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Looking for Eric

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Looking for Eric
Theatrical release poster
Directed byKen Loach
Screenplay byPaul Laverty
Story byPaul Laverty
Produced byRebecca O'Brien
Starring
CinematographyBarry Ackroyd
Edited byJonathan Morris
Music byGeorge Fenton
Production
companies
Distributed by
Release dates
  • 18 May 2009 (2009-05-18) (Cannes)
  • 27 May 2009 (2009-05-27) (France)
  • 12 June 2009 (2009-06-12) (United Kingdom)
Running time
116 minutes
Countries
  • United Kingdom
  • France
  • Italy
  • Belgium
  • Spain
Languages
  • English
  • French
Box office$11.6 million[1]

Looking for Eric is a 2009 sports comedy-drama film directed by Ken Loach and written by Paul Laverty. It is an international co-production between the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Belgium, and Spain. It stars Steve Evets, Eric Cantona, John Henshaw, and Stephanie Bishop. It follows a middle-aged postman who, working for the Manchester sorting office, is going through a dreadful crisis.

The film had its world premiere at the 62nd Cannes Film Festival on 18 May 2009, where it was awarded the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury. It was theatrically released in France on 27 May 2009, by Diaphana Distribution, and in the United Kingdom on 12 June 2009, by Icon Film Distribution. It received positive reviews from critics and grossed over $11.6 million worldwide. For their performances, Henshaw won Best Supporting Actor at the 12th British Independent Film Awards and Evets was nominated for Best Actor at the 22nd European Film Awards.

Plot

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Eric Bishop is a football fanatic postman whose life is descending into crisis. Looking after his granddaughter is bringing him into contact with his ex-wife, Lily, whom he abandoned after the birth of their daughter. At the same time, his stepson Ryan is hiding a gun under the floorboards of his bedroom for a violent drugs baron.

At his lowest moments, Bishop considers suicide. But after a short meditation session with fellow postmen in his living room, and smoking cannabis stolen from his stepson, hallucinations bring forth his footballing hero, the famously philosophical Eric Cantona, who gives him advice. His relationship with Lily improves dramatically. Bishop finds the gun and confronts his stepson.

Ryan admits to his involvement with the drugs gang, and Bishop attempts to return the gun to the gangster. He is forced to keep it himself, however, when a Rottweiler is set on him in his car. The gangster then posts footage on YouTube of Bishop's humiliation. The entire family is then arrested by the police on a tip-off but they fail to find the gun as it is hidden in the fridge, inside a frozen chicken.

Eric Cantona then advises Bishop to seek help from his friends and to 'surprise' himself. Bishop organises 'Operation Cantona', sneaking dozens of fellow Manchester United fans – wearing Cantona masks (including Cantona himself) – into the gangster's house and humiliating him and his family, threatening to put the video of their operation onto YouTube, in turn. The film ends at Bishop's daughter's graduation day, where the family reunites in peace.

Cast

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Production

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The film was shot on location in Greater Manchester[2] by Loach's company Sixteen Films.

Release

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The film's cast and crew at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival.

The film competed in the main competition at the 62nd Cannes Film Festival.[3] It had its UK premiere on 1 June in Lowry Outlet Mall in Salford Quays, attended by Eric Cantona,[4] and was the gala presentation at the opening night of the Sydney Film Festival on 3 June.

The film was released in the United Kingdom and Ireland on 12 June. The film was scheduled to be shown at the Melbourne International Film Festival, but five days before opening night Loach withdrew it because the film festival was "in receipt of financial support from the State of Israel".[5]

Screenplay

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The book for Looking For Eric is published by Route Publishing. It includes the full screenplay, extra scenes, colour photographs from the film and on set, and introductions from Paul Laverty, Ken Loach, Eric Cantona and production notes from the cast and crew.

