Info

Sheila versus de Staat (2023)

Name: Sheila versus de Staat
Genre: Documentary
Released: 2024-05-21T19:22:49+02:00
Rating: 3

Documentary | 58 minutes

3,00 4 votes

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Genre: Documentary

Duration: 58 minuten

Country: Netherlands

Directed by: Stijn Bouma

This movie is not available on US streaming services.

Sheila versus de Staat plot

Sheila is a victim of the benefits scandal. Despite the ongoing battle for compensation that Sheila is involved in, she and her family try to get the most out of life. Her daughter Farah deserves a better future and she wants to arrange everything as best as possible. But unresolved trauma and stress take their toll and Sheila becomes increasingly ill.

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mrklm

11374 messages
9897 votes

20 December 2023 at 19:32

44-year-old Sheila Ramawadh-Badal is one of the many victims of the benefits scandal. In his own words, Stijn Bouma wanted to give the victims a face through Sheila, but the connection with the story he tells is questionable to say the least. There are images of telephone calls to government agencies, sometimes businesslike, other times empathetic, but this film focuses more on the personal dramas that Sheila and her family have experienced. Daughter Farah is undoubtedly an endearing child, but Bouma seems to use her mainly to generate sympathy. We see her riding around the neighborhood on a scooter and playing in a playground, and there is also attention for son Zaïn, who was born prematurely and died after a few days from a brain hemorrhage. A terrible personal drama, but it has little to do with De Staat. I wonder how Farah in particular will look back on this in 15 years...