Review: 'Oranges And Sunshine' is Heartbreaking, Enraging, and Ultimately Uplifting

Jim Loach followed in his father Ken's footsteps when it came to telling important stories in an unsparing manner with his directorial debut, "Oranges and Sunshine," in 2010. And while his filmmaking style is more a '70s/'80s Jane Fonda/Sally Field/Jessica Lange take on the world than Ken Loach's painfully gritty realism, that's good enough when you have Emily Watson as the heroine, uncovering the worst kind of barbarity.

Based on the true story written by the main character Margaret Humphreys (Watson), "Oranges" follows social worker Humphreys as she begins to uncover one of the most mind-boggling social scandals of the 20th century: The forced relocation of thousands of poor children from the UK to Australia and Canada. Most of these kids were told their parents were dead, and many suffered physical and sexual abuse. They were promised "oranges and sunshine," but what they got was something entirely different and horrific. Humphreys and her team searched for years, and reunited thousands of families; in the process, they forced an apathetic government to take responsibility for its abhorrent behavior.

Many of these children were placed with the Congregation of the Christian Brothers, a Catholic order, where they were repeatedly sexually assaulted.

The film is heartbreaking, enraging, and ultimately uplifting, thanks to Loach's economic direction and Rita Munro's focused screenplay. The magnitude of the insanity is sometimes hard to grasp.

Watson modulates her performance so well, giving her scene partners their due. She remains one of the most underrated actors of her generation, from her astonishing debut in Lars von Trier's "Breaking the Waves" right up to her Emmy-nominated work in HBO's audacious miniseries, "Chernobyl." Hugo Weaving and David Wenham do fine work as well. All three were nominated for Australian Oscars (as was the film), and Weaving won in the supporting category.

The Blu-ray looks quite dark, which is the intention, but occasionally opens to the English and Australian landscapes. The sound is fine.

Extras include Interviews with the cast and crew, including the three leads, as well as a "Making of" doc that goes into detail about this startling story.

Made in Australia, the film had an erratic international release, but, thanks to Cohen Media Group and Kino Lorber, American audiences can now appreciate this vital whistleblower of a film.

Blu-ray Extras Include: