Laikals The greatest movie ever made..!

Salubfoto It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

Humbersi The first must-see film of the year.

Kinley This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

laetitiapayombo That's a perfect movie if you think life is too great and you want to be depressed. The photography is great. Actors act perfectly. This movie is so true, it doesn't look like a movie at all. Just a deep descent into the darkness. This movie is really depressing... Great movie nevertheless.

Coventry What is it with films from Flanders that they seemingly MUST feature either farmers or marginal people in order to be successful? Prior to 1995 it seems like movies from here only revolved on farmer families battling against poverty and various other types of misery, whereas after 1995 the farmers were replaced by marginal people, but they were still battling against poverty and various other types of misery. Our most famous cinematic export product, the Oscar-nominated "Rundskop" (aka "Bullhead") even features a combination of both! Marginal farmers, hooray! But the term marginal is far too light to describe the lead characters in "The Ardennes", though. They're the equivalent of trailer trash! "The Ardennes" almost feels untouchable here in Flanders, Belgium. You're almost not allowed to say something negative about it. Ever since the release in 2015 - and even before already - this film has been incredibly popular and benefiting from a tremendous media buzz. Everybody loves it, audiences as well as critics, and I honestly wonder why it's so well-received and successful. Admittedly it's a competent film and much better than the overrated "Rundskop" or the pretentious but substantially void "De Helaasheid der Dingen" (aka "The Misfortunates"), but "The Ardennes" nevertheless remains a simplistic and clichéd tale with predictable twists and protagonists you can't possibly sympathize with. Especially the first half feels long, tedious and overly familiar. Fans of the film will undoubtedly call it a harrowing and confronting portrait of a suffering family in the lower middle class of Belgian society, but the simple truth is that it's a form of 'disaster tourism'. You're looking at trailer trash people and you're glad you're not like them. These people eat Flemish stew on Christmas Eve, listen to loud 90s house music in their ugly car, behave and talk like racists and participate in miserable drug-rehabilitation group sessions. There aren't any underlying messages or lessons to be drawn. Personally I'm 100% fine with that, but then please stop pretending it's a relevant film that shows how difficult it is to re-integrate into society after a prison sentence or how to get your life back on track after a severe drug addiction. "The Ardennes" doesn't do that, and I don't think writers Robin Pront and Jeroen Perceval ever intended their script to become a social requiem. In fact, the story can be described best as: the trailer trash version of Cain and Abel. Two brothers, jealousy and uncontrollable anger resulting in violence. Please don't get me wrong; "The Ardennes" honestly isn't a bad film, but it simply never lives up to the praise and compliments it is receiving. That's hardly the film's own fault. The second half, primarily set in the titular Ardennes, is more exciting and introduces a few fantastically eccentric supportive characters, like this hideous drag queen Joyce (Sam Louwyck) and the psychotic ex-con Stef (Jan Bijvoet). I swear, those two deserve a spin-off film of their own! The climax isn't too difficult to foretell, especially if you're familiar with mainstream thrillers, but it still comes as a minor shock even if you know what is going to happen. Lead actor Kevin Janssens deserves extra respect for the performance he gives. I read that the role was originally reserved for Matthias Schoenaerts (pretty much the only Flemish actor to have success in Hollywood). Taking over from him surely couldn't have been an easy task, but Janssens truly gives away a stellar performance. I didn't care much for him as an actor before, but he underwent a phenomenal metamorphosis here. The same can be said for Robin Pront. The film was supposed to be directed by Michael Roskam ("Bullhead") at first, but eventually Pront directed the scenario that he co-wrote himself. Kudos to him, because in his debut feature he certainly demonstrations copious amounts of talent, style, vision and surefootedness. Oh, and one last thing: I love the soundtrack! I don't care that it gets linked to criminals, drug-abusers and lowlifes; - Belgian house/dance music from the 1990s is awesome. Search for songs like "The House of House", "The First Rebirth" and "Rigor Mortis/ Flesh & Bones" on YouTube and concur with me!

GUENOT PHILIPPE What a terrific crime drama from Belgium. I the line of BULLHEAD released four years ago, you deal here with a pure product of what the Flemish film industry can give at its best. Gritty, tragic, moving, brutal film that begins as a drama for the first half before resuming as a pure dark crime tale. Depressing, not for the squeamish, I warn you. An unforgettable experience. Astounding performances pulled by a flawless cast. The story of two brothers, one from the can, and the other desperately trying to go in the right way. The director deserves to be closely watched at in the future.A pure jewel, a masterpiece.

Stijn Verrept I've been a member of IMDb for over 10 years but this is my first review. When I saw this movie didn't have any reviews I felt compelled to write one.I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Being Flemish I probably enjoyed the dialects even more but don't let this stop you to go see this movie. The plot is excellent, there is never a dull moment throughout the movie. The cinematography is top notch, the choice of locations are excellent, a really Flemish setting: the home of the boys, the discotheque, the self- help group, forest, etc. What sets apart this movie were both the performances of the actors and the authentic music throughout the movie. Not only are Kevin Janssens and Veerle Baetens great actors, Jeroen Perceval was great as well, being the writer of this movie. My hat off for the performances of the mother of the brothers and the car-wash owner (Peter Van den Begin) who did an excellent job portraying the character! What I also liked are the little jokes in this movie, it's those things that lift a good movie to the next level of excellence.This movie is yet another sign we should be proud of Flemish movies! Imho: Oscar material!If you haven't seen this, go see it now, you won't be disappointed!