I Daniel Blake is a social realism film based on a growing issue in England, the benefits system. The scandal arose in 2013 when Channel 4 starts a new TV series “Benefits Britain 1949”. It shocked the public and acted as a eye opener to many. In this TV series they exploit the benefits and show lives of people living on these benefits from the government. The series includes three episodes exploring the life of three British citizens: Melvyn, a stoic pensioner, who was made to turn down £100 a week to a now £5.49 a day; Karen, she had worked 22 years and was not assigned to sickness benefits, and lastly Craig he was born into a wheelchair. In the first episode is shows Melvyn forced to live on meagre amounts of food which do not include fruit or vegetables. It was so bad that a Gp said with this lifestyle he would have 2 years to live. The show goes on to show different aspects of this lifestyle. This series arose a lot of ignominy around the public and many articles were published on the topic as well as protests arose. I believe the film I Daniel Blake was made due to this reason as it was a major issue in england when the film started production. Due to the topic of the film being a major issue it would be popular among the audience as it would relate to them. The film industry is also a media platform on which making producing this film they can educate the public on this growing issue. The audience of this film is different from others we have looked into, as this is more of a documentary the audience would be more mature. I think the range would be from possibly some 18 year olds and above. I believe so because I feel it would attract more audience of those who either read the news or are affected by the issue. I Daniel Blake was a very emotional film which had very strong reactions from viewers, many people after the film came out, shared their own stories they were so scared to share with the community. It became a much more speaken of topic and no longer held a secret. Independant.co.uk wrote and article about the film, they had showed it to claimants, relatives and welfare rights advisors who openly stated that the film speaks the truth, and it's actually that bad. The film was about a 59 year old man who after having a heart attack becomes friends with a single mother and her two kids, they together work through the unfair benefits system in Kafkaesque. The movie has some humor, warmth and despair. i have not personally watched the movie but the reactions it received were heartfelt and full of emotion The film arose many angry as they explained how they had gone through similar situation as the main character of the film I Daniel Blake. This wasn't just one or two hundreds proclaimed being put in similar situations. So did this film actually change anything in the community? Well sort of, sadly the government cannot change in a day and it will take time, but they are trying. Theresa May is no longer the strong triumphant leader she was before, now her government is fragile and barley able to keep afloat. The new appointee for the Department of Work and Pensions promised to start a 'fresh era' but his promise was short lived as he lasted less than a year. His assessor was David Gauke who promised to continue the welfare reform, Universal Credit, even though many resisted. It may not seem big but the Universal Credit reform is the biggest change in the welfare system for over 40 years. What it will do is combine 6 benefits into one, this change would effect 8 million people, but there has been issues. Nick Forbes a council leader in Newcastle, one of the cities trying out this new programme has said that due to it they are on a verge of a renewed housing crisis. Because the benefit is now not paid directly to the landlords but to the tenants over 2,500 tenants are at risk of eviction. Not a good start. So how long will this new benefit system last and is it really helping? Well from the basic knowledge I've read it's not, but that may be because I have not experienced what was before, it may have been worse. Also as I stated before the government takes take and hopefully it will improve and find a system that actually works and will help people. It's all a work in progress.
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