needed more pace and budget

Loach’s films have always been low budget but have been adequate enough to deliver the story. Mark Womack was terrific in this but he and supporting had to carry the film. Although ostensibly a thriller about the murky world of private contractors it felt a very small story which usually in a Loach film form the core of a bigger picture. An example of this being Hidden Agenda which delved deeply and widely into the secret British state, while maintaining itself as an exciting political thriller.
This was about some dodgy hired hands covering up a bit of dirty work and apart from one conversation when Fergus was being re-hired the film didn’t have a big picture polemic that Loach is renowned for.
It felt rushed, dialogue overused to compensate for lack of location budget and lack of pace. Not a bad film but I would recommend the BBC mini series Occupation with Stephen Graham and Nonso Anozie for a more ambitious look at mercenaries/private contractors in Iraq.