La Régate (2009) - film review

Alex is 15 and lives with his father, an oppressive and violent man who, because of his drink problem, has difficulty holding down a job.  As a reaction to the daily ritual of abuse that his father metes out to him, Alex takes refuge in his favourite sport, rowing, which has become a personal obsession.  Alex is determined to win the Belgian rowing championship, despite his father’s repeated attempts to stop him.  With the help of his coach, Sergi, and his girlfriend, Murielle, Alex finally has a chance to realise his potential and break free of the cycle of violence that has so far blighted his life.  Or so it seems...

In a remarkable feature debut, director Bernard Bellefroid offers this intensely poignant account of an adolescent rebelling against parental abuse, not by launching into a vendetta against society but in more positive way, through sporting achievement.  Drawing on his own traumatic experiences, Bellefroid effectively contrasts the self-destructive violence of a father who wallows in his own professional and personal failure with the more constructively channelled aggression of the son who is determined not to follow his example.  The film has a raw brutal edge to it - domestic violence is not something that is easy to watch even when simulated - but it is also strangely uplifting, since it encourages us to believe that there is a way out of one of the most pernicious of vicious circles; the abused are not destined to end up as abusers.      

The stark chiaroscuro tones inherent in the story are underscored by some subtly evocative photography which conveys the changing mood of the central protagonist Alex, the darkness of despair juxtaposed with the sunniness of hope.  Sensitively portrayed by Joffrey Verbruggen (impressive in his first leading film role), Alex is a complex and introverted character who exists in two worlds - the cramped apartment which he shares with his oppressive father (which look like a cross-between a dungeon and a torture chamber), and the open spaces in which he trains for the rowing championships, which represent freedom and the prospect of fulfilment.  The scars that Alex bears - both physical and mental - make it hard for him to accept the help of others, but without their support he is doomed to remain trapped in his domestic hellhole.  It is the kindness of others - primarily his trainer and his girlfriend - that allow Alex’s own humanity to emerge, giving him the moral strength to win his real contest, which is not the eponymous rowing event, but the assertion of his own identity.  La Régate is a powerfully moving piece of drama - intelligently scripted, beautifully composed and authentically carried by a principal cast of exceptional talent.

© James Travers 2010


This is a moving, touching and sensitive film, set in an original environment that is usually not given much coverage: rowing.   Inspired by Bellefroid’s own experience, it is a social drama, the poignant story of Alex, an adolescent who is repeatedly beaten by his father.  He finds escape from this violence by immersing himself in rowing to win the Belgian championship. The film’s authenticity and dramatic impact is heightened by the convincing performances from some extremely talented actors.

The setting of the Meuse river where Alex