Kes

Kes

They beat him. They deprived him. They ridiculed him. They broke his heart. But they couldn’t break his spirit.

PG-13 1970 · 111 min · ★ 7.4 · Drama

Bullied at school and ignored and abused at home by his indifferent mother and older brother, Billy Casper, a 15-year-old working-class Yorkshire boy, tames and trains his pet kestrel falcon whom he names Kes. Helped and encouraged by his English teacher and his fellow students, Billy finally finds a positive purpose to his unhappy existence.

Directed by Ken Loach · Written by Ken Loach

Your Rating

Where to Watch

Rent or Buy

Apple TV Store

Cast

Trailers & Videos

Make it a double feature

3h 39m together

Both from Ken Loach.

More from Ken LoachSee all →

Modern TimesModern Times · 1995
Modern Times
★ 9.01995
SeriesDocumentary
Documentaries showing faces and places that make up the way we live today.
Diary of a Young ManDiary of a Young Man · 1964
Diary of a Young Man
★ 9.01964
SeriesDrama
A six-part BBC drama series following two young men from northern England as they move to London in search of work and opportunity, encountering relationships, social challenges, and the realities of urban life in 1960s Britain.
TelevisionTelevision · 1985
Television
★ 8.01985
SeriesDocumentary
Exhaustive 13-part survey of the television medium from its hesitant beginnings in the 1920s to the multi-million dollar extravaganzas of today and the cable and satellite technologies of the future [relative to 1985]. Tackling the medium as a worldwide phenomenon, the series examines each of the principal areas of programming - news, drama, documentaries, and light entertainment - and the unique impact of "live" coverage.
I, Daniel BlakeI, Daniel Blake · 2016
I, Daniel Blake
★ 7.72016
MovieDrama
A 59-year-old carpenter recovering from a heart attack befriends a single mother and her two kids as they navigate the impersonal, Kafkaesque benefits system. With equal amounts of humour, warmth and despair, the journey is heartfelt and emotional until the end.
Palestine 36Palestine 36 · 2025
Palestine 36
★ 7.72025
MovieDramaHistory
Year 1936. As villages across Palestine rise against British colonial rule, Yusuf drifts between his rural home and the restless energy of Jerusalem, longing for a future beyond the growing unrest. But history is relentless. With rising numbers of Jewish immigrants escaping antisemitism in Europe and some arriving with nefarious Zionist-colonial ambitions, and the Palestinian population uniting in the largest and longest uprising against Britain’s 30-year dominion, all sides spiral towards inevitable collision in a decisive moment for the British Empire and the future of the entire region.
The Wind That Shakes the BarleyThe Wind That Shakes the Barley · 2006
The Wind That Shakes the Barley
★ 7.32006
MovieDramaWar
In 1920s Ireland young doctor Damien O'Donovan prepares to depart for a new job in a London hospital. As he says his goodbyes at a friend's farm, British Black and Tans arrive, and a young man is killed. Damien joins his brother Teddy in the Irish Republican Army, but political events are soon set in motion that tear the brothers apart.
