--- title: "I, Daniel Blake: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/i-daniel-blake/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/i-daniel-blake" critics_score: 68 critics_reviews: 13 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # I, Daniel Blake (2016): what the critics said Critics' score 68 from 13 reviews: 10 positive, 0 mixed, 3 negative. Most critics come down in favour, and their praise lands in the same places. Dave Johns and Hayley Squires are singled out again and again, both for playing it plain and lived-in, and the food bank scene is named repeatedly as the film’s strongest passage. Several reviews call this a return to form for Loach: spare, unflashy, angry in a quiet way, and timely on austerity and the benefits system. Even those who like it least tend to grant the performances. Where they part is over subtlety. Admirers concede the film is didactic and occasionally heavy-handed; the dissenters say that is the whole of it. Little White Lies finds a blunt, ranty screed without nuance, the Evening Standard calls it propaganda that reveals little new about the system, and Slant finds the plotting schematic and the deck stacked. The spread is wide, from full marks to one star, though the middle ground is firmly positive. ## The i Paper — Matthew Turner Rating ★★★★★. 19 October 2016. The critic hails the film as a powerful and urgent social drama and scathing indictment of austerity Britain, praising the terrific performances of Dave Johns and Hayley Squires along with its basis in real research and emotional impact. [Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/film/i-daniel-blake-review-austerity-britain-26299) ## Empire — Andrew Lowry Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 17 October 2016. The critic finds the film a profound sigh of disappointment rather than anger at the benefits system, praising its authentic portrayal of bureaucracy and strong lead performances, especially Hayley Squires as Katie, while noting the agenda-driven lack of subtlety. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/daniel-blake-review/) ## The Hollywood Reporter — David Rooney Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 12 May 2016. Festival review. The film is quintessential Loach with familiar social-realist elements about ordinary people crushed by a hostile welfare bureaucracy, anchored by strong performances and urgent storytelling despite some didactic tendencies. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/ken-loachs-i-daniel-blake-893348/) ## Screen Daily Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 12 May 2016. Festival review. The review highlights the film's potent empathetic anguish and fury as a timely protest against punitive austerity policies, while noting it does not break new ground. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/i-daniel-blake-cannes-review/5103798.article) ## Little White Lies — David Jenkins Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 13 May 2016. Festival review. The review describes the film as a blunt, ranty anti-government screed lacking nuance or subtlety, though it singles out Hayley Squires' naturalistic performance for praise. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/festivals/daniel-blake-first-look-review) ## Evening Standard — David Sexton Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 21 October 2016. The review calls the film hard-hitting propaganda that reveals little new about the cruelty of the benefits bureaucracy and welfare rules, describing it as agitprop with an obvious unhappy ending and simplistic Marxist perspective. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/i-daniel-blake-film-review-a3375281.html) ## Slant Magazine — Sam C. Mac Rating 1/4. 28 September 2016. Loach’s film stacks the deck with schematic plotting and broad political gestures that make it more effective as social activism than drama, though the lead performances provide some organic energy and one strong scene. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/i-daniel-blake/) ## Los Angeles Times — Robert Abele 22 December 2016. The critic praises Loach's clear-eyed social realism and fiery anger at institutional failures, singling out the authentic, heartbreaking food bank scene as a highlight of compassion amid need. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-daniel-blake-review-20161216-story.html) ## Radio Times — Damon Wise Rating 4 out of 5. The review calls it a small film that punches above its weight, with heartfelt stories giving a human face to breadline Britain and a terrific dramatic debut by Dave Johns. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-nmihbe/i-daniel-blake/) ## Sight and Sound — Pamela Hutchinson 20 October 2016. The critic calls it one of Loach's finest films, skewering austerity politics with magnificent scorn and humor while highlighting strong performances by Dave Johns and Hayley Squires. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/film-week-i-daniel-blake) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw 20 October 2016. Loach's powerful parable indicts the austerity-era benefits system as a deliberately cruel 21st-century workhouse that strips claimants of dignity. It singles out the raw, humane performances of Dave Johns and Hayley Squires and the film's radical plainness and straightforward humour for praise. