Title – Close (2022) 

Director – Lukas Dhont (Girl) 

Cast – Eden Dambrine, Gustav De Waele, Émilie Dequenne, Léa Drucker

Plot – Teenage boys and long term best friends Leo (Dambrine) and Remi (De Waele) find their bond tested in the face of growing up, school and social expectations that combine to change their lives forever. 

“You are special”

Review by Eddie on 05/06/2023

A contender at this years recent Oscar ceremony in the Best International Feature category and a major player at film festivals across the globe in 2022, Lukas Dhont’s hauntingly beautiful study of male friendship, growing up and social expectations is one of the most successful cinematic exposes of this subject matter in many a moon, while also marking the arrival of two significant young talents in the forms of lead performers Eden Dambrine and Gustav De Waele. 

Only his second feature film following on from 2018’s Girl, Belgium director Dhont shows an understanding and class far beyond his years with his sophomore effort that is unafraid to explore and delve into some extremely heavy subject matters, that here revolve around Dambrine’s Leo and De Waele’s Remi, two bright-spark young teenagers who have forged a long standing friendship with one another that is threatened by a new school year and commentary around their friendship that begins to create cracks in their relationship that will change their respective life paths forever. 

Saying too much more about Dhont’s heavy but never manipulative so narrative would be a disservice to a film that packs a powerful punch in multiple ways, harbouring a raw and unfiltered power that is rarely found in such Hollywood affairs these days, with Close’s wonderfully captured happenings courtesy of cinematographer Frank van den Eeden and music bought to life by composer Valentin Hadjadj working hand in hand with Dhont’s direction and incredibly naturalistic performances of its leads to great effect.    

Often focused intimately on the inwardly torn and deep thinking Leo, the debut performance here from Dambrine is hard to describe in words but it’s safe to say that Dhont has unearthed a very special talent here as Dambrine shines in a layered role that will both uplift and break viewers in equal measure and it’s clear that Dhont was able to centre this relatable human exploration around his young cast with great confidence, with many of the adult performers here relegated to supporting factors as this tale takes place from the mindset and eyes of its young core. 

You will laugh, cry and contemplate throughout Close, it being rare to find such a small but powerfully poignant tale of this ilk with Dhont and his core cast combining together to brilliant effect to gift us a special tale about growing up and what it means to be one of the many flawed humans we all are. 

Final Say – 

A small film with a big heart, emotion and themes, Close is one of the most effective studies of adolescence and innocence lost in some time and gifts us two debut performances from up and coming actors that suggests big things to come from them in the future.  

4 1/2 ice hockey practice sessions out of 5