D'Ardennen

What is it with films from Flanders that they seemingly MUST feature either farmers or marginal people in order to be successful? Prior to 1995 it seems like movies from here only revolved on farmer families battling against poverty and various other types of misery, whereas after 1995 the farmers were replaced by marginal people, but they were still battling against poverty and various other types of misery. Our most famous cinematic export product, the Oscar-nominated "Rundskop" (aka "Bullhead") even features a combination of both! Marginal farmers, hooray! But the term marginal is far too light to describe the lead characters in "The Ardennes", though. They're the equivalent of trailer trash!

"The Ardennes" almost feels untouchable here in Flanders, Belgium. You're almost not allowed to say something negative about it. Ever since the release in 2015 - and even before already - this film has been incredibly popular and benefiting from a tremendous media buzz. Everybody loves it, audiences as well as critics, and I honestly wonder why it's so well-received and successful. Admittedly it's a competent film and much better than the overrated "Rundskop" or the pretentious but substantially void "De Helaasheid der Dingen" (aka "The Misfortunates"), but "The Ardennes" nevertheless remains a simplistic and clichéd tale with predictable twists and protagonists you can't possibly sympathize with. Especially the first half feels long, tedious and overly familiar. Fans of the film will undoubtedly call it a harrowing and confronting portrait of a suffering family in the lower middle class of Belgian society, but the simple truth is that it's a form of 'disaster tourism'. You're looking at trailer trash people and you're glad you're not like them. These people eat Flemish stew on Christmas Eve, listen to loud 90s house music in their ugly car, behave and talk like racists and participate in miserable drug-rehabilitation group sessions. There aren't any underlying messages or lessons to be drawn. Personally I'm 100% fine with that, but then please stop pretending it's a relevant film that shows how difficult it is to re-integrate into society after a prison sentence or how to get your life back on track after a severe drug addiction. "The Ardennes" doesn't do that, and I don't think writers Robin Pront and Jeroen Perceval ever intended their script to become a social requiem. In fact, the story can be described best as: the trailer trash version of Cain and Abel. Two brothers, jealousy and uncontrollable anger resulting in violence.

Please don't get me wrong; "The Ardennes" honestly isn't a bad film, but it simply never lives up to the praise and compliments it is receiving. That's hardly the film's own fault. The second half, primarily set in the titular Ardennes, is more exciting and introduces a few fantastically eccentric supportive characters, like this hideous drag queen Joyce (Sam Louwyck) and the psychotic ex-con Stef (Jan Bijvoet). I swear, those two deserve a spin-off film of their own! The climax isn't too difficult to foretell, especially if you're familiar with mainstream thrillers, but it still comes as a minor shock even if you know what is going to happen. Lead actor Kevin Janssens deserves extra respect for the performance he gives. I read that the role was originally reserved for Matthias Schoenaerts (pretty much the only Flemish actor to have success in Hollywood). Taking over from him surely couldn't have been an easy task, but Janssens truly gives away a stellar performance. I didn't care much for him as an actor before, but he underwent a phenomenal metamorphosis here. The same can be said for Robin Pront. The film was supposed to be directed by Michael Roskam ("Bullhead") at first, but eventually Pront directed the scenario that he co-wrote himself. Kudos to him, because in his debut feature he certainly demonstrations copious amounts of talent, style, vision and surefootedness.

Oh, and one last thing: I love the soundtrack! I don't care that it gets linked to criminals, drug-abusers and lowlifes; - Belgian house/dance music from the 1990s is awesome. Search for songs like "The House of House", "The First Rebirth" and "Rigor Mortis/ Flesh & Bones" on YouTube and concur with me!

"The Ardennes" (2015 release from Belgium; 96 min.) brings the story of brothers Dave and Kenny. As the movie opens, Dave is seen scrambling and driving off madly with a woman, while Kenny is not so lucky, and gets arrested. In a quick montage, Kenny is sentenced to 7 years in jail, his girlfriend Sylvie attends AA/NA meetings and is now 2 years clean, and Dave is working at a carwash. Then after 4 years, Kenny is released, and Dave picks him up. Kenny is disappointed that Sylvie isn't there to meet him, but we in the meantime know that Sylvie is now with Dave, and pregnant (all unbeknownst to Kenny). At his mom's urging, Dave is able to get Kenny a job at the car wash. Will Kenny find out about Dave and Sylvie? Will Kenny remain on the straight-and-narrow? At this point we are a good 10 min. into the movie but to tell you more pf the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: in the initial opening credits, the movie is announced as "Belgian cinema from Flanders" (which is the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium). In fact, the movie is set in and around Antwerp, my original home town, and all of the characters speak with a pronounced Antwerp dialect accent. Writer-director Robin Pront previously was the producer of the Oscar-nominated "Bullhead". Here he explores another crime drama, and along with it a complicated relationship between 2 brothers. The movie is highly stylish in both its photography and camera angles, adding to the overall sense of dread that something very bad may be going down. Veerle Batens as Sylvie delivers yet another top-notch performance, as does Jeroen perceval as Dave. But the intense performance of Kevin Janssens as the unstable Kenny is what really lifts this movie. Last but certainly not least, there is an outstanding electronic score, courtesy of Flemish composer Hendrik Willemyns, whom I had never heard of before. Bottom line, this is a dark crime drama which I ended up enjoying a lot more than I expected. Incidentally, this was Belgium's official entry for the 2017 Best Foreign Language Movie Oscar (it was not nominated).

