Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

Boring

Admirable film.

A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

The image of trains come to mind when one is talking about the most annoying means of transport.This has a lot to do with the fact that one cannot travel in trains without being disturbed by other passengers.This can be true about other means of transport such as airplane,bus or ship.However,there are enough damage control mechanisms on these modes of transport which enable passengers to face minimum amount of disturbance.No mechanism for eliminating disturbance can be found on trains as they are the cheapest means of transport.For this reason, traveling by trains is like inviting trouble before,during and after the journey.Trouble is also something one can find in abundance in 'Tickets' directed by three giants of three different film producing countries.They have directed three stories where viewers can experience longing for love,compassion and indifference.Lastly,'Tickets' would turn out to be a good learning experience for all those viewers who combine entertainment with a serious message.

And thank God that his segment was last because it rescued what until then had been a dull, pointless film.If his piece had been set at the start of the train journey, the other two sections would have seemed even more disappointing and excruciating.I've always admired the way Loach has continued to use cinema as a means of social commentary. I don't always agree with his message particularly when it is surprisingly naive and unfounded (Bread and Roses being a prime example) but his films are always worth seeing.Thankfully, his piece about a trio of Celtic fans travelling to Rome is the standout in this film in the same way as his contribution had been to 11'09''01 - September 11.What had gone before it was pretty dire. First of all, there had been the story of a Roy Scheider lookalike Professor and a PR lady who inexplicably has the hots for him.As he is about to board the train, he says to her that they have never met before even though she was with him earlier and booked the tickets! Maybe there was something going on there that I missed...The next section involved an incredibly annoying old battle-axe, a General's widow, a man on community service who accompanies her and a whole series of boring, pointless discussions and encounters. One such encounter was between the man and a 14 year old girl he had known several years earlier that made me worry a little about where it was going.In fact, it didn't lead anywhere at all; it was as tedious and unnecessary as the rest of that story.Loach's work isn't one of his best but it was good enough to improve something that was pretty dreadful and leave us with a mediocre film that ended on a high note.I would recommend skipping the first two stories altogether and just watch Loach's instead. Everything that went before it is really not worth the bother.

There are three stories, connected very loosely, if at all. One professor day dreams about a date with an acquaintance he has made before the journey, and also serves as the kind uncle to poor kid whose formula has been spilt by a really rude, and may I say heartless, Army Officer. Then there are the General's widow and her much abused helper. the lady insists on being rude with everybody - reminds you of some people you meet on trains. The final story is of three Celtic fans on a trip to UCL match vs AS Roma, and a pack of Albanian refugees. The first story tickles your heart. The second story is the reason I gave it a 9 and not a 10. The third story reaffirms your faith in humanity - not in some loud way, but in the common man sense - the sort of humanity that is expected from the guy next door. A good watch, over all.

Alas, I have to disagree with the only other poster's academic quasi socio-economic reading and declare this a disappointment. On the other hand knowing that Ken Loach was one of the three directors involved I was prepared to be clubbed over the head with his Left-Wing fanaticism and I also knew that Valeria Bruni Tedeschi - my main, if not only, reason for seeing the movie was in the first segment so I reasoned I could always walk out if I started gagging on Loach's preaching. As it is I stayed for all three segments and although the best thing for me was the close ups of Bruni Tedeschi's lovely face the other two segments though labored weren't too hard to take. I can't see this one generating much revenue apart from the Rent-A-Pseuds among whom Iranian movies are currently flavor of the month.