At first a seemingly drab film from drab Belgium. About a drab ordinary housewife living a drab everyday life. And then ginger Johnny – the bastard – comes along.
He's bonked her in the boot with his big yellow truck. They curse one another. Then he smiles. Soon after he's ringing to offer to fix the boot. She invites him up for some burnt bloodwurst (sausage) (some very poor cuisine is going on in this film. I thought it was only us English who were supposed to cook rubbish food?!) They're off on a date. She drinks one glass of wine then wants to go. Viking Johnny is bonking her up in his big truck. "It was just this once" she says smiling. Then she finds out from twerpy arty flop-haired husband (who's left to go shack up with a student) that Johnnys an alcoholic, been to jail for beating up his ex-wife.
"I used you. Finito" she's saying. And yet she's being surprising sympathetic. Maybe she needs bad boy Johnny to recover her life (by rescuing him, that sorry schtick) Rom-coms have to come with big wallops of cynicism to be real enough to touch me. I like my love two thirds bitter to one third sweet. And while you're at it lets rub some salty sarcasm into any syrupy sentimentality that might be wallowing around. Matty is good at that. "You have to put mustard on everything. So you don't taste or feel anything" he's said to her. "You're talking drivel" she says. I like her. Like the actress who's playing her (Barbara Sarafian) She's attractive in an ordinary kind of way. Even when she's looking dreary something desirable occasionally flickers across her face from somewhere deep within.
This film is getting to feel just about right enough for real life. The screenplay is immediate, the acting actual-to-life plausible; so engaging in fact you don't know you're reading subtitles anymore. I was believing in it.
Matty and Johnny continue to throw little barbs of dry irony at one another. Humour is understated, not forced, appropriate to scene and situation. None of the characters play-act for laughs (from us, the audience) It's probably being even funnier in Flemish (if you spoke Flemish that is) Who's she gonna choose to be with? Is it flaky hubbie or fiery Johnny? Or would she be better off with neither of them? There's no "happy ever after" wrap up, but the ending is quite a few beats up from where the downbeat beginning had been. The dowdy old housewife is bouncing back home, her hair let loose and flying, a fresh sparkle returned to her eye.
It seems Matty might have got her mojo back.
He's bonked her in the boot with his big yellow truck. They curse one another. Then he smiles. Soon after he's ringing to offer to fix the boot. She invites him up for some burnt bloodwurst (sausage) (some very poor cuisine is going on in this film. I thought it was only us English who were supposed to cook rubbish food?!) They're off on a date. She drinks one glass of wine then wants to go. Viking Johnny is bonking her up in his big truck. "It was just this once" she says smiling. Then she finds out from twerpy arty flop-haired husband (who's left to go shack up with a student) that Johnnys an alcoholic, been to jail for beating up his ex-wife.
"I used you. Finito" she's saying. And yet she's being surprising sympathetic. Maybe she needs bad boy Johnny to recover her life (by rescuing him, that sorry schtick) Rom-coms have to come with big wallops of cynicism to be real enough to touch me. I like my love two thirds bitter to one third sweet. And while you're at it lets rub some salty sarcasm into any syrupy sentimentality that might be wallowing around. Matty is good at that. "You have to put mustard on everything. So you don't taste or feel anything" he's said to her. "You're talking drivel" she says. I like her. Like the actress who's playing her (Barbara Sarafian) She's attractive in an ordinary kind of way. Even when she's looking dreary something desirable occasionally flickers across her face from somewhere deep within.
This film is getting to feel just about right enough for real life. The screenplay is immediate, the acting actual-to-life plausible; so engaging in fact you don't know you're reading subtitles anymore. I was believing in it.
Matty and Johnny continue to throw little barbs of dry irony at one another. Humour is understated, not forced, appropriate to scene and situation. None of the characters play-act for laughs (from us, the audience) It's probably being even funnier in Flemish (if you spoke Flemish that is) Who's she gonna choose to be with? Is it flaky hubbie or fiery Johnny? Or would she be better off with neither of them? There's no "happy ever after" wrap up, but the ending is quite a few beats up from where the downbeat beginning had been. The dowdy old housewife is bouncing back home, her hair let loose and flying, a fresh sparkle returned to her eye.
It seems Matty might have got her mojo back.