I, Daniel Blake (2016) ★★★★★
Ken Loach is no stranger to films which somewhat capture the sociopolitical climate, front Cathy come Home in 1966 to Sweet Sixteen in 2002. With I, Daniel Blake, he's made something which is as much a docudrama as a piece of fiction. Based on thorough research and whistleblower testimony, it's a brutal exposure the British benefits system and the extent to which penalises those who are too ill to work but not deemed safe enough for support from the state.
Through the titular character, it shows how people are caught between a rock and a hard place, facing appalling penalties for being slightly late to an appointment and needing to (figuratively speaking) jump through things to qualify for money with which to buy food and heat their homes.
With extremely realistic, understated performances from the lead actors, faces who aren't famous, and are fairly novice actors, it contains at least two scenes which are likely to bring tears to the eyes of viewers, and have you in a state of righteous fury in the end credits roll. It isn't a polemic, but a film which is an important document and one which should be seen by every elected official in the UK as well as those working in the benefits system.
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