Aaron Silverman
Senior HTF Member
L’Enfant
Written By: Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne
Directed By: Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne
Belgium Theatrical Release: September 14, 2005
US Theatrical Release: September 3, 2005 (Telluride Film Festival); March 24, 2006 (Limited) (Sony Pictures Classics)
US DVD Release: August 15, 2006
Running Time: 1:35:30 (28 chapter stops)
Rating: R (For Brief Language – and by “brief” they mean there’s about one f-bomb)
Video: 1.66:1 Anamorphic (Extra Features: approximately 1.70:1 anamorphic)
Audio: French DD5.1 (Extra Features: French DD2.0)
Subtitles: English, French (Extra Features: Burned-in English)
TV-Generated Closed Captions: English (Extra Features: None)
Menus: Not animated.
Packaging: Standard keepcase; insert features cover images of other Sony Pictures Classics titles.
MSRP: $24.96
THE WAY I FEEL ABOUT IT: 3/5
L’Enfant, the 2005 Palme d’Or (Best Picture) winner at Cannes, is an intimate portrait of an amoral man-child, a pathetic creature who alternately draws the viewer’s disgust and pity. The filmmakers’ cinema verité style brings alive the aimless existence of the urban underclass of Belgium, which to be sure doesn’t feel very alive. It makes for an interesting look at an undeveloped man and his strange little family, even if it doesn’t always make for an engaging movie-watching experience.
The story opens on Sonia (Déborah François), a very young woman hurrying around the city with a newborn baby in her arms. She’s looking for the child’s father, who appears to have missed the birth. In most cases, the father of a baby is either in the picture or out of it – but not this time. He’s “around;” he just isn’t there. Before we even see him, we have our first clue about his mindset.
And the second isn’t far behind. When Sonia returns to her apartment, expecting that he might be there, she discovers that he has in fact sublet her place to strangers while she was in the hospital. Her own door is slammed in her face. He must be terribly cruel to have done such a thing – why is she still so anxious to see him?
Sonia soon finds her man, Bruno (Jérémie Renier). He is quite busy, attempting to panhandle cars at a traffic light while simultaneously casing a potential robbery victim. He notices her and is distracted enough to wander away from the cars. However, he barely registers the infant in her arms, even as she tries to show off her bundle of joy and get Bruno to hold him. It takes just a little longer for him to lose interest in the robbery and meander off with Sonia and the baby.
She confronts him about letting out her place and spending all of their money, but when he responds with nonchalance, she lets it slide and starts horsing around playfully. She also doesn’t seem to care much about anything -- besides the baby, that is. It’s clear that the child is the first thing that either of them has ever taken seriously, and only one of them even sees him as more than an object.
For Bruno, a thing only has value in two ways: it’s either something that catches his fancy of the moment, or something that he can sell for cash. A chance comment from a fence about folks who will pay good money for an “adoption,” and suddenly Junior fits one of those categories. Without consulting Sonia – apparently not realizing that she might have a problem with the idea – he gives the baby to an unknown recipient, who leaves a wad of cash in exchange.
Bruno appears genuinely shocked at Sonia’s reaction – after all, as he explains, they can always have another baby if they want one. But here we see the first hint of humanity in him – the thought of losing Sonia induces a sense of desperation that leads him to try and undo his mistake. Does he truly care about her? He doesn’t really need her in order to survive. Is he even aware of why he’s acting the way he is? His own feelings may be completely new to him.
Bruno manages to retrieve the child, but that only digs him deeper into trouble. The gangsters behind the “adoption” demand compensation for their ruined deal, and Sonia leaves him anyway. Still, his deteriorating situation doesn’t seem to affect him that much. He goes about his business – wasting time and looking for money in any way that doesn't involve an actual job. With the exception of a climactic robbery sequence, the viewer is taken along on what amounts to an anti-adventure. Is Bruno perhaps starting to see things in a new light? It’s difficult to tell from his actions.
In the end, Bruno makes a fateful decision that winds up changing his life – but whether he is actually trying to redeem himself or has simply run out of options is unclear. It’s something to discuss as the credits roll, and that was the intent of the filmmakers. So they have certainly succeeded in achieving their desired effect with L’Enfant. However, the nature of the film is simply not for everyone. There are many lingering shots of characters doing little or nothing, which take the viewer into their world, but that won’t necessarily be a compelling experience for those whose tastes lie elsewhere. The total absence of background and incidental music from the soundtrack adds to the sense of being there – but the world of L’Enfant is not such an exciting place to be. Some folks may also find the depiction of the baby (played by more than 20 different real infants) to be overly creepy, as aside from the opening scene, he is completely silent – the film sees him almost as Bruno does, at least in the beginning: as an object to be carried around rather than as a human being.
THE WAY I SEE IT: 4.5/5
The image is really gorgeous. Colors are lifelike, blacks are rich, and the level of detail reflects the extremely high bit rate. The picture is somewhat grainy, more so at night, and it’s all very organic. There is just a hint of edge enhancement here and there (mainly in exterior shots), but not enough to take away from the generally wonderful look.
THE WAY I HEAR IT: 3/5
The sound mix is passable but uninteresting. Nearly everything is front and center, albeit quite clear. There are some ambient sounds in the side and rear channels, but they tend to be very low-level. There is no background or incidental music whatsoever – what little music is heard is part of the on-screen action (such as a car stereo and mobile phone ring tones) and pretty much entirely situated in that center speaker.
THE SWAG: 1/5 (rating combines quality and quantity)
Interview With Writers/ Directors/ Producers/ Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne (29:53)
This is a very good interview with the filmmakers where they go into a nice amount of detail about their intentions and ideas for the film.
Trailers
The trailers for House of Sand and Quinceañera play automatically when the disc in inserted. They may be skipped.
- House of Sand (2:02) (DD2.0; 2.35:1 non-anamorphic)
- Quinceañera (1:56) (DD2.0; 2.35:1 anamorphic)
- Don’t Come Knocking (1:50) (DD2.0; 2.35:1 anamorphic)
- Art School Confidential (1:45) (DD2.0; 1.85:1 anamorphic)
- Friends With Money (1:40) (DD2.0; 2.35:1 anamorphic)
- Caché (2:09) (DD2.0; 1.85:1 anamorphic)
SUMMING IT ALL UP
The Way I Feel About It: 3/5
The Way I See It: 4.5/5
The Way I Hear It: 3/5
The Swag: 1/5
L’Enfant is a film that succeeds in what it sets out to do, but nevertheless won’t appeal to everyone. As European art films go, it is fairly accessible to mainstream American audiences, but some may have difficulty with the deeply amoral protagonist and the generally slow pace. The disc sports a beautiful transfer and decent soundtrack, and the single extra feature is very solid. Fans of the film can buy with confidence. Others should probably go for a rental first.
