Façades

The title of this film says a lot about its theme. Just like the façade of a building can give a wrong impression of what's behind it, the lead characters in this film are different from who they pretend to be.

The movie is about Alex, an translator who seems to lead a succesful life but in reality has doubts about her relationship with her unfaithful partner Claus. And it is also about her father, who suffers from dementia but has difficulties accepting this.

The father-daughter relationship is tested when Alex's mother one day dissapears without leaving a note or a message. Her dissapearance is triggered by certain events in the past, the nature of which is very slowly uncovered during the film.

The screenplay is clever: the film starts and ends with a scene in which the viewer discovers that Alex has a big scar on her leg. This scar is the result of the past events of which the true nature is only revealed at the very end of the film.

Façades is a drama exploring the way people interact and try to understand each other's behaviour. It is filmed in an unhurried and quiet way, in warm, saturated colours. It's not a tear jerker filled with strong emotional moments, but a drama about how people cope with life and its dissapointments. A strong acting performance is given by veteran actor Johan Leysen, who plays the elderly father, and seems to have no trouble switching from pride and dignity to shame and helplessness.