I don’t know about you, but I’ve been noticing the word “populism” popping up a lot in recent months. Populism itself, however, has been less, well, popular. For a taste of the real deal, you could do a lot worse than check out the latest film from veteran British director Ken Loach: I, Daniel Blake.
He, Daniel Blake (played by Dave Johns), is a 59-year-old fellow living in Newcastle, a carpenter and a widower recovering from a serious heart attack and under doctor’s orders not to return to work. Much of the movie follows Daniel’s efforts to negotiate the labyrinthine and generally uncaring British social services system, made especially daunting by his unfamiliarity with things like CVs and computers. (“A cursor? Well, that’s a feckin’ fine name for it!”)