While "The Ardennes" played at a number of film festivals (it premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival) and was officially released in the US in early 2017, it really wasn't until Film Movement released it as part of its Movie of the Month releases that this gained a wider audience. This is how I finally was able to see it. So glad I did (and not just because I originally hail from Belgium). If you are in the mood for a dark crime drama, I'd readily recommend you check this out and draw your own conclusion. I think you will be quite pleased. "The Ardennes" is a WINNER.

'D'Ardennen' is Robin Pront's first feature film, but I'd have sworn it was made by a very experienced film maker. This is a well-made, exciting, and ambitious movie - a successful accomplishment in every respect.

Pront hasn't made it easy for himself. To mention just one thing: the film is spoken entirely in the dialect of the Flemish city Antwerp. That means that even here in Flanders, it is shown with subtitles. Commercially, that's a drawback, but it makes the movie much more authentic.

The film is built on a very strong screenplay. Two brothers commit a holdup, but only one of them manages to escape. The other one is caught and convicted, and is released from jail four years later. After the reunion, he slowly pulls his brother down in a spiral of violence and crime. His former girlfriend plays a crucial part in his self-destructive behaviour. The tense relationship between the two brothers is characterized by unspoken reproaches on the one hand and strong family ties on the other. The girl is the reason for the dramatic developments that lead to a bloody climax.

Not only is this a very intelligent thriller, it is also a great movie from a cinematographic point of view. Pront and his cinematographer are very good in filming scenes through mirrors or windows, creating surprising and original effects. The crucial reunion between the two brothers is filmed in the rear view mirror of a car, accentuating the emotional distance that has grown between them. When they are having a meal in a restaurant, they are filmed form both sides of the window pane, with raindrops creating a nice visual effect. The locations are very well chosen: Antwerp is shown as an industrial wasteland, and the snowy hills of the Ardennes are filmed as a creepy place with weird inhabitants.

The film slowly works its way towards a bloody apotheosis, which was a bit overdone to my taste. The story didn't really need the considerable body count, above all because at the end there is a surprising twist with much dramatic effect. But this is a minor flaw in an otherwise outstanding film.

Just like Oscar-nominated Bullhead a few years ago, this is a Flemish film with international appeal. Too bad Belgium has already selected Jaco Van Dormael's last film for the Academy Awards.

As a Belgian we might have different opinions about this movie. I thought it was a well made movie with a good story. But most of it's charm is that is raw, straight out of life, because of the use of the dialect language. It's in Flemish, more specifically in the Antwerp dialect. In Belgium almost every town has it's own dialect and for some it is difficult to understand but the dialect from Antwerp is one of those everybody understands in Belgium. Not like the dialect from East or West Flanders that only people from there understand. So I can get that if you don't speak or understand those dialects that the movie looses a bit of it's value. Even though I thought, seeing the budget that is quite high for a Belgian production, the movie has a good story with good actors and a couple of surprising twists. To me it is with Bull Head one of the better Belgian movies from the last decade.

This is another unblemished Belgian crime film production, wonderfully shot and with excellent performances from the -small in number- stellar cast. Kevin Jansenns ("Vermist", "Revenge") plays the role of Kenny a young drug-addicted thug and robber who gets out of prison after four years of incarceration. Jeroen Perceval ("Bullhead", "Borgman") is Danny, Kenny's elder brother who gets infatuated with his baby brother's girlfriend, the young waitress and heroin addict Sylvie (portrayed impeccably by Veerle Baetens). Danny is reluctant to talk to Kenny about his relationship as he seems to live on a world of his own where things remained still with the passage of time. Kenny believes he still can win Sylvie's heart even though she is obviously not interested anymore. The story will take a more suspenseful turn in its second half where the two brother's relationship will be tested under hard circumstances. This movie also casts Jan Bijvoet whose great performance we admired in the disturbing "Borgman" (2013).

I will not reveal anything more about the plot as it would spoil a strong cinematic experience that proves that Belgian productions remain on the top of today's Continental crime film productions. This is a sorrowful story with a tragic ending where a shocking final plot twist overturns everything that we, as the audience, thought and believed about the characters. "The Ardennes" is a slow-burning masterpiece, it is the first full-length film directed by Robin Pront ("The Flemish Bandits", "Injury Time") and a movie that you will never forget as it succeeds in getting across to the viewer its gloomy mood and character. The two brothers story arc is moving as well as tragic and we root for them until the ending, never mind their evident flaws.

This is a movie that I can recommend without a hint of reservation to all Euro-Crime fanatics out there, and especially those who are keen on Dutch and Belgian productions. Enjoy!