Of all the lefties in Artsville, those who work in the film industry are among the most annoying. Hollywood liberals are world leaders in flagrant hypocrisy. Paid squillions of dollars for a few days work on cliche-ridden blockbusters they then wring their hands about economic inequality. And being converts to the new deep green religion of climate change catastrophism the carbon spewing jet-setters just love to lecture everyone else about their addiction to fossil fuels.
While certainly not in their league, Pommy film socialists are still a pretty po-faced and sanctimonious lot. Take Ken Loach. He's done very well indeed from whingeing about capitalism in his movies. And like so many of his fellow travellers he has a deep and abiding hatred of Israel. A couple of years ago he even pulled one of his films from a festival because of its Israeli funding. Amazingly petty stuff.
What's interesting is how his son Jim has turned out. You'd think that he would have been so bored by his father's endless yammering that he'd have become an investment banker and buggered off to Tel Aviv or something. But no, he's become a filmmaker as well - and one with a social conscience to boot, just like his dear ol' dad!
His debut feature is called Oranges and Sunshine and stars the world's most annoying actress, Emily Watson. It looks like excruciatingly worthy fare; definitely not something you should see on a first date (er, unless you're both bolshie social workers, of course).
Jim Loach's career choice (and path) raise a couple of thorny questions: One, there's the issue of talent and where it comes from. Doesn't it put a bit of a dent in that favourite lefty argument of denying the influence of genes? I mean, aren't they always saying that "society's to blame"; that artists are made, not born and other such guff?
And speaking of society: As well as Jim's genetic inheritance, he's also had an undeniably privileged upbringing. His dad had won so many Baftas he used to use them as doorstops. Now, considering all those professional connections and influences, surely such a young bloke would have had a far easier run into his chosen profession. And isn't that just the kind of advantage socialists abhor?
Obviously I'm not the first to wonder about that. Still, it's an undeniable contradiction. I suppose it just has to go into the "some are more equal than others" basket with all the others ...
Anyhoo, Jim Loach arrived recently in Perth to promote his film. Here's a radio interview with him.
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