My Name Is Joe
In a harsh Glasgow neighborhood, a recovering alcoholic and a compassionate health worker find love while poverty, addiction, and criminal debt threaten to overwhelm them.
Overview
In a gritty Glasgow neighborhood, love blooms amidst hardship and struggle.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- raw
- intimate
- melancholic
- serious drama night
- social realism double feature
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film as a powerful, compassionate social-realist drama that ingeniously combines romance, crime, and the struggle for sobriety.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Ken Loach and Paul Laverty place an intimate romance within unemployment, addiction, debt, and community deprivation in Glasgow.
Joe is a former alcoholic whose relationship and community circumstances test his attempt to remain sober.
Joe and Sarah's relationship unfolds alongside her social-work responsibilities and the neighborhood's economic and criminal pressures.
The film's Glasgow neighborhood, community work, football activities, and domestic encounters are presented with grounded naturalism.
Films like My Name Is Joe, and why
Nil by Mouth
social realism, working-class romance, addiction, and moral pressure in a deprived community
Secrets & Lies
working-class british social drama centered on intimate relationships and economic hardship
The Wind That Shakes the Barley
ken loach social realism, community solidarity, and an emotionally complicated romance
Kes
naturalistic performances, precarious lives, and compassion amid social adversity
Movie Details
- Director
- Ken Loach
- Release Date
- 1998-05-15
- Runtime
- 105 min
- Rating
- 7.3 / 10 (217)
Cast
- Peter Mullan
- Louise Goodall
- David McKay
- Gary Lewis
- David Hayman
- Lorraine McIntosh
- Anne-Marie Kennedy
- Stephen McCole
- Stephen Docherty
- David Peacock
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Amazon Prime Video, Brew, Darkroom, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is My Name Is Joe about?
- In a harsh Glasgow neighborhood, a recovering alcoholic and a compassionate health worker find love while poverty, addiction, and criminal debt threaten to overwhelm them.
- What is My Name Is Joe like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of My Name Is Joe as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is My Name Is Joe violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in My Name Is Joe as moderate.
- What did critics think of My Name Is Joe?
- Critics broadly praised the film as a powerful, compassionate social-realist drama that ingeniously combines romance, crime, and the struggle for sobriety.
- Which films are like My Name Is Joe?
- Films with a similar feel include Nil by Mouth, Secrets & Lies, The Wind That Shakes the Barley, and Kes.
- How long is My Name Is Joe?
- My Name Is Joe runs 105 minutes.
- Where can I watch My Name Is Joe?
- In United States, My Name Is Joe streams on Amazon Prime Video, Brew, Darkroom, Amazon Prime Video with Ads.
