Young Mothers: A Review of the Dardenne Brothers’ Latest Film

Now in their early 70s, Jean-Pierre ⁢and‍ Luc Dardenne have ⁢spent their filmmaking careers worrying about the fate⁢ of those much younger and ⁣less blessed. Starting with the Belgian brothers’ 1996 breakthrough “La ⁣Promesse,” about a teenager learning‍ to stand⁤ up ⁤to his cruel father,⁣ their body of work ⁤is unmatched in its ⁣depiction ‍of young people struggling in the face ⁣of poverty or family⁢ neglect. Although perhaps not as vaunted now as they ‍were during their stellar run‍ in the late⁤ 1990s and early 2000s – when the spare dramas “Rosetta” and “L’Enfant” both won the Palme d’Or⁣ at Cannes – ⁤the Dardennes’⁢ clear-eyed ‍but compassionate ⁣portraits remain ⁤unique items ⁢to be⁢ treasured.

Their latest, “Young⁤ Mothers,” ‍isn’t one of ⁢their ‍greatest, but at this point, the brothers largely⁤ are ‍competing against ⁣their own high standards. And they continue to experiment ‍with their well-established narrative approach, here focusing on an ensemble rather than ⁤their usual emphasis on ⁣a troubled central figure. But as always, these ⁤writers-directors present an unvarnished look at life on the margins, following a group of adolescent mothers, some of them single. The Dardennes may be getting older, but their concern for society’s most fragile hasn’t receded with age.

The film centers around a shelter in‍ Liège, the Dardennes’ hometown, as‍ their handheld ⁢camera ⁢observes five teen moms. The characters may live together, ⁢but their situations are far from similar.One of ⁣the women,Perla ⁢(Lucie ⁤Laruelle),had planned on getting an abortion,but because she became convinced that her boyfriend Robin (Gunter Duret) loved her,she decided the keep the ‍child.Now that she’s caring for ⁤the ⁣infant, however, he’s itching to bolt. Julie (Elsa Houben) wants to beat her drug addiction before she can feel secure ⁤in her relationship⁣ with her baby and her ‍partner Dylan (Jef Jacobs), who⁣ had his own battles with substance abuse. And then there’s ‍the pregnant Jessica (Babette Verbeek), persistent to track down the woman ⁤who gave her up for adoption, seeking some understanding as to why, to her mind, she was abandoned.

Starting out as documentarians, the Dardenne brothers have long fashioned their ⁤social-realist‍ narratives ⁣as stripped-down affairs, eschewing music scores and shooting the scenes in long ⁤takes with a ⁢minimum of fuss. But with “Young Mothers,” the filmmakers⁢ pare back the desperate stakes that often pervade their movies. (Sometimes‍ in the past, a ⁤nerve-racking chase sequence would sneak its way into the script.) In their place is a more reflective, though no less engaged tone as these ⁤characters, and others, ⁤seek financial and emotional stability.

The Dardennes are masters of making ordinary‍ lives momentous,not by investing them with inflated significance but,rather,by detailing how wrenching everyday existence ⁤feels when you’re⁣ fighting to survive,especially ⁢when operating ⁤outside the⁣ law.⁤ The women of “Young Mothers” pursue objectives that don’t necessarily ⁢lend themselves to⁤ high tension. And yet their goals – getting clean, finding a couple to adopt a newborn ‍- are just as⁤ fraught.

Perhaps inevitably, this‍ ensemble piece works best⁢ in its⁤ cumulative⁤ impact. With only ‍limited time for each storyline, “Young Mothers” surveys a cross-section ⁤of ills haunting these mothers. Some ‍problems are⁤ societal – lack of money ⁢or positive role models, the easy access to drugs – ⁢while ⁢others are endemic to the women’s age, at which insecurity and immaturity can be crippling. The protagonists tend to blur a bit, their collective hopes and dreams ⁤proving more compelling than any specific thread.

Which ‍is not to say the ⁢performances are undistinguished. ⁤In her⁣ first significant film role, Laruelle sharply⁤ conveys Perla’s ⁢fragile mental state as she gradually⁢ accepts that⁢ her boyfriend has ghosted her. Simultaneously occurring,⁤ Verbeek essays a ⁣familiar Dardennes type – the ‍defiantly unsympathetic character⁣ in peril – as Jessica stubbornly forces ⁣her way ⁢into her mystery mom’s orbit, demanding answers she thinks might give her closure.Its⁣ a grippingly blunt ⁤portrayal ⁤that Verbeek slyly undercuts by hinting at the vulnerability guiding her dogged quest. ⁢(When Jessica finally hears her mother’s explanation,it’s delivered ⁣with an offhandedness that’s all the more cutting.)

Despite their clear affection for these women, the Dardenne‍ brothers never sugarcoat their characters’ unenviable ⁢circumstance or ⁣latch onto phony bromides to alleviate our anxiety. And yet “Young Mothers” contains its share of sweetness and light. Beyond celebrating resilience,⁤ the film also pays tribute to the social services Belgium provides for at-risk mothers, offering a safety net and sense ⁣of community for people with nowhere else to turn. ⁣You come to care about the flawed but ⁣painfully real protagonists⁢ in a Dardennes film, nervous about what will happen to them after the credits roll. In “Young Mothers,” that concern intensifies as it’s twofold, both for the mothers and for the next generation they’re bringing into this uncertain world.