A Bressonian study of ethics. The problem is that they feel the need to keep upping the stakes, when it's not necessary at all. By the midway point, the situation is complex enough to be mined for plenty of thoughtful material, but the plot keeps developing all these new wrinkles. I dunno if they felt they needed to inject more drama, or try to reach a broader audience or what. Nonetheless, I love their naturalistic style, and up until the last act this film holds up very well.

Belgian film team Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne do small things profoundly.

"Lorna, the young Albanian immigrant at the center of Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne's Lorna's Silence, is both the newest addition to the twin auteurs' gallery of spiritually anguished outsiders, and a subtle departure from it." - Fernando F. Croce

Meh (but probably just "meh" because L'Enfant is so potent).

The Dardennes seem a bit too comfortable on this one, an illegal immigration effort that unfolds a female drama -- particularly driven by this fake marriage she needs to accept to gain a belgian id. It's their weakest, less impressive film. Still relevant anyway.

Very weak effort from Dardennes for their standard.

By dropping us straight into the story and letting the characters and their situations explain the story and keeping to a minimalistic approach made this an interesting and engaging film.

Good, but depressing and cold film from Dardenne bros. Well developed characters aren't just good or bad. Story is complicated, but easy to follow. Acting is good. I especially liked Dardennes' regular J. Renier as a sympathetic drug addict. Directors used 35mm film stock, wider lensing and heavier camera than usually, so there is less shaking and mobility, but feel of docu-realism is still there. Biggest problem of the film is the last act, when the story takes a hardly believable turn.

Moving portrayal of a woman's struggle for financial security in a shady world of unscrupulous men. Dobroshi gives a wonderfully understated but nuanced performance as Lorna's detached facade cracks and her emotions win through.

Dardennes are telling story about immigrant people whose lives in their country once again. The camera is not very shaking at this time but the story is topical as usual. Lorna is typical Dardenne bros. character: Averse, stubborn, offish but sensitive.. Would have been shorter.

Le silence de Lorna: 8 // 8 // 7 // 7 // 9 // 7 // 7

A good story, but while pursuing the feeling of authenticity by adhering to Dogme 95 principles, very toned down acting, script lacking any real dramatic moments or conclusion, it comes out much less moving then it could. If you like realism in film, however, this is probably one of the better films released lately.

#870 - 12 Ekim 08, 16:00, filmekimi 08, emek sinemasi with cagdas abi. & yonetmenin izledigim ilk filmi. & uzadikca uzayan sonu disinda begendigim bir film oldu.

This may be their weakest work, still the Dardenne brothers' latest film is a fascinating look into real life circumstances and the consequences of immigration. Pretty damn good...

is it just me or was the acting pretty bad? Interesting script, but maybe a bit straining after effect too. Not really convincing

Wasn't a big fan of the ending. Still good, none the less.

The Dardennes seem to benefit from including gangsters in their plots...

Fascinating. Certainly in line with the Dardennes' previous work, though extending it and taking some new risks. Here the camera stays more distant from their protagonist than it has in previous films, creating an added layer of mystery about the inner workings of her mind that works well for the film. While containing a plot that is at times complex, they still manage to conclude the film on a beautifully ambiguous note, suggesting new directions for both personal and social development.

Dobroshi's performance is magnificent and the general feeling of this Dardennes film is at their most Bergmanesque. A great accompanying piece to the auteurs resumé.

Another dish of gritty naturalism from the Dardenne brothers. The plot, as noir as they come, is perhaps a tad more complex than the Dardennes are accustomed to or comfortable with. And, in conjunction with their accustomed and comfortable social stratum of constant scramble and barely-scraping-by, it could all have been intolerably bleak and arid if not for the weedy little sprouts of morality and conscience that so readily flourish under the brothers' green thumb.

The Dardennes' aesthetic was becoming predictable -- L'Enfant, at times, seemed a parody of their earlier stuff -- so I'm really glad that they've toned down the verite. It retains the humanism of their best stuff, and the end, in which the main character finds solace in madness, is reminiscent of Pickpocket not only in its final convergence of sound and image but also in how its cumulative power is surprising.

The second Dardenne brothers film I have seen. I am inclining to the belief that their movies are more contrived, calculated, and predictable than their reputation seems to suggest. It seems to me as though they have devised a formula designed to appeal to a certain kind of moviegoing crowd. I am not persuaded that their work is cinematically interesting, nor that there is any great political, social or emotional significance to their films, at least the ones I have seen.