An passionate exploration by the Dardenne brothers into greed and the power of men to do endless harm in the context of international politics
Writing / directing team brothers Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne have come up with a new offering that does not pale in comparison to their hard hitting previous efforts. “Lorna’s Silence” won the Cannes 2008 Best Screenplay award and was nominated for the Golden Palm. Their previous films have garnered dozens of awards throughout Europe and the world including the Cannes Golden Palm for “L'Enfant” in 2005, the Jury Prize Special Mention for “Le Fils” in 2002 and the “Golden Palm and Jury Prize Special Mention for “Rosetta” in 1999.
True to the form of their earlier films the Dardenne brothers find this story in the immigration scams that populate Western Europe and the rest of the developed world. Arta Dobroshi plays Lorna, an Albanian woman who has entered into an arranged marriage with heroine addict Claudy Moreau (Jérémie Renier---nominated for César for Most Promising Actor in 2003) so she can get Belgian citizenship. This arrangement is conventional enough both in the European Union and the USA. The ugly part is when the arranged marriage terminates with the termination of the citizen paid to partake. The free widow/widower being then able to marry whom they please and grant citizenship on their new partner accordingly.
In this case mobster Fabio (Fabrizio Rongione) has added an extra twist to the crime. After the junkie Claudy dies either by accident or on purpose Lorna is to marry a rich Russian who will pay handsomely to obtain citizenship in Western Europe. So he makes money both coming and going.
The first thing to be said about this film is the precision with which the writer/directors nail the practice of the crime itself. Fortunately this type of venal operation is receiving publicity through a variety of mediums and can not continue to be successful under the scathing spotlight of public attention. But with the plethora of “mail order brides” available over the Internet the possibilities are as endless as they are lethal. Lonely and unsuspecting men and woman can easily fall prey to the often times extremely attractive bait.
All of the actors do a fine job portraying their characters as pawns in a giant international game of human futures. Arta Dobroshi having been born and raised in Kosovo has the mindset to bring victimization to the screen.
As it turns out Lorna begins having mixed feelings from the beginning of the film. She actually helps Claudy kick the heroine habit, at least for a short while, which is definitely not part of the plan. This puts her life at risk with the vicious Fabio. As the complex web of subterfuge spins out of control Lorna’s silence is broken by a complex series of psychological reactions over which she has little control.
Money runs the lives of the men in the film and Lorna is the only character who is not male. It is more prominent than the sun rising or setting, more prominent than even the changes of expression on Lorna’s face as she struggles mentally with the deadly conflicts she must confront. She and her lover Sokol (Alban Ukaj) scrimp and save to buy a small snack bar where they can begin lives of their own after this job is done. But like that last big job in American pulp novels the end seems to recede like a mirage night after sleepless night.
The film continues the Dardenne brother’s series of investigations into the side-effects of the post industrial society of developed Western nations. Money is in most of the scenes of the film. Money to buy drugs, the money that Claudy gives to Lorna because he doesn’t trust himself with it, the money for the arranged marriages, the money Fabio tries to give Lorna to get her in his debt and the money Lorna tries to give Claudy’s mother after her son is gone. Lorna’s comment to Fabio, “Money is all you men want…” seems to be the Dardenne’s comment on present day society and its corporate godfathers.
The last male statement in the film is the driver’s on the road to his murderous destiny: “No not here, there is a place with cheaper petrol up ahead.” A dire observation of the rearranging of the deck chairs on the modern day Titanic of international politics.
Directed and Written by: Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne
Starring: Arta Dobroshi, Jérémie Renier and Fabrizio Rongione
Release: July 31, 2009
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