Meisje

"Meisje" ( dutch for girl ) is the tale of 3 women at crossroads in their life. Muriel, a lost girl, breaks away from her home, her steady boyfriend and the socially crippling qualities of her home town, to gain and enjoy her independence in Brussels. She moves in with the uninhibited and lively Laura, a woman with a chaotic lifestyle and the growing desire of motherhood. Martha, Muriel's mother, follows her progress from afar, and finds herself breaking away from her routine and rediscovering a long forgotten childhood dream. Their lives cross over until they all meet up during a turbulent night. "Meisje" is a movie about the incredible power that drives women.

this isn't really a comment, just a synopsis for people looking for info about the movie

I found the movie to be pretty interesting at times; a beautiful and bitter exploration of an uncommunicative mind. The film deals with the themes of loneliness. Muriel is a budding woman, who just wants to be connected, while also being ignorant of her mother. Laura is a middle-aged woman who wants to settle down by having children. And Muriel's mother, Martha, is an old woman re-experiencing the flames of passion with another man, while being ignored by her daughter. Basically, they all want love and sex. As Muriel is our protagonist, she travels through the city life with experiences of jealousy, envy and eventual redemption from her loneliness, through a mother's affection. So yeah, that's what the movie is. A movie about a girl. I felt pretty chilled out, with the calm-inducing background music, as Muriel walks around the city. Falls a little bit apart during the 3rd act, but redeems itself, by the end. A good one time watch.

This story about three women is a very sensitive study about: Muriël (Charlotte Van Den Eynde) the youngest, Laura (Els Dottermans) who is about 37 and Martha (Frieda Pittors) the oldest who is the mother of Muriël. They live together in the same building. They have different expectations of life. The vital Laura wants a child. Muriël comes from a village and wants to change her life in Brussels. Martha dreams about her youth when she was a young girl. In fact nothing happens in this movie so you wait for something - for instances an accident - which could dramatize this story. As times goes on, you discover that the director Dorothée Van Den Berghe only wants to develop a psychological portrait of the three women and nothing more. This movie is disappointing because you expect the women to learn from their experiences which is not the case, so one is left with a feeling of emptiness.

This movie is another Must-see. Kind of like Fucking Amal, here also a girl (20) wants to discover the world. She leaves here village to go to the big city, but gets involved in some disappointing events. Her tries to discover love and sex are displayed very delicately, and the actress is convincing in her reservedness. She takes things as they are, not commenting but clearly showing her aversion against how things go in Brussels. Maybe some superfluous sexually tinted scenes, but not disturbing the delicate atmosphere. In other words, if you have the chance to see it, GO!! Don't expect much action, but the psychological portrait is brilliant.

This movie was a pleasant surprise for me. Not only did it have a well written story, the acting was amazing as well, specially Charlotte Vanden Eynde. I think she should have won the Joseph Plateau Award, because her performance was much more superior than Els Dottermans' performance.

Something more about the story now, because this might be the main reason why I liked this movie so much. I saw a similar situation in my family and I thought this movie told a very realistic and touching story. What we see is a young girl with a desperate hunger for independence and a mother who's afraid of losing her daughter. This was the aspect I loved the most about "Meisje". Muriel wanted to stand on her own feet, she wanted to be no longer independent from everyone, she wanted to make a new start. And when you're dreaming of this new start, you think everything will work out easily and your life will be great in no time... but the problem is that it's never as easy as it seems. Starting all over again is tough and you do need people around you who you can trust and who you can count on. Everyone needs someone who takes care of them.

It's exactly this aspect that I was touched by the most. "Meisje" is a sensitive and great Belgian movie which tells a story of growing up, closing chapters and starting new ones. It's a wonderful movie and Charlotte Vanden Eynde is definitely the star of the show.

8,5/10