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The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962) More at IMDbPro »

3 items from 2013

8 April 2013 8:10 PM, PDT | www.culturecatch.com | See recent CultureCatch news »

Ken Loach's The Angels' Share gets underway as a hard-hitting squint at the unemployed of Glasgow before rather perversely turning into an uplifting crime caper with a Disneyesque finale. But maybe, just maybe, a little Walt is what the have-nots are crying out for right now.

Loach, who has been zeroing in on the working class for over 45 years (Poor Cow (1967); Riff-Raff (1991)), and his longtime screenwriter Paul Laverty (The Wind that Shakes the Barley (2006)) have concocted a group of societal misfits who've all wound up in court and sentenced to community service.

One, Albert (Gary Maitland), is a dull-witted hard drinker who's been arrested for plummeting onto some train tracks; another, kleptomaniac Mo (Jasmine Riggins), has filched a macaw; and a third, Rhino (William Ruane), has continuously affronted public statuary, sometimes with urine. But our main Cinderella/hero here is Robbie (Paul Brannigan).

With a scar down one cheek »

- Brandon Judell

18 February 2013 5:57 AM, PST | The Guardian - Film News | See recent The Guardian - Film News news »

From Marathon Man to Forrest Gump, we complete a circuit of the best running-themed films. What's your favourite? Let us know below

Since the moment Eadweard Muybridge captured a man sprinting in 1887 runners have worn a path across the cinematic landscape. Whether on the pristine oval of an Olympic running track, a dusty patch in a prison rec yard or the damp tarmac of a rural country road, film has documented the sweat and solitude of running in all its pain and glory.

Here are 10 of the best.

The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner

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Opening with the sound of Tom Courtenay's feet thudding against a bleak rural lane, Tony Richardson and Alan Sillitoe's 1962 British New Wave classic is one of the most poetic running films in cinematic history. As Colin Smith, a petty delinquent, Courtenay gives a »

- Adam Dewar

10 February 2013 10:17 AM, PST | The Guardian - Film News | See recent The Guardian - Film News news »

Jazz trumpeter with the Chris Barber band whose playing style was described as 'high-spirited, crisp and clear'

The career of the jazz trumpeter Pat Halcox, who has died aged 82, was defined by the exceptional length of his musical partnership with the trombonist Chris Barber. Halcox explained the longevity of this relationship in a 2008 interview: "Chris always cared so much about what he was doing, and that's why I stayed with him. I've seen the world, made good friends with wonderful musicians, played for huge crowds in fabulous places. I have to thank Chris for all that."

Described by the critic Max Jones as having a playing style that was "high-spirited, crisp and clear", Halcox enjoyed a half-century tenure with Barber's band. It embraced periods of extraordinary success during the heady days of the trad-jazz boom; frequent tours with star Us jazzmen; playing visits to Europe, the Us and Australia; film »

- Peter Vacher

3 items from 2013