“Close”, the winner of the Grand Prix at Cannes and one of the favorite films in the race for the Oscar – Best Foreign Film, premieres in cinemas in Romania on January 27, distributed by Bad Unicorn. The film is already playing in previews in a short list of cinemas.
The list of the 28 cinema halls in 14 cities where “Close” is available is here.
At 13, friendship is a priceless feeling. Léo and Rémi share everything since they know each other, but the first signs of adolescence put the intimacy of their relationship to the test. A deep bond that breaks suddenly and tragically, leaving Léo to understand what he did wrong.
“Close” is the ideal opportunity to discover the new prodigy of European cinema – Belgian director Lukas Dhont, only 31 years old, adored by all major festivals, with Cannes at the forefront. To date, the film has collected over 30 international awards and over 40 nominations, of which, the most recent, at the Oscars, the “Best International Film” category.
The film offers the opportunity to discover two phenomenal child actors. The more impressive their performance, the more it was the result of chance. The director met Eden (who plays Léo) on the train going from Antwerp to Ghent, shortly after writing the first scene of the film, and was struck by the kid’s expressiveness. The casting process was laborious. Finally, 40 children were selected who gave tests in pairs. When the filmmaker saw Eden and Gustave (who plays Rémi) together, he knew they had a special bond because “they were able to sink into the emotion of the scenes and then quickly recover. They were childish and yet approached their roles with maturity.”
“Close” has an almost perfect score (91%) of positive reviews on the website Rottentomatoes.com. Film critics almost unanimously consider it a deeply moving study of brotherly love and one of the most heartbreaking portrayals of bullying ever put on film. For them, Close is a tender perspective, extraordinarily interpreted, on the innocence lost in childhood.
This author’s teen movie “will make you think about your own friendships. After all, what is life if not the culmination of a journey with fellow travelers? You might hurt them, and they might hurt you, but that’s the risk when you’re looking for love,” writes critic Patrick McDonald.