Le grand paysage d’Alexis Droeven (Jean-Jacques Andrien, 1981)
Le grand paysage d’Alexis Droeven
,

Eastern Belgium, beset by linguistic confrontations and an agriculture in decline. The film’s emotional context is just as dramatic: the death of a young farmer’s father. Will he decide to take on the farm or build a new life in the city? 

Le grand paysage d’Alexis Droeven (Jean-Jacques Andrien, 1981)
Language
Taal
Langue
French
Subtitles
Ondertitels
Sous-titres
Dutch, English, French
Not available in
Niet beschikbaar in
Non disponible en
France, Overseas France
Duration
Duur
Durée
88'
Aspect Ratio
Beeldverhouding
Format d'image
1.66

Eastern Belgium. The Fourons region is beset by violent linguistic confrontations and the agricultural world is entering a period of great change, faced with the choice between European norms or marginalization. The film’s emotional context is just as dramatic: the death of a father. These tragic events bear down simultaneously upon the life of a young farmer. Will he decide to take on the farm, or follow the advice of his aunt – a barrister in Liège – and leave behind the great landscape of Alexis, his deceased father, for a self-imposed exile in the city, building a new life for himself? 

The narrative spans eight days of tension and uncertainty, days spent pondering a decision. The storyline forms a metaphor of a region fighting for its identity. Situated in a precise and tragic historical moment, the film regularly makes use of authentic footage of the events. Jean-Jacques Andrien chose a pivotal economic and political moment, a period of rupture and change serving as a powerful backdrop, echoing the problems confronting his characters in their parallel search for identity.
The film oscillates between present, past and the future and is driven by the voice-over of Droeven’s son. As the sequences of the film unfold they alternate between the ritualized gestures surrounding a death, recollections of the father's militant life, those farmers who have adopted the business ethic and those whose methods remain prehistoric, the festive life of a village (with brass band and traditional games) and the “worldly” attractions of the town. The institutional conflicts may have abated in the meantime, but the film still rings true.

Jacqueline Aubenas

“Andrien borrows from Dreyer the quiet strength that enables him to compose images that are both as solid as a church tower from days gone by and fragile as a spring flower.”

Freddy Buache

“The fact that film is a realistic medium dictates that it reaches the abstract through the concrete. But Andrien, incredibly, manages the opposite, making us understand the tactile qualities of farming without once showing his hero so much as putting a finger to the earth.”

The Village Voice

Press & Publications
Pers & publicaties
Presse & publications
Language
Taal
Langue
French
Subtitles
Ondertitels
Sous-titres
Dutch, English, French
Not available in
Niet beschikbaar in
Non disponible en
France, Overseas France
Duration
Duur
Durée
88'
Aspect Ratio
Beeldverhouding
Format d'image
1.66
A Film by
Een film van
Un film de
With
Met
Avec
Jerzy Radziwilowicz, Nicole Garcia, Maurice Garrel, Jan Decleir
Script
Scenario
Scénario
Jean-Jacques Andrien
Image
Beeld
Image
Georges Barsky
Sound
Geluid
Son
Henri Morelle
Costumes
Kostuum
Costumes
Anne Verhoeven
Producer
Producent
Producteur
Jean-Jacques Andrien (Les Films de la Drève)
Editing
Montage
Montage
Jean-François Naudon
Production
Productie
Production
Les Films de la Drève
Co-production
Coproductie
Coproduction
la RTBF (Belgique), Les Radiociné (France)
With the Support of
Met de steun van
Avec le soutien de
Du Centre du Cinéma et de l'Audiovisuel de la Communauté française de Belgique