The inevitable hierarchy that society has created for itself it at an all-time high across not just third world countries, but our very own Great Britain. Poverty used to be something associated with poorer ends of the globe, but after our double recession we have a higher amount of people struggling even just to feed themselves. As population increases and life expectancy rises, it’s no wonder cheap accommodation gets knocked up all over the place and then torn back down because it is either an eye sore or simply poorly made. Filmmaker Andrea Luke Zimmerman provides us with an insightful and out right shocking exploration of those residing in a council owned flat blocks who are soon to be pushes out of their own homes. As we delve into many lives, 30 minutes in, you quickly realise that you can only do so much with such a theme.
As one man screams that they don’t know where they are going, another man calmly states that they do, and ultimately they have to accept that. We do empathise with these people, yet half of them are so stubborn that it seems they will never be grateful for anything the council ever gives them.
A tragic series of events for this working class community, however Estate, A Reverie highlights its point in the very opening scene. To a certain extent Zimmerman creates a dream-like state of mind with repetitive images and flashes of dramatized medieval reenactments; albeit her chosen theme seemed to wear thin in the latter half. Heartbreaking images flood the screen as this community lives its final hours, throwing their furniture off their balcony’s as one last petition against their homes being demolished. A tragic situation, yet one that lacks substance in its final throws.