I, Daniel Blake

Like Going in Style's much grittier independent cousin, Ken Loach's I, Daniel Blake sympathetically examines poverty in Britain to find working solutions to bureaucratic prerogatives.

Daniel (Dave Johns) is a respectful hardworking individual who lives within his means and has never had to learn how to use computers.

He meets Katie (Hayley Squires) and her children one day at social services and responds reasonably to her criticisms of its harsh procedural dictates.

She's a young struggling single mother of two who wants to go back to school but can't afford to take care of her family at the same time.

Daniel helps out as much as he can, but has to spend 35 hours a week looking for a job that he has to refuse, should it be offered, because he can't physically return to work due to a recent heart attack.

He tried to tell this to a social services rep but potential heart failure wasn't an option on the questionnaire, which deemed him fit to return to work since he answered it truthfully.

He appealed but still had to abide by the initial ruling meanwhile.

A lot of time and planning goes into providing people living through hard times with financial assistance, but if there are no alternative options in place for the exceptions to the rules, as I, Daniel Blake sharply points out, the safety net needs to be adjusted in order to considerately accommodate.

For instance, as previously mentioned, Daniel can't use a computer, it's probable that other applicants can't use computers, it makes sense that a workshop should be created to help these individuals collectively learn computer basics, so that they can then access the services which can correspondingly assist them.

It's often just a matter of adding another question to a form, but it's surprising how hard it can be to change a form or how long it can take for the changes to be implemented after it's been approved by committee.

Daniel's feisty.

He gets along well with his neighbours but doesn't shy away from airing grievances.

It's a great film examining honest attempts to live honestly within a mistrustful situation.

Neither preachy nor sentimental, it's more like a realistic hypothetical investigation of unfortunate sets of circumstances, which for austere reasons can't be rationally resolved, than a poppy good natured heist.

Decent jobs with decent pay make a nation's reliance on social services much less taxing.

There's an interesting sidebar that examines how the internet can theoretically aid underemployed earnest entrepreneurs, who have physical jobs but lack full-time hours.

Strong performances, heartwarming community, heartbreaking realities, tenacious script, Ken Loach conscientiously examines postmodern day British poverty through a contemporary Dickensian lens to shed light on dark issues.

Do people still read him in Britain?

Seriously, it's worth building up the vocabulary.

I suppose the word grit may come from integrity.

Jeremy Corbyn.

In possession of both I imagine.