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Ken Loach is sometimes accused of polemic, of giving a one-sided view of the
conflicts he depicts. In fact his films are generally far more nuanced than the
accusation implies; but if any scene gives the lie to that view, it's the
encounter between two sisters at the heart of Bread and Roses. Maya, the younger
and more impulsive, has become involved in a campaign to unionise the largely
Hispanic cleaning force in the downtown LA building where she works. When the
management find out what's happening, they sack her along with most of her
fellow-workers. Maya realises that it was her older sister, Rosa - with whom she
lives - who informed on them. Storming into the house, she screams "Traitor!" at
her sister; in response, Rosa tells her exactly why she did what she did, in a
searing speech that leaves Maya in tears.
The scene is so intense that it almost unbalances the rest of the film. But
Bread and Roses has an energy and a vitality that carries it through any
narrative unevenness. Right from the early scene in which Maya (Pilar Padilla,
making an impressive screen debut) resourcefully escapes the clutches of a
lecherous people-smuggler it's evident that Loach, while never soft-pedalling
the hardships faced by illegal immigrants in the US, is leavening his message
with a welcome admixture of humour.
The story is inspired by the Justice for Janitors strike of 1990, when the LA
establishment of high-powered execs was confronted by the unnoticed,
scandalously underpaid workforce who cleaned their plush offices. Loach uses
this real-life incident as backstory, allowing union official Sam (a likeably
mischievous performance from Adrien Brody) to contrast the improved wages,
benefits and security enjoyed by the unionised workers with the raw deal endured
by Maya and her fellow cleaners.
Here and there the story becomes a touch schematic. Maya is predictably torn
between two men - Sam, sparky and charismatic, and the more serious-minded
cleaner Luis, who aspires to university - and Maya's reckless act to fund Luis's
entrance fee doesn't quite convince. But against this are the exuberance of the
activist scenes, especially where Sam and the cleaners (complete with noisy
equipment) invade a posh office party, to the alarm of the assembled stars,
agents and corporate lawyers. Roach even persuaded some Hollywood A-listers -
including Ron Perlman and Benicio del Toro - to lend their presence to this
scene, much to their credit.
Philip Kemp
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Production stills
