Thanks to Netflix and searches of “best films” Web sites, I had the pleasure of seeing 2 related films back to back last week. Both are directed and written by the Belgian brothers, Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, both starring the Belgian actor, Olivier Gourmet, whom I was not familiar with, though apparently he is well-known in Europe.
Both these films are about older male/younger male dynamics, a topic American filmmakers never address (with the possible exception of the recent Pursuit of Happyness—clouded up by the need for triumphant happy endings and Gus Van Zant’s My Own Private Idaho and Michael Cuesta’s L.I.E., though both these films have a strong, sexual overlay).
We live in times where our schools routinely prescribe Ritalin for young male “acting out” behavior, while better-behaved girls move up academically. Since other studies show conclusively that women have little interest in males less successful then they, this recent development doesn’t bode well for either males or females.
The American film landscape is full of “chick” flicks as producers believe there is little market for any serious film about male relationships in the U.S. Television is the same, with some notable exceptions (i.e., The Sopranos, Deadwood). Film & TV help reinforce identity and behavior so the absence of any visual media regarding males versus the plethora of media about female relations is a drag. [Note: action-adventure, comic book-type films or “buddy” films are not comparable to dramatic and romantic films geared for women]
That’s why it was refreshing to see these French-Belgian films.
The first, La Promesse (1996), is about a boy, a young thief and criminal, apprenticing as a mechanic while at the same time working for his father, who runs an immigrant smuggling racket: a beat-out building for housing them and shady construction projects where they can work until they get their papers and move on (or in some cases, are caught and sent back).
The film begins with a promise the boy makes to a dying man and the conflict this causes him in his relations with his father.
The second, Le Fils (2003), is about a boy just released from juvenile prison after serving time for a murder and the cabinetry teacher who takes him on as an apprentice—and possible adoption. The teacher lives alone after the dissolution of his marriage due to a catastrophic event.
The father-son relationships are expressed compellingly by the constantly-active cameral work, mostly in close-up (a la Blair Witch Project), making them appear like documentaries. No music track, no histrionics, no magical romantic moments as in many American films. Just a barebones story that is somehow natural and engrossing.
Check it out!
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