Murielle and Mounir love each other passionately. Ever since he was a boy, the young man has been living with Doctor Pinget who provides him with a comfortable life. When Mounir and Murielle decide to marry and have children, the couple’s dependence on the doctor becomes excessive. Murielle finds herself caught up in an unhealthy emotional climate that insidiously leads the family towards a tragic outcome. OUR CHILDREN (A PERDRE LA RAISON) tells the story of a young woman whose life is increasingly determined by external decisions. Step by step, a pressure grows that she herself can hardly name. Lafosse focuses on psychological precision and observes how small situations become interwoven and develop into an oppressive dynamic. The calm staging reinforces the effect: conflicts are rarely expressed loudly, but rather reveal themselves in glances, gestures, and moments of silence. The result is an intense portrait of emotional dependence and the loss of self-determination. The film was shown at the Festival de Cannes in the Un Certain Regard series, where it attracted considerable international attention. Émilie Dequenne won the award for Best Actress for her outstanding performance in the lead role. The film also received several Magritte Awards, including the award for Best Belgian Film. These accolades underscore the special impact of Lafosse's work, which is deeply moving and at the same time impressively demonstrates how fragile relationships can imperceptibly slip into a dangerous imbalance.
Keywords
- (Un)happy Valentine !
- Belgian cinema
- Belgium
- BRIFF
- BRIFF (home)
- Cannes: Un Certain Regard
- Festival de Cannes
- Festival de Cannes - Tax Shelter
- Hommage à Niels Arestrup
- Joachim Lafosse
- Lëtzebuerger Filmpräis
- Made with Luxembourg
- Magritte Award for Best Film
- Motherhood
- Panorama: Joachim Lafosse
- Red Carpet
- The Sooner team's favorites: Sarah
- Women's Rights
- family
- parenthood
- prison
- relationship
Actors
- Emilie Dequenne
- Tahar Rahim
- Niels Arestrup
- Stéphane Bissot
- Redouane Behache
Director
- Joachim Lafosse
Drama
1h 51min
FR
EN
After getting married to Mounir, Murielle finds herself trapped in a stifling emotional environment.
After getting married to Mounir, Murielle finds herself trapped in a stifling emotional environment.
Murielle and Mounir love each other passionately. Ever since he was a boy, the young man has been living with Doctor Pinget who provides him with a comfortable life. When Mounir and Murielle decide to marry and have children, the couple’s dependence on the doctor becomes excessive. Murielle finds herself caught up in an unhealthy emotional climate that insidiously leads the family towards a tragic outcome.
OUR CHILDREN (A PERDRE LA RAISON) tells the story of a young woman whose life is increasingly determined by external decisions. Step by step, a pressure grows that she herself can hardly name. Lafosse focuses on psychological precision and observes how small situations become interwoven and develop into an oppressive dynamic. The calm staging reinforces the effect: conflicts are rarely expressed loudly, but rather reveal themselves in glances, gestures, and moments of silence. The result is an intense portrait of emotional dependence and the loss of self-determination.
The film was shown at the Festival de Cannes in the Un Certain Regard series, where it attracted considerable international attention. Émilie Dequenne won the award for Best Actress for her outstanding performance in the lead role. The film also received several Magritte Awards, including the award for Best Belgian Film. These accolades underscore the special impact of Lafosse's work, which is deeply moving and at the same time impressively demonstrates how fragile relationships can imperceptibly slip into a dangerous imbalance.