Saturday, October 29, 2016

I, Daniel Blake

It was a cold spring night here in our city and a perfect evening for an early visit to the cinema.  Our one was full to see I,Daniel Blake.  It is a drama set in Newcastle.  Dan is a 59 year old carpenter, who after a heart attack has to apply for a benefit.  His dealings with the social welfare agency points to some of the many problems that people encounter with them, for a department that is meant to be in the business of helping people in need their seemed to be so many obstructions.  On one visits he meets a single mother, who is trying to get some help with her two children and a friendship forms.  Their friendship is the heart of this movie and made us smile by the small gestures of helping each other, of sharing a meal or a hug.

This movie was a good touch of social realism and feels like you are just watching some real people in their lives, no Hollywood sets here or fancy outfits.  This is the bleak life that many people live struggling with money, being able to afford food, rent or electricity.  It was a simple story in many ways, but told with integrity and feeling.  4/5

1 comment:

John Bellen said...

And the characters' experiences can probably be paralleled by millions of real lives. I sometimes think that despite claims that our age is superior to all others in the past, what we've really done is simply create an illusion of better treatment of people based on the image of greater bureaucracy.