Belgian cinema is often derided. This is clearly unfair. Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne have won the Palme D’or at the Cannes film festival twice and In Bruges was a terrific film. Perhaps because of this general derision towards Belgian cinema, the Belgians themselves tend to have quite a negative view of their cinema.
Yet, this makes no sense. And attending the Belgian Cinema Fete from the 17th to the 20th of December will show you just show. For me, this Fete has one big thing over the Oscars: it makes far more sense to hold a ceremony celebrating the previous year’s films in December than it does in February – Slumdog Millionaire wasn’t released until January of 2009.
Nevertheless, this is getting away from the real reason to go the Belgian Cinema Fete: with the Dardenne brothers just two of those show-casing their work and with talks, readings and concerts, as well as screenings, this truly is a well-rounded festival.
What’s more, with a rule that all films must have been produced in the last year and the long time most films take to produce, the Belgian Cinema Fete includes a huge number of premieres. This alone, means the €16 entry price is an absolute pittance and a trip to Brussels – the Fete is hosted at Le Palace (ex-Kladaradatsch) – is well worthwhile.
Photo Another Roll by Willsfca
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