AEFond Kiss

Directed by Ken Loach and written by Paul Laverty (Sweet sixteen, My Name is Joe), AE Fond Kiss is a Scottish romantic drama about a second generation Pakistani Casim (Yaqub) who working as a DJ in Glasgow falls for a catholic white teacher called Roisin (Birthistle).

His family have strict ideas who they would like their son to marry. His beautiful cousin Jasmine has been lined up. Casim though doesn’t want his life and his marriage arranged for him.

This is a warm and convincing love story set in the present-day that is strong because the characters themselves have depth and make you believe whole-heartedly in their romance and desires. You begin to see that a major confrontation is on the cards once Roisin falls foul of the catholic school clergy and Casim ends up on a collision course with his mother.

Loach fans are not likely to be disappointed with what seems like a kinder approach than one he could have adopted, but AE Fond Kiss still feels in some way like it could have gone further – it builds up to a dramatic end and it’s a worthwhile confrontation. Arranged marriages are a subject worth highlighting for the damage they can cause, but in this particular case, you get no real feeling that Casim and Roisin’s desires will be totally threatened and might feel that the confrontational points could have been stretched further with greater emotional dilemmas being explored.