The Brand New Testament
| The Brand New Testament | |
|---|---|
| File:Le Tout Nouveau Testament poster.jpg Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Jaco Van Dormael |
| Written by | Jaco Van Dormael Thomas Gunzig |
| Produced by | Jaco Van Dormael Frank Van Passel |
| Starring | Benoît Poelvoorde Catherine Deneuve François Damiens Yolande Moreau Pili Groyne |
| Cinematography | Christophe Beaucarne |
| Edited by | Hervé de Luze |
| Music by | An Pierlé |
Production company | Terra Incognita Films |
| Distributed by | Le Pacte |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 113 minutes |
| Countries | Belgium France Luxembourg |
| Language | French |
| Budget | €8.7 million[1] |
| Box office | $14.5 million[2] |
The Brand New Testament (Template:Lang-fr) is a 2015 fantasy dark comedy film written, produced, and directed by Jaco Van Dormael. It is a co-production between Belgium, France, and Luxembourg. The film was screened at the Directors' Fortnight section at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival.[3] It was selected as the Belgian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 88th Academy Awards,[4] making the December shortlist of nine films, but was not nominated.[5][6] The Brand New Testament received ten nominations at the 6th Magritte Awards, winning four awards, including Best Film and Best Director for Van Dormael.[7]
Plot
God lives in an apartment in Brussels, which he shares with his meek wife and his 10-year-old daughter Ea, to whom he is emotionally and physically abusive. God is a grumpy sadist who created humankind specifically to have something to torment. He manipulates reality via a personal computer, which he strictly forbids his family from accessing. One day, Ea sneaks into his office and discovers how He has been mistreating humans. This enrages God, who whips Ea with his belt. Ea decides to rebel against her father. She steals the key to His office and accesses the pre-destined dates of death of every human in the world and releases it to the world. Everyone in Brussels receives a text message informing them when they are destined to die. Ea then locks God's computer and escapes the apartment through a chute in the laundry room. Wandering the streets of Brussels, Ea decides to follow in Jesus' footsteps and write the Brand New Testament in order to spiritually uplift the human race. She selects six apostles.
Before finding them, she gets a scribe, a homeless man: Victor. The first apostle is a reclusive woman who lost her left arm in an accident and feels nobody will love her. The second one is a man who hates his work and his life, who has decided to never move from a bench in the park since he knew his date of death; eventually he starts a trip following a bird who asked him why would he stay there if he could go anywhere (with Ea translating for them.)The third apostle is a sexually-frustrated old man who is awkward around women. He is perpetually lovesick over a girl he met once as a boy. On Ea's encouragement, he becomes a voice actor for porn movies, where he coincidentally meets the girl of his youth. They form a relationship which they consummate. The fourth apostle is a man who is fascinated with death. When he learns that everyone's death is pre-destined, he purchases a rifle with plans to shoot pedestrians, believing that he will not really be at fault for their deaths.
Ea prods him to shoot a woman, who happens to be the first apostle. He hits her in her prosthetic arm. Believing this to be a divine signal, he courts the woman and forms a relationship, and learns to embrace life instead of death. The fifth apostle is an elderly woman trapped in a loveless marriage. Ea persuades her to cheat on her husband. She first does so with a male prostitute, then with a gorilla. The gorilla beats up her husband, to her delight. The sixth apostle is a sickly boy who discovers he has only days left to live. Ea encourages him to stop conforming to society and live his few remaining days according to his inner desires. He chooses to dress and act like a girl.
God is horrified when he discovers what Ea has done. With everyone now aware of the time they have left, he can no longer torment humans through their fear of death. Worse still, with His computer locked, He is powerless. He leaves the apartment for the first time in His life through the chute in the laundry room. Because of His rude manners, he is abused by everyone He meets. He discovers to his horror that the chute to his apartment is gone and He is trapped in the outside world, powerless and alone. He is forced to take shelter in a church, and is eventually deported to Uzbekistan after being mistaken for an illegal migrant.