Sorry We Missed YouSorry We Missed You · 2019
Sorry We Missed You
★ 7.32019
MovieDrama
Hoping that self-employment through gig economy can solve their financial woes, a hard-up delivery driver and his wife struggling to raise a family end up trapped in the vicious circle of modern-day labour exploitation.
Land and FreedomLand and Freedom · 1995
Land and Freedom
★ 7.31995
MovieWarDrama
Summer 1936: young unemployed communist David Carr leaves Liverpool to join the fight against fascism in Spain. He joins an international group of Militia-men and women, the POUM (Partido Obrero de Unificación Marxista). After being wounded, he goes to Barcelona, where he joins another group of fighters.
Z-CarsZ-Cars · 1962
Z-Cars
★ 7.31962
SeriesDrama
Z-Cars or Z Cars is a British television drama series centred on the work of mobile uniformed police in the fictional town of Newtown, based on Kirkby, Merseyside. Produced by the BBC, it debuted in January 1962 and ran until September 1978.
The Old OakThe Old Oak · 2023
The Old Oak
★ 7.22023
MovieDrama
A pub landlord in a previously thriving mining community struggles to hold onto his pub. Meanwhile, tensions rise in the town when Syrian refugees are placed in the empty houses in the community.
Ladybird LadybirdLadybird Ladybird · 1994
Ladybird Ladybird
★ 7.21994
MovieDrama
Maggie has had four children, by four different fathers, removed by social services because of a previous violent relationship. When she meets Jorge, a gentle Latin American refugee, she gradually sees her chance for happiness, but her past still haunts her.
My Name Is JoeMy Name Is Joe · 1998
My Name Is Joe
★ 7.21998
MovieDrama
Two thirtysomethings, unemployed former alcoholic Joe and community health worker Sarah, start a romantic relationship in one of the toughest Glasgow neighbourhoods.
Sweet SixteenSweet Sixteen · 2002
Sweet Sixteen
★ 7.02002
MovieCrimeDrama
Determined to have a normal family life once his mother gets out of prison, a Scottish teenager from a tough background sets out to raise the money for a home.
Hidden AgendaHidden Agenda · 1990
Hidden Agenda
★ 7.01990
MovieDramaThriller
In Ireland, American lawyer Ingrid Jessner and her activist partner, Paul Sullivan, struggle to uncover atrocities committed by the British government against the Northern Irish during the "Troubles." But when Sullivan is assassinated in the streets, Jessner teams up with Peter Kerrigan, a British investigator acting against the will of his own government, and struggles to uncover a conspiracy that may even implicate one of Kerrigan's colleagues.
ITV Saturday Night TheatreITV Saturday Night Theatre · 1969
ITV Saturday Night Theatre
★ 7.01969
Series
Anthology series of dramatic works.
Days of HopeDays of Hope · 1975
Days of Hope
★ 7.01975
SeriesDrama
A series of four feature-length episodes following the lives of a working-class family from the turmoils of the First World War in 1916 to the General Strike in 1926.

