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didn’t emulate the characters in the movie by drinking vast quantities
of beer − not, at least, until after the movie was over. ‘but a lot of
raw sausages were eaten, a lot of different raw meats.’ what van
groeningen wanted above all from his cast and crew was energy − a
desire, as he puts it, to ‘take it one step further’ and to push the limits
to make the film as raw, tough and funny as possible.
in one scene, we see the pet cat eating up Marcel’s vomit as he lies
asleep on the floor. no, this scene didn’t require any great technical
ingenuity. ‘we just put meat in the vomit!’ the director explains how he
cajoled the cat into lapping up such unsavoury fare.
PSyCHOLOgICAL HEAD BUTT
some international critics have pointed to overlaps between The
Misfortunates and another recent Flemish film, koen Mortier’s Ex
Drummer. both are adaptations of books. both have the same
aggressive, in-your-face quality in their depiction of working-class
Flemish life.
van groeningen is not a real fan of herman brusselmans, the ‘bad boy’
author of 'ex drummer'. ‘i don’t think he has love for his characters.
that’s my problem with it.’ nonetheless, the director agrees that both
his film and Ex Drummer are striving after the same raw authenticity.
he was heartened by the response to The Misfortunates in cannes
where audiences warmed to the film and understood it in spite of its
intensely Flemish origins. to his relief, the novelist also liked the film.
‘it was quite weird,’ the director reflects on his oscillating relationship
with dimitri verhulst. ‘during the process of the scriptwriting, at first he
was involved. then, he didn’t want to be involved any more. he said
what we did with the script he wasn’t too fond of.’
although he had written the book in the first person, using his own
name and drawing on his own experiences, verhulst was wary that
the movie would be too close to his own life. in the end, he watched
the film at home with his girlfriend. his response? ‘he really thought
it was a good film and was touched by it... he liked the film but said
it was also like a psychological head butt!’ now, van groeningen is
waiting to see which international buyers will pounce on his film. The
Misfortunates has already played as the closing movie at the Munich
Film Festival, will screen in toronto and the hamptons, and is likely to
surface at one of the major autumn festivals.
CROSSROADS
the young director is keen to take advantage of the heightened
international profile that his presence in cannes has given. that
doesn’t mean he is planning any more naked bike rides or that he is
looking to make movies outside Flanders. it’s just that he wants to get
back behind the camera quickly. at present, he is between projects
and is busy reading scripts and novels. perhaps, he acknowledges, he
is at an important crossroads in his career.
‘before cannes, i would never have said i want to go and make a
film outside Flanders because i never thought that opportunity would
happen,’ he reflects. ‘but i have mixed feelings about that. i feel really
comfortable here. the people around me are very important. i also feel
that identity is really important... it’s not obvious for me to direct a film
in a foreign language and a foreign country. on the other hand, life is
great because sometimes you get these opportunities and you have
to take them!’
Felix van Groeningen (°1977)
The Misfortunates (2009)
With Friends Like These (2007)
Steve + Sky (2004)
*selected filmography
all stills The Misfortunates
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MaVerick