''Illegal'' (french: Illégal) is a 2010 Belgian
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-gen ...
directed by
Olivier Masset-Depasse. The film was selected as the Belgian entry for the
Best Foreign Language Film at the
83rd Academy Awards
The 83rd Academy Awards ceremony, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2010 in the United States and took place on February 27, 2011, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beg ...
,
but it did not make the final shortlist.
The film received eight nominations at the
1st Magritte Awards, winning
Best Actress
Best Actress is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organisations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actresses in a film, television series, television film or play. The first Best Actress award ...
for
Anne Coesens and
Best Supporting Actress for
Christelle Cornil. The film is critical of practices of Belgian immigration officers.
Plot
The film follows Tania and her 13-year-old son Ivan, two illegal
Russian aliens living in
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to the ...
. After being denied Belgian permanent residence, Tania deliberately burns her fingers to remove her fingerprints and avoid identification. Tania advises her
Belarusian
Belarusian may refer to:
* Something of, or related to Belarus
* Belarusians, people from Belarus, or of Belarusian descent
* A citizen of Belarus, see Demographics of Belarus
* Belarusian language
* Belarusian culture
* Belarusian cuisine
* Byelor ...
friend Zina to apply for political asylum, since
Belarus
Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...
is considered a dictatorship by Belgians, but Zina seems to dismiss Tania's advice.
Tania is caught, but she tells Ivan to run. She refuses to tell her name, hoping to be released after 5 months, as she is told by another illegal. Ivan comes to live with Zina. Tania is eager to start working in the detention center to earn money to phone him from time to time. Ivan wants to start working to earn his living. However, Tania is worried that it will be criminal work. Ivan wants to visit her, but she does not want that, it could make things worse. Authorities threaten to put her in jail for two years for giving a false name when applying for medical insurance.
Desperate, Tania identifies as Zina and applies for political asylum, as a Belarusian. But then she is surprised to learn that Zina has already asked for asylum before, in Poland. Eventually Tania (as Zina) is forced into a plane to be deported to Poland. However, other passengers protest, and she is taken off the plane. After being beaten on her way back to the detention center, she awakens in a hospital, and manages to escape the sleeping guard, to finally reunite with her son Ivan.
Cast
*
Anne Coesens as Tania
*
Alexandre Golntcharov as Ivan
*
Christelle Cornil as Lieve
*
Frédéric Frenay as Policier 1
*
Esse Lawson as Aissa
*
Olivier Schneider as Policier 2
*
Shirley Rumierk as Maribel Chacon
See also
*
*
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Illegal
2010 films
2010 drama films
Belgian drama films
2010s French-language films
Films about immigration
French-language Belgian films