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Riff-Raff

“Riff-Raff jangles with prickly reality… The torrent of cross-talk never smacks of the typewriter, nor the blue pencil: this is not a film for those who like to put dollies on life. Loach’s militancy remains… the labourers, drawn to London from across the country in the hunt for jobs, are converting a disused hospital into luxury flats which they could never afford themselves. Many have no homes at all: they are squatters. Yet the late Bill Jesse’s salty script roots the political anger in direct observation. The plot’s main thread features a quiet Glaswegian fresh from prison who joins the gang and attempts a relationship with a would-be singer. Carlyle’s accent could get southern audiences screaming for subtitles, but it’s a price worth paying for the raw authenticity of this funny, abrasive front-line report from the bottom of society’s ladder.” — Geoff Brown, The Times, 18/4/91

“The script by the late Bill Jesse, who based the story on his own experiences as a casual labourer on a construction site, although the exuberant performances bear all the marks of improvisation; they’re fast and fast-witted, with a pacing you don’t often find in British film comedy… It’s all shot in Loach’s usual, quasi-documentary manner, which allows the humour to percolate out of the characters rather than relying on elaborately staged gags: the unforced approach puts you in the mind of Mike Leigh.” — The Independent, 19/4/91