Sorry We Missed You

Documentary drama from Ken Loach.

The real life struggles of real people struggling to make ends meet after the financial crash. This is about a family in desperate situations, who are financially and time poor. He's a hardworking self-employed delivery driver, she's an overstretched care worker. Both very demanding jobs, their lives are hard, and their kids are neglected. A serious story for current times, though there are no references to Brexit or politics generally.

If you've seen 'I, Daniel Blake' then you'll have a good idea what to expect, though this isn't about benefits. This is more about what happens when there are no workers' rights. Recommended.

For Loach, who is peaking yet again at this point in his career, this is another song about those unspoken for. This time it's delivery drivers. Be it an Amazon or a food delivery service. The most beautiful parts however are the the filmmaker also does say along with depicting the toughness of their lives, that the only way to breathe normally amidst this is to stick together as family.

"Sorry We Missed You" is an exceptional film from British director Ken Loach that I recently saw at the Philadelphia Film Festival. It's amazingly realistic and powerful....as well as incredibly sad and depressing. This is NOT a criticism...more just to let you know that it's anything but a 'feel good' sort of movie.

The story is about a working class family in crisis. The father worked 90 hour weeks as a delivery man. His boss is completely unsympathetic and hard...like a rock. The wife is also working 12-14 hour days and together they barely get by. But, because they are barely home, it's taking a huge emotional and physical toll on them as well as the family. Through the course of the film, you see these decent people fall apart....and there doesn't seem to be any answer for their predicament.

This movie was brilliant in that the actors seemed nothing like conventional actors....they were REAL. But, unlike non-professional actors, they were convincing and extremely effective. I applaud them and Loach for delivering a film that makes you think and feel....and challenges your preconceptions about the fairness and decency in the modern economy. A film not to be missed...unless you are depressed. If you do suffer from clinical depression or your life has been hard lately....maybe you might want to skip this one.

His film hits home in every possible way. Such a simple story and yet to relatable because the struggles are so universal. Absolutely beautiful. After I, Daniel Blake, this is another one that made me cry my heart out, quite literally.

This one really resonated with me. Sorry We Missed You highlights the struggles that normal everyday people experience day to day while trying to balance work and family life and the rate of exploitation in the job market. It's hard hitting, urgent, heartbreaking and most importantly REAL. The fact that Loach is still motivated and inspired and making great films so late in his career is wonderful.

We are shown a glimpse of daily life of the Turners. A low income family with limited options and imperfect decisions. Much like the real ordinary men and women out there every day doing what ever job they can to make ends meet whether it's zero hour contracts, sub-contracts, agency work, sole trading or just a crap job you can almost guarantee they've experienced unscrupulous management, no health and safety, no sick pay, no paid holidays, no travel expenses, dodgy cheques, penalties and sanctions.. I know I have. It's a jungle out there and the grim reality is the world is full of people and businesses willing to take advantage of you at every turn and this film tries to capture just that.

I know Loach often uses unknown or first time actors in his films, but he has a way of bringing out really good performances from them. In Sorry We Missed You it's no different. The characters are really believable in their roles. Kris Hitchen's performance is outstanding in this film. He completely owns the role of Ricky. A solid actor, i'll be checking out his other work from now on. Debbie Honeywood does a great job as Abbie, however not not every line of dialogue hits the mark. Her description of her recurring dream and a few other scenes felt more like a run-through of her lines. Though not overly distracting and she more than makes up for it with her kind hearted compassionate performance. Ross Brewster played the part of the depot manager we love to hate so well. Numbers and figures man, not a care in the world for the workers. Prize pick, basically. The type of character I think we've all come across at some point.

I found this so relatable, after all that's the point isn't it. The hard grafting father working his arse off but never seems to be able to get ahead, the loving mother doing everything she can to hold it all together as she watches her family fragment, the self destructive teenage son at that "stupid age" angry, selfish and misunderstood. It made me laugh, it made me sad, it made me angry, infuriated even, and it got me thinking. What more could you want in a film. Fantastic.