The Old Oak is the last pub standing and one of the only remaining public spaces that people can meet, a once thriving mining community has fallen on very hard times after 30 years of a decline. The arrival of Syrian refugees placed within the village create a fight for territory with some of the locals.
TJ Ballantyne is the landlord of The Old Oak and has a very tough life with some bad decisions leaving him with not a lot to be thankful for, striking up a very unlikely friendship with young Syrian Yara they manage to help support one another with the difficult enviornment they find themselves in.
Everything about the film builds up the emotions of different situations and is very uncomfortable viewing at times, due to the racism that is involved. Obviously this is just showing how different refugees have been treated in different areas and it is quite frankly tough to see.
In typical Ken Loach fashion he builds up different characters who we follow and enjoy seeing them grow, but we are also very aware that we will probably end up in tears at some point, despite it being predictable I still felt that way with the final scene and moments. It highlights that while people might think they are better than others, going through tough and horrendous times can really bring a community together regardless of background.
