''Our Children'' (french: À perdre la raison) is a 2012 Belgian-French psychological

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by

Joachim Lafosse Joachim Lafosse (born 18 January 1975) is a Belgian film director and screenwriter. Career Lafosse studied at the IAD (Institut des arts de diffusion) at Louvain-la-Neuve between 1997 and 2001. His graduation film ''Tribu'', a 24-minute short ...

. It is based on a real-life incident involving a woman ( Genevieve Lhermitte) who killed her five children. The film competed in the

Un Certain Regard (, meaning 'a certain glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films w ...

section at the

2012 Cannes Film Festival The 65th Cannes Film Festival was held from 16 to 27 May 2012. Italian film director Nanni Moretti was the President of the Jury for the main competition and British actor Tim Roth was the President of the Jury for the Un Certain Regard section. ...

under the title ''Loving Without Reason'', where

Émilie Dequenne Émilie Dequenne (, born 29 August 1981) is a Belgian actress. She first gained attention for playing the title character in the film ''Rosetta'' (1999), which earned her the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress. She then went on to star ...

won the Un Certain Regard Award for Best Actress.

Cast

as Murielle *

Niels Arestrup Niels Arestrup (; born 8 February 1949) is a French-Danish actor, film director and screenwriter. He has won three César Awards. Biography Arestrup was born in Paris into a family of modest means; his father was Danish and his mother was Bret ...

as André Pinget *

Tahar Rahim Tahar Rahim (born 4 July 1981) is a Franco-Algerian actor. He is known for his starring role as Malik El Djebena in the 2009 award-winning French movie ''A Prophet'' by Jacques Audiard, FBI Agent Ali Soufan in ''The Looming Tower'', Judas in the ...

as Mounir * Stéphane Bissot as Françoise * Mounia Raoui as Fatima * Redouane Behache as Samir * Baya Belal as Rachida *

Nathalie Boutefeu Nathalie Boutefeu (born 1968) is a French actress, film director and screenwriter. She has appeared in 40 films since 1990. She starred in the film '' The Butterfly's Dream'', which was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1994 Canne ...

as Docteur Declerck *

Claire Bodson Claire Bodson is a Belgian stage and film actress. She studied at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels and began working in theatre after developing an interest in acting. After some stage experiences at the Théâtre de l'Ancre in Charleroi, Bodso ...

as Police Officer

Reception

Critical response was generally strong and the film was nominated for seven

Magritte Awards A Magritte Award (french: ) is an accolade presented by the Académie André Delvaux of Belgium to recognize cinematic achievement in the film industry. Modelled after the French César Award, the formal ceremony at which the awards are presented ...

, winning four, including

Best Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

and

Best Director Best Director is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards. It may refer to: Film awards * AACTA Award for Best Direction * Academy Award for Best Director * BA ...

for Lafosse. The film was selected as the Belgian entry for the Best Foreign Language Oscar at the

85th Academy Awards The 85th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best 2012 in film, films of 2012 and took place on February 24, 2013, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood, ...

, but it did not make the final shortlist. ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' wrote, "In one of her strongest leading roles to date, Dequenne (''The Girl on the Train'', ''Rosetta'') does a remarkable job depicting Murielle’s wavering psychological states as she heads for oblivion, and an extended sequence-shot where she drives home while singing a

Julien Clerc Paul Alain Leclerc (born 4 October 1947), known by his stage name Julien Clerc (), is a French singer-songwriter. Life Born in Paris, Clerc grew up listening to classical music in his father Paul Leclerc's home, while his mother Évelyne Merlot ...

song is particularly unforgettable."

Accolades

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Our Children 2012 films 2010s French-language films 2010s psychological drama films 2010s Arabic-language films Belgian crime drama films Crime films based on actual events Drama films based on actual events French crime drama films Filicide in fiction Films about murderers Films set in Belgium Films set in Morocco Films set in the 2000s Films shot in Belgium Films shot in Morocco Films with screenplays by Thomas Bidegain Films directed by Joachim Lafosse Magritte Award winners Mass murder in fiction 2012 multilingual films Belgian multilingual films French multilingual films 2010s French films

Cast

Reception

Accolades

See also

References

External links