Ea and her apostles go to the seaside, where hundred of people have gathered to spend the last hours of their lives. An airplane, which just so happens to be carrying God under police escort, falls out of the sky, threatening everyone on the beach. At this moment, however, God's wife, who has grown accustomed to life without her husband, accesses God's computer and repeals everyone's destined date of death. The airplane regains altitude and everyone has a new lease on life. Victor publishes the Brand New Testament, which becomes a bestseller, lifting him out of poverty. God winds up in Uzbekistan, working in an appliance factory, where he vainly searches washing machines for a passage back to his apartment.
Cast
- Benoît Poelvoorde as God
- Catherine Deneuve as Martine
- François Damiens as François
- Yolande Moreau as God's wife
- Pili Groyne as God's daughter, Ea
- Laura Verlinden as Aurélie
- Serge Larivière as Marc
- David Murgia as Jesus Christ
- Johan Leysen as Martine's husband
- Pascal Duquenne as Georges
- Viviane De Muynck as Georges' mother
- Johan Heldenbergh as the priest
Reception
The Brand New Testament received acclaim from film critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film received an average score of 80, based on 5 reviews.[8]
Accolades
| Award / Film Festival | Category | Recipient(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belgian Film Critics Association[9] | Best Film | The Brand New Testament | Won |
| Biografilm Festival[10] | Europa Audience Award | The Brand New Testament | Won |
| Guerrilla Award for Best Film | The Brand New Testament | Won | |
| Cannes Film Festival[11] | Art Cinema Award | The Brand New Testament | Nominated |
| Europa Cinemas Label Award | The Brand New Testament | Nominated | |
| SACD Prize | The Brand New Testament | Nominated | |
| César Awards[12] | Best Foreign Film | The Brand New Testament | Nominated |
| David di Donatello[13] | Best European Film | The Brand New Testament | Pending |
| European Film Awards[14] | Best European Comedy | The Brand New Testament | Nominated |
| Best Production Designer | Sylvie Olivé | Won | |
| European Film Festival Palić[15] | Best Film | The Brand New Testament | Nominated |
| Fantastic Fest[16] | Best Comedy | The Brand New Testament | Won |
| Filmfest Hamburg[17] | Art Cinema Award | The Brand New Testament | Nominated |
| Golden Globe Awards[18] | Best Foreign Language Film | The Brand New Testament | Nominated |
| Haifa International Film Festival[19] | Fedeora Award | The Brand New Testament | Won |
| Lumières Awards[20] | Best French-Language Film | The Brand New Testament | Nominated |
| Luxembourg Film Awards[21] | Best Film in Coproduction | The Brand New Testament | Won |
| Best Technical Achievement | Marco Lorenzini | Nominated | |
| Magritte Awards[22] | Best Film | The Brand New Testament | Won |
| Best Director | Jaco Van Dormael | Won | |
| Best Screenplay | Thomas Gunzig and Jaco Van Dormael | Won | |
| Best Supporting Actress | Yolande Moreau | Nominated | |
| Best Supporting Actor | David Murgia | Nominated | |
| Most Promising Actress | Pili Groyne | Nominated | |
| Most Promising Actor | Romain Gelin | Nominated | |
| Best Cinematography | Christophe Beaucarne | Nominated | |
| Best Sound | François Dumont, Michel Schillings and Dominique Warnier | Nominated | |
| Best Original Score | An Pierlé | Won | |
| Méliès d'Or[23] | Best European Fantastic Film | The Brand New Testament | Nominated |
| Norwegian International Film Festival[24] | Audience Award | The Brand New Testament | Won |
| Special Jury Prize | The Brand New Testament | Won | |
| Satellite Awards[25] | Best Foreign Language Film | The Brand New Testament | Nominated |
| Palm Springs International Film Festival[26] | Best Narrative Feature | The Brand New Testament | Runner-up |
| Sitges Film Festival[27] | Best Film | The Brand New Testament | Nominated |
| Best Actress | Pili Groyne | Won | |
| Best European Fantastic Film | The Brand New Testament | Won |
See also
- List of submissions to the 88th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film
- List of Belgian submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
References
- ^ "Le Tout Nouveau Testament". JP's Box-Office.
