The Son (2002)

A joinery instructor at a rehab center refuses to take a new teen as his apprentice, but then begins to follow the boy through the hallways and streets.

Directors:

Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne

Writers:

Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne

Stars:

Olivier Gourmet, Morgan Marinne, Isabella Soupart

10 wins & 12 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Olivier Gourmet	...	Olivier
Morgan Marinne	...	Francis
Isabella Soupart	...	Magali
Nassim Hassaïni	...	Omar
Kevin Leroy	...	Raoul
Félicien Pitsaer	...	Steve
Rémy Renaud	...	Philippo (as Remy Renaud)
Annette Closset	...	La Directrice du Centre
Fabian Marnette	...	Rino
Pierre Nisse	...	Apprenti Soudeur 1
Stephan Barbason	...	Apprenti Soudeur 2
David Manna	...	Apprenti Soudeur 3
Abdellah Amarjouf	...	Apprenti Soudeur 4
Jimmy Deloof	...	Dany
Anne Gerard	...	La Mère de Dany (as Gérard Anne)

Storyline

Olivier - meticulous, careful, even-handed - teaches carpentry at a vocational school in Liège. He's asked to take on Francis, 16, a new student. He declines the request then begins to watch, even spy on, the new lad. Olivier knows something. Later that day, he's visited by Magali, his ex-wife, who tells him that she's remarrying and is pregnant. Olivier seems to follow instinctive responses: "why today?" he demands of Magali; he continues to follow Francis; he changes his mind about enrolling the youth. What's the history between the two? After that becomes clear, what is it Olivier will do? Is this precise and measured carpenter in control of himself?

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Plot Keywords:

apprentice | class | classroom | work | workshop | 

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Taglines:

From The Directors Of "La Promesse" and "Rosetta".

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery

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Did You Know?

Trivia

Chosen by "Telerama" (France) as one of the 10 best pictures of 2002 (#03).

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Quotes

Olivier: The boy that you killed was my son.

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: The Best Films of 2003 (2004)

User Reviews

A whole new way of looking at film....

The acting in The Son was top notch.

Very demanding nuances were expected from the actors, especially in a movie thats so stripped of a leading musical score and filmed at such a deliberately halted pace. Thus must say the two male leads has successfully delivered performances which torched my views on what constitutes "good acting".

Overall, The Son piqued my interest enough to want to hunt down other Dardenne Bros pics. Being new to their works, the extremely voyueristic shots in this film revealed previously undetectable character depths, with such humanistic intuition, it was uncannily astonishing.

Pity the dizzying cinematography made me all tipsy(my seat was very much infront). The film could arguably have done with some judicious trimming as well. But that may be due to my comparatively lower tolerance for such glacial paced works. But agree with you'all that the abrupt end achieved the right note of hopefulness. Its openness was a very nice touch indeed.

To be fair, I think I would need more time to digest this film on tv. It is my belief that the wozzy nature of "handheld" flicks often play better in an intimate home setting than in a cinema, especially when viewed from unfavourable theatre vantage points like mine.

An acquired taste though The Son has been, I acknowledge its a very prized find. It at least has succeeded pointing me in a whole new direction of film appreciation.

Details

Official Sites:

Diaphana [France]

Country:

Belgium France

Language:

French

Release Date:

9 October 2002 (Belgium)

Also Known As:

El hijo

Filming Locations:

Liège, Wallonia, Belgium

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$10,048, 12 January 2003

Gross USA:

$70,262

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,057,439

Company Credits

Production Co:

Archipel 35, Les Films du Fleuve, Radio Télévision Belge Francophone (RTBF)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1