The Son

Colour, 35mm
Belgium, 2002, 100 min
Section: Horizons - Awarded Films

Synopsis

Belgian filmmakers Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, holders of the Palme d’Or award for Rosetta (1999), this time chose a man as their central character but remained faithful to their restless camera technique incorporating large close-ups and body details, and their focus on the character’s social definition. Thirty-year-old Olivier heads a cabinet-making training centre and lives alone. His marriage to Magali has broken down, evidently the consequence of losing their only child five years earlier. One day sixteen-year-old Francis appears in the workshop looking for an apprenticeship, having just been released from a prison for young offenders. Olivier recognises in him the murderer of their small son but betrays nothing to the boy. Almost against his will he is captivated by Francis’ skill and will to learn the trade, and also his reserve and reticence. The moment of truth comes when Olivier takes Francis on an excursion into the woods and reveals who he is. “We couldn’t have envisaged making this film with any other actor” say the directors of Olivier Gourmet, whom the jury at this year’s Cannes festival presented with the award for Best Actor.

About the director

Jean-Pierre Dardenne (b. 1951, Engis, Belgium) is a professional actor, his brother Luc Dardenne (1954) studied philosophy. In 1975 they founded the production company Dérives and in 1981 the company Films Dérives Production. They chiefly focused on documentaries made for video: Le chant du rossignol (1978), Lorsque le bateau de Léon M. déscendit la Meuse pour la premiere fois (1979), Pour que la guerre s´ acheve, les murs devaient s´écrouler (1980), R...ne répond plus (1981), Lecons d´une université volant (1982), Regarde Jonathan/ Jean Louvet, son oeuvre (1983). Features: Falsch (1986), La promesse (1996) and Rosetta – Palme d’Or and Best Actress shared at Cannes 1999). Both films were screened at Karlovy Vary.