroyd

Editing by
Jonathan Morris

Distributed by
Icon Film Distribution (UK)

Release date(s)
February 13, 2004
June 22, 2004
July 21, 2004
September 17, 2004
November 26, 2004

Running time
154 mins.

Country
United Kingdom
Belgium
Germany
Italy
Spain

Language
English, Punjabi

Budget
£3,000,000

Allmovie profile

IMDb profile

Ae Fond Kiss… (also known as Just a Kiss) is a 2004 romantic drama film directed by Ken Loach, and starring Atta Yaqub and Eva Birthistle. The title is borrowed from a Scottish poem by Robert Burns, the complete line being “Ae fond kiss, and then we’ll sever…”

Contents

• 1 Plot
• 2 Production
• 3 DVD Release
• 4 Reception
• 5 Awards
  • 5.1 2004
  • 5.2 2005
• 6 References
• 7 External links
• 8 See also

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Plot

Casim Khan (Yaqub) is a Glaswegian DJ of Pakistani origin. His devout Muslim parents, Tariq and Sadia, have arranged for him to marry his first cousin, Jasmine, and Casim is happy with the arrangement. Casim then meets and falls in love with Roisin (Birthistle), an Irish teacher working in a Catholic school. They then have to decide whether their love is strong enough to endure the repercussions of their actions and without the support of their respective communities. At the same time, Casim’s younger sister, Tahara, struggles to find herself when she cannot gain the respect of either her Scottish schoolmates or her Pakistani relatives. Rukhsana, Casim’s older sister, loses her fiancé because Casim’s relationship brings dishonour to the family.

The film’s central role is the theme of prejudice and cultural clashes, social differences and discrimination.

As with nearly all of Ken Loach’s work, it centres around a society, how it functions and lives up to people, their differences and what they have in common

Production

Ae Fond Kiss… was filmed in Pollokshields. a district in the South Side of Glasgow, Scotland.

DVD Release

The DVD release came out in Britain on selected release on 17th September 2004 on VHS , and on DVD in 2005. It had been released in France on 14 July 2004.

Reception

Critical reception towards the film was generally positive, with many critics lauding both Paul Laverty’s script and the strong, naturalistic performances of the non-professional actors involved. It was generally seen as a traditional Romeo & Juliet-styled love story, and far less overtly political than Loach’s other work. Mainly because of this, even those critics supportive of the film tended to see it as one of Loach’s lesser films.

Awards

2004

• Won Berlin International Film Festival – Prize of the Ecumenical Jury
• Won Berlin International Film Festival – Prize of the Guild of German Art House Cinemas
• Nominated Berlin International Film Festival – Golden Bear for Best Motion Picture
• Nominated British Independent Film Awards – Best Actress (Eva Birthistle), Best Screenplay (Paul Laverty), Most Promising Newcomer (Atta Yaqub)
• Nominated International Filmfest Emden – Emden Film Award
• Won European Film Awards – Best Screenwriter (Paul Laverty)
• Won Irish Film and Television Awards – IFTA Award for Best Actress (Eva Birthistle)
• Won Valladolid International Film Festival – Audience Award
• Won Valladolid International Film Festival – Golden Spike Award
• Won Motovun Film Festival – Propeller of Motovun

2005

• Won London Film Critics Circle – ALFS Award for Best Actress of the Year (Eva Birthistle)
• Won César Award – Best European Union Film (Meilleur film de l’Union Européenne)

References

1. ^ Film File Europe | Production profile
2. ^ Film File Europe | Production profile
3. ^ Bradshaw, Peter, , The Guardian, 2004-09-17. Retrieved on 2008-03-26.
4. ^ French, Philip, , The Observer, 2004-09-19. Retrieved on 2008-03-26.
5. ^ , Metacritic. Retrieved on 2008-03-26.
6. ^ , Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved on 2008-03-26.

External links

• Ae Fond Kiss… at the Internet Movie Database
• full profile from FilmFileEurope.com

See also

• New Scots
• Society
• Culture
• Honour
• Robert Burns
• Ken Loach
• Asian-Scots

v • d • e

Ken Loach

1960s

Poor Cow · Kes

1970s

The Save the Children Fund Film · Family Life · Black Jack

1980s

The Gamekeeper  · Looks and Smiles · Which Side Are You On?

1990s

Fatherland · Hidden Agenda · Riff-Raff · Raining Stones · Ladybird Ladybird · Land and Freedom · A Contemporary Case for Common Ownership · Carla’s Song · The Flickening Flame · My Name Is Joe

2000s

Bread and Roses · The Navigators · Sweet Sixteen · Ae Fond Kiss… · Tickets · The Wind That Shakes the Barley  · It’s a Free World…

Retrieved from “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ae_Fond_Kiss…”
Categories: 2004 films | Drama films | English-language films | Romance films | Scottish films | Punjabi-language films | Films set in Glasgow