Loach jumps aboard Cannes train

Ken Loach's Iraq-set drama Route Irish has been added to the competition line up at this year's Cannes Film Festival.

Having initially declined to submit the film for competition, Loach reportedly had a last minute change of heart and held a screening for members of the selection committee.

Filmed in Liverpool and Jordan (also used to replicate Iraq in The Hurt Locker , FYI), Route Irish follows a British former soldier who is forced to confront his unresolved demons when he takes a job in Iraq.

This project holds particular significance for Loach devotees, as it marks his first collaboration with Kes cinematographer Chris Menges in twenty years.

Loach has built up an impressive track record at Cannes. Route Irish is his third film in competition in the last five years, the others being Looking For Eric and The Wind That Shakes The Barley , for which he took home the Palme d'Or in 2006.

Want to see Loach triumph again? Let us know below.

Writer

Emma Didbin is a writer and journalist who has contributed to GamesRadar+, The New York Times, Elle, Esquire, The Hollywood Reporter, Vulture, and more. Emma can currently be found in Los Angeles where she is pursuing a career in TV writing. Emma has also penned two novels, and somehow finds the time to write scripts for Parcast – the Spotify-owned network that creates thrilling true crime and mystery podcasts.

Latest in Movies
Cujo
Netflix is making a brand new adaptation of Cujo, the infamous Stephen King book about a killer dog
Drop
New horror movie starring White Lotus and Yellowstone actors gets a great Rotten Tomatoes score as early reactions call it the "perfect date night movie"
The cast of Thunderbolts
Marvel fans are revealing who they'd like to see added to the Thunderbolts lineup, from Moon Knight to a major Hulk villain
The Rise of Skywalker
Despite those retirement reports, Lucasfilm boss Kathleen Kennedy is "very involved" in the Rey Star Wars movie, according to Daisy Ridley
Black Widow
Scarlett Johansson doubles down on never coming back as Black Widow: “Natasha is dead. She is dead. She’s dead. Okay?"
Clown in a Cornfield
First reactions to new clown horror movie say the slasher is giving Terrifier a run for its money
Latest in News
Stardew Valley Castle Village mod
Stardew Valley Expanded creator is building an "even more ambitious" mod with a whole new city and "dungeons inspired by The Legend of Zelda"
Dino Crisis 2 art showing a young woman and man back-to-back amid tall green grass, both with their weapons drawn
Dino Crisis gets a fresh trademark filing by Capcom, but it might not mean the 26-year-old survival horror franchise will get a new installment like fans expect
Cujo
Netflix is making a brand new adaptation of Cujo, the infamous Stephen King book about a killer dog
Dragon Age 2
Veteran Dragon Age dev says one big delay is better than several small ones: "You are laying band-aid on top of band-aid on top of band-aid"
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
Dark Souls 2 fans remind Death Stranding 2 director Hideo Kojima that he won’t be taking the DS2 acronym that easily
Minecraft Diamond Armor
Minecraft Pocket Edition got its name because one of its devs was a big "Nintendo nerd" who wanted to pay homage to the Game Boy Pocket