- ^ "Le tout nouveau testament". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved January 27, 2016.
{{cite web}}: templatestyles stripmarker in|website=at position 1 (help) - ^ Chang, Justin (21 April 2015). "Cannes: Directors' Fortnight Unveils 2015 Lineup". Variety. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
- ^ Keslassy, Elsa (22 September 2015). "Belgium Sends 'The Brand New Testament' To Foreign-Language Oscar Race". Variety. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
- ^ "9 Foreign Language Films Advance In Oscar Race". Oscars. 17 December 2015. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
- ^ Kilday, Gregg (17 December 2015). "Oscars: Nine Titles Advance in Foreign Language Category". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
- ^ Moury, Gaëlle; Bradfer, Fabienne (February 7, 2016). "Jaco Van Dormael et la Flandre se distinguent aux Magritte du cinéma". Le Soir (in French). Retrieved February 7, 2016.
- ^ "Critic Reviews for The Brand New Testament". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved August 28, 2014.
{{cite web}}: templatestyles stripmarker in|website=at position 1 (help) - ^ De Clercq, Charles (December 18, 2015). "La présélection de l'UCC et le prix Cavens". Cinécure (in French). Retrieved December 26, 2015.
- ^ "Biografilm 2015, tutti i vincitori" (in Italian). Mymovies.it. 15 June 2015. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
- ^ "Récompenses et nominations pour le film Le Tout Nouveau Testament" (in French). AlloCiné. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
- ^ Keslassy, Elsa (January 27, 2016). "'Golden Years,' 'Marguerite,' 'Dheepan,' 'Mustang' Lead Cesar Nominations". Variety. Retrieved January 27, 2016.
- ^ Lombardi, Letizia Lara (March 22, 2016). "David di Donatello 2016, ecco tutte le nomination". Best Movie. Retrieved April 5, 2016.
- ^ Lodge, Guy (7 November 2015). "'Youth,' 'The Lobster' Lead European Film Award Nominations". Variety. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
- ^ "European Film Festival Palić to include the world premiere of Veiko Õunpuu's Roukli". Cineuropa. 17 July 2015. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
- ^ "The Brand New Testament wins Best Comedy at the Austin Fantastic Fest". Wallonie-Bruxelles Images. 2 October 2015. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
- ^ "The Brand New Testament". Filmfest Hamburg. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
- ^ Lang, Brent (10 December 2015). "'Carol,' Netflix Lead Golden Globes Nomination". Variety. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
- ^ Fainaru, Edna (October 5, 2015). "Elad Keidan's 'Afterthought' wins at Haifa Film Festival". ScreenDaily. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
- ^ "Prix Lumières 2016 : Trois souvenirs de ma jeunesse et Mustang en tête des nominations". AlloCiné. 4 January 2016.
- ^ Pinto, Vitor (December 16, 2015). "Luxembourg's D'Filmakademie unveils nominations for its biennial awards". Cineuropa. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
- ^ Moury, Gaëlle; Bradfer, Fabienne (February 7, 2016). "Jaco Van Dormael et la Flandre se distinguent aux Magritte du cinéma". Le Soir (in French). Retrieved February 7, 2016.
- ^ "La jeune actrice bruxelloise Pili Groyne récompensée au festival de Sitgès" (in French). RTL. 17 October 2015. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
- ^ Rossing Jensen, Jorn (20 August 2015). "Jaco Van Dormael's 'The Brand New Testament' wins in Haugesund". Screen Daily. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
- ^ "Satellite Awards (2015)". International Press Academy. IPA. December 2, 2015. pressacademy.com. Retrieved December 2, 2015.
- ^ Lowe, Kinsey (January 10, 2016). "'Labyrinth Of Lies', Nora Ephron Doc 'Everything Is Copy' Take Audience Awards At Palm Springs Fest". Deadline.com. Penske Business Media. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
{{cite web}}: templatestyles stripmarker in|website=at position 1 (help) - ^ "'The Invitation' is proclaimed the winner of Sitges 2015". Sitges Film Festival. 17 October 2015. Retrieved 10 December 2015.