Ken Loach's 'I, Daniel Blake' wins Palme d'Or

The 79-year-old's win on Sunday marked a major upset at the prestigious film festival, with Maren Ade's German comedy "Toni Erdmann" and Jim Jarmusch's "Paterson" - which were favorites for the award - both leaving the ceremony empty-handed.

"I, Daniel Blake," was Ken Loach's thirteeth entry in the festival's main competition. He previously won the Palme d'Or in 2006 for "The Wind That Shakes the Barley."

This year's prize-winning film tells the story of Daniel Blake, a widower and carpenter, struggling to claim benefits in Britain's shrinking welfare state after suffering a heart attack and being told by doctors he can no longer work.

Blake finds himself in a Catch-22, however, when an invisible "decision-maker" rules he is too healthy for benefits. He goes on to befriend a young single mother of two, who is sanctioned for being late to the benefits centre, leaving her with no money for food.

"The world we live in is at a dangerous point right now," Loach said as he accepted his award. "We are in the grip of a dangerous project of austerity, driven by ideas that we call neo-liberalism that have brought us to near catastrophe."

Going home with the runner-up prize was young Canadian director, Xavier Dolan. Prior to the awards ceremony on Sunday, the 27-year-old's hot-tempered family drama "It's Only the End of the World" had been widely panned by critics.

Third place was won by Loach's fellow Brit, Andrea Arnold. The 55-year-old's "American Honey" portrays the lives of disadvantaged US youths, selling magazines door-to-door.