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/oct/20/i-daniel-blake-review-ken-loach-film-benefits-system) ## The New Yorker — Richard Brody 22 December 2016. The review highlights the film's empathetic portrayal of bureaucratic obstacles faced by working-class characters but notes that Loach prioritizes political indignation over deeper character complexity. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/goings-on-about-town/movies/i-daniel-blake) ## The New York Times — Stephen Holden 22 December 2016. The critic calls the film a powerful return to form for Loach, praising its fine-tuned performances and depiction of bureaucratic frustration as a compelling social critique. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/22/movies/i-daniel-blake-review-ken-loach.html) ## Time Out — Dave Calhoun Rating 4 out of 5 stars. 12 May 2016. The critic praises the spare, unflashy film for its quiet righteous anger about welfare state failings and its compassionate portrayal of an unlikely friendship. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/i-daniel-blake) ## Variety — Owen Gleiberman 12 May 2016. Festival review. The review lauds the film as one of Loach's finest for its neorealist simplicity and moving relevance, praising the tender devastation in the story of welfare struggles and strong performances. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2016/film/reviews/i-daniel-blake-review-ken-loach-1201772584/) ## Den of Geek — Chloe Catchpole Rating 5/5. 21 October 2016. The critic calls it a masterpiece and one of the films of the year, an urgent societal drama that scathingly indicts austerity Britain and the welfare system's cracks. They single out the realistic performances by Dave Johns and Hayley Squires and the raw, heartbreaking food bank scene for praise. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/i-daniel-blake-review/) ## Collider — Talia Soghomonian Rating A-. 22 December 2016. The critic finds Loach's film a strong indictment of Britain's failing welfare bureaucracy through the story of a sick carpenter and a struggling single mother. It singles out the lead performance and the director's ability to highlight social inequalities for particular praise. [Read the review](https://collider.com/i-daniel-blake-review-cannes-2016-ken-loach/) ## Consequence Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 31 May 2017. The critic describes the film as a wonderfully humane drama and plea for common courtesy that highlights the indomitable spirit of ordinary people caught in an unsympathetic system. It singles out Dave Johns' likable, determined performance as the backbone of the empathetic portrait. [Read the review](https://consequence.net/2017/05/film-review-i-daniel-blake/) ## The Playlist — Nikola Grozdanovic Rating B. 12 May 2016. Festival review. Loach offers an endearing, relatable tale of bureaucracy’s absurdities and human kindness, anchored by an amiable performance from Dave Johns as the widowed carpenter. The film is rudimentary in technique but generates power through its personal, unpretentious focus on humanity rather than anger. [Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/cannes-review-ken-loachs-personal-and-touching-daniel-blake-20160512/) ## The Wrap — Steve Pond Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 1 June 2017. Festival review. The critic finds the film a moving character study of working-class struggles fueled by righteous indignation, though occasionally heavy-handed in its portrayal of bureaucracy. Standout performances by the leads are singled out for praise as restrained and lived-in. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/i-daniel-blake-cannes-review-ken-loachs-touching-character-study-is-fueled-by-righteous-indignation/) ## NME — Olly Richards Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 20 October 2016. The critic describes it as a righteous, of-the-moment commentary on the UK benefits system that hits with sledgehammer force and is extremely effective despite rough edges in the writing. They single out the harrowing food bank scene for its emotional impact. [Read the review](https://www.nme.com/reviews/i-daniel-blake-review-1652951) ## Eye for Film — Richard Mowe 13 May 2016. Festival review. Loach rekindles his favoured themes in a heart-rendingly powerful evocation of the struggles of the underdog against an uncaring welfare system, with strong turns from newcomers Dave Johns and Hayley Squires. The script is occasionally too tub-thumping, yet the film movingly exposes society’s injustices and remains achingly relevant. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/i-daniel-blake-2016-film-review-by-richard-mowe) ## HeyUGuys — Jo-Ann Titmarsh 13 May 2016. Festival review. Ken Loach delivers an uncomfortable, painful look at austerity-riddled Tyneside and the Byzantine benefits system facing a 59-year-old joiner after a heart attack. The film features strong performances from Dave Johns and Hayley Squires, marking a welcome return to form for the director. [Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/i-daniel-blake-review/) ## Paste — Brogan Morris Rating 8.0. 2 January 2017. The review calls the film Loach's most ferocious and best in years, a vital look at austerity Britain's broken benefits system and its human cost. It particularly praises the gut-churning, thriller-like urgency of Daniel's bureaucratic struggles and the raw food bank scene. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/i-daniel-blake/i-daniel-blake) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/i-daniel-blake.md