Directed by Ken Loach
101 minutes
In English
 
This was the groundbreaking British director Ken Loach's debut feature film. In it we can see him struggling to cut his cinematic teeth, a style that was crystallizing while he shot this movie and which would form the basis of his cinema for decades to come. At the time, Loach was impressed by the freedom of French cinema, and he employed many innovative techniques, positioning Poor Cow in the larger European struggle to challenge the power of Hollywood's mega-budgeted spectacles. Yes, many people today don't realize that there was actually a battle going on back in the 1960s and 70s here in Europe against being culturally taken over by America. 

The film style is open and experimental, mixing documentary and lyricism. It's firmly based in the lives of working class characters struggling in the slums on the outskirts of London, and works as a wonderful time-capsule of a lost era. It focuses on Joy (Carol White, nicknamed the "Battersea Bardot") an abused wife with children, who gets a lucky break when her husband is arrested and locked up for a robbery. Her life begins to change when she has an affair with a guitar-playing drifter named Dave (Terence Stamp). That's the opening premise, and the story takes off from there. In the background we catch a glimpse of the swinging London zeitgeist, but seen through the eyes of a girl born on the wrong side of the tracks, in poverty. In the end, it's about a woman trying to find her destiny in a world defined by men... and therefore it's not surprising that this film is largely the vision of two strong women—actress Carol White, and the woman whose book this movie is based on, writer Nell Dunn. Even though our protagonist Joy has everything against her, the film shows her resilience and determination to fight for beautiful moments. 

Ken Loach has become one of history's greatest filmmakers, and this is a look back at how he started. It has an unpretentious, edgy, bittersweet quality to it that is absolutely unique. I should also mention that the upbeat theme music composed for this film was by pop legend Donovan. Interestingly, Steven Soderbergh would direct an off-beat splinter-sequel to this rare flick in 1999 called The Limey. An incredible portrait of a woman with the kind of strength you won't see in any movies today, let alone back when it was made in 1968.