More Like This

Come and SeeCome and See · 1985
Come and See
★ 8.21985
MovieDramaWar
The invasion of a village in Belarus by German forces sends young Flyora into the forest to join the weary Resistance fighters, against his family's wishes. There he meets a girl, Glasha, who accompanies him back to his village. On returning home, Flyora finds his family and fellow peasants massacred. His continued survival amidst the brutal debris of war becomes increasingly nightmarish, a battle between despair and hope.
Day of the WomanDay of the Woman · 1978
Day of the Woman
★ 6.01978
MovieHorrorDrama
A young, beautiful career woman rents a backwoods cabin to write her first novel. Attacked by a group of local lowlifes and left for dead, she devises a horrific plan to inflict revenge.
Saint RalphSaint Ralph · 2005
Saint Ralph
★ 7.02005
MovieComedyDrama
This Canadian made comedy/drama, set in Hamilton, Ontario in 1954, is a sweet and - at times - goofy story that becomes increasingly poignant as the minutes tick by. It's the fictional tale of a wayward 9th grader, Ralph (Adam Butcher), who is secretly living on his own while his widowed, hospitalized mother remains immersed in a coma. Frequently in trouble with Father Fitzpatrick (Gordon Pinsent), the principal of his all-boys, Catholic school, Ralph is considered something of a joke among peers until he decides to pull off a miracle that could save his mother, i.e., winning the Boston Marathon. Coached by a younger priest and former runner, Father Hibbert (Campbell Scott), whose cynicism has been lifted by the boy's pure hope, Ralph applies himself to his unlikely mission, fending off naysayers and getting help along a very challenging path from sundry allies and friends.
Year of the JellyfishYear of the Jellyfish · 1984
Year of the Jellyfish
★ 5.81984
MovieThrillerDrama
Chris, a sexy teenager who appears mostly bare-breasted on the French Riviera, has a crush on Romain, her mother's lover. In reaction to her inability to attract his attention, she experiments with other risque affairs.
P.S.P.S. · 2004
P.S.
★ 5.62004
MovieDramaRomance
Louise, an unfulfilled divorced woman with regrets, gets the chance to relive her past when she meets a young man who bears an uncanny resemblance, in name and appearance, to her high school sweetheart who died many years before.
HellsinkiHellsinki · 2009
Hellsinki
★ 6.32009
MovieCrimeDrama
In the mid-1960s, three small-time Finnish bootleggers seize control of their Helsinki neighborhood's black-market liquor business.
The Silent PartnerThe Silent Partner · 1978
The Silent Partner
★ 7.11978
MovieDramaThriller
Toronto, Canada. A few days before Christmas, Miles Cullen, a bored teller working at a bank branch located in a shopping mall, accidentally learns that the place is about to be robbed when he finds a disconcerting note on one of the counters.
Ace in the HoleAce in the Hole · 1951
Ace in the Hole
★ 7.91951
MovieDrama
An arrogant reporter exploits a story about a man trapped in a cave to revitalize his career.
Destination MoonDestination Moon · 1950
Destination Moon
★ 5.91950
MovieScience FictionAdventure
A team composed of an aerospace scientist, an ex-Air Force general, and an industrialist conceives an ambitious plan to land Americans on the moon. From their base in the Mojave Desert, they construct and successfully launch a spacecraft named "Luna" that contains a cargo of four astronauts. But a critical miscalculation of needed power to escape the moon's gravitational pull may put the astronauts' lives in danger.
All the King's MenAll the King's Men · 1949
All the King's Men
★ 7.01949
MovieDrama
A man of humble beginnings and honest intentions rises to power by nefarious means. Along for the wild ride are an earnest reporter, a heretofore classy society girl, and a too-clever-for-her-own-good political flack.
Jane EyreJane Eyre · 1943
Jane Eyre
★ 6.91943
MovieDramaRomance
After a bleak childhood, Jane Eyre goes out into the world to become a governess. As she lives happily in her new position at Thornfield Hall, she meets the dark, cold, and abrupt master of the house, Edward Rochester. Jane and her employer grow close in friendship and she soon finds herself falling in love with him. Happiness seems to have found Jane at last, but could Rochester's terrible secret be about to destroy it forever?
Simon BirchSimon Birch · 1998
Simon Birch
★ 6.91998
MovieComedyDrama
Simon Birch and Joe Wenteworth are boys who have a reputation for being oddballs. Joe never knew his father, and his mother, Rebecca, is keeping her lips sealed no matter how much he protests. Simon, meanwhile, is an 11-year-old dwarf whose outsize personality belies his small stature. Indeed, he often assails the local reverend with thorny theological questions and joins Joe on his quest to find his biological father.
The Butcher BoyThe Butcher Boy · 1998
The Butcher Boy
★ 6.81998
MovieComedyDrama
Francie and Joe live the usual playful, fantasy filled childhoods of normal boys. However, with a violent, alcoholic father and a manic depressive, suicidal mother the pressure on Francie to grow up are immense. When Francie's world turns to madness, he tries to counter it with further insanity, with dire consequences.
Whip ItWhip It · 2009
Whip It
★ 6.72009
MovieDrama
In Bodeen, Texas, an indie-rock loving misfit finds a way of dealing with her small-town misery after she discovers a roller derby league in nearby Austin.
The Prince and the PauperThe Prince and the Pauper · 1977
The Prince and the Pauper
★ 6.11977
MovieDramaAdventure
Tom Canty is a poor English boy who bears a remarkable resemblance to Edward, Prince of Wales and son of King Henry VIII. The two boys meet and decide to play a joke on the court by dressing in each other's clothes, but the plan goes awry when they're separated and each must live the other's life.

Rate this film

Your ratings make Midnight smarter