Reception

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Box office

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Looking for Eric grossed $55,804 in the United States and Canada, and $11,594,922 in other territories, for a worldwide total of $11,650,726.[1][6]

Critical response

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On Rotten Tomatoes, 84% of 102 reviews are considered positive, with an average rating of 7.1/10. The site's critics consensus reads: "Ken Loach's latest is an uplifting, entertaining and amusing socio-drama featuring a match-winning performance from Eric Cantona."[7] As per Metacritic, the film has received "generally favorable reviews", with a weighted average score of 66/100 based on 23 critics' ratings.[8]

Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian gave the film 3 out of 5 stars, and described it as "a wacky if erratic and self-conscious buddy movie." Bradshaw also commented, "Looking For Eric isn't a Loach masterpiece, but it's great fun and is set fair to be his first commercial smash since Kes. No one would begrudge him a well-earned box-office hit from such an amiable film."[9]

Jason Solomons of The Observer opined that Looking For Eric "is a strange movie, a film of two halves, one where the bantering comedy of the male workplace mixes with the serious issues of inner-city gun crime. But it beats with a typically Loachian brand of social humanism, the director revelling in the collective might and will of the football crowd."[10]

Fionnuala Halligan of Screen Daily stated, "Eric runs the gamut from whimsy, social commentary, high drama and violence before moving into a crowd-pleasing, literally rabble-rousing finale" and "Performances are as crisp and seemingly-genuine as in any Loach film – Evets and Henshaw are the main finds, while Cantona does look ill at ease at times and the aphorisms can wear a little thin."[11]

Derek Elley of Variety felt that the film "is a curious hybrid", and wrote, "As in many of Laverty's scripts, problems of overall tone and character development aren't solved by Loach's easygoing direction, though when it works, Eric has many incidental pleasures."[12]

Ray Bennett of The Hollywood Reporter noted, "Very funny and a bit sentimental, it's naturalistic comedy of the highest order, with Evets and Henshaw standouts among a terrific cast. Cantona too shows great comic timing and is both imposing and self-effacing."[13]

A. O. Scott of The New York Times called Looking for Eric "gentle and sweet and often very funny." Scott also opined, "The film's riotous climax deftly turns grim social realism into action-slapstick revenge farce. Not something Mr. Loach has tried before, and something he turns out to do rather well."[14]

Betsy Sharkey of the Los Angeles Times stated, "Loach and Laverty have packed so many storylines and social themes into the film that the point is sometimes lost in all the complications. The filmmakers play around so much with the Cantona mystique, it's not a deal breaker if you know nothing about him, but it's a better film if you do. The cast, though, is nearly pitch-perfect."[15]

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film 2 out of 4 stars, and noted, "Looking for Eric is inexplicable. It has elements of a Loach social drama, which might have been better used as the entire story. Cantona is nice enough, but so what? If there seem to be any comic possibilities in the story, Loach doesn't find them."[16]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Looking for Eric". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Archived from the original on 3 December 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  2. ^ "BBC Manchester: Looking for Eric". BBC. May 2009. Retrieved 21 March 2011.
  3. ^ "Festival de Cannes: Looking for Eric". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 9 May 2009.
  4. ^ "Cantona appears at Eric premiere". BBC News. 2 June 2009. Retrieved 2 June 2009.
  5. ^ "Melbourne International Film Festival: Looking for Eric Cancelled". melbournefilmfestival.com.au. Archived from the original on 22 July 2009. Retrieved 20 July 2009.
  6. ^ "Looking for Eric". The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC. Archived from the original on 27 November 2022. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  7. ^ "Looking for Eric". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Archived from the original on 26 December 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2024. Edit this at Wikidata
  8. ^ "Looking for Eric". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Archived from the original on 3 December 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  9. ^ Bradshaw, Peter (12 June 2009). "Looking for Eric". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 7 December 2022. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  10. ^ Solomons, Jason (14 June 2009). "Looking for Eric". The Observer. Archived from the original on 17 May 2022. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  11. ^ Halligan, Fionnuala (2 June 2009). "Looking For Eric". Screen Daily. Archived from the original on 24 December 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  12. ^ Elley, Derek (18 May 2009). "Looking for Eric". Variety. Archived from the original on 28 October 2021. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  13. ^ Bennett, Ray (18 May 2009). "Looking for Eric — Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  14. ^ Scott, A. O. (13 May 2010). "Footballer as Life Coach (the Imaginary Kind)". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2 March 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  15. ^ Sharkey, Betsy (21 May 2010). "Movie review: 'Looking for Eric'". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 25 September 2020. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  16. ^ Ebert, Roger (10 October 2009). "Looking for Eric". RogerEbert.com. Archived from the original on 2 December 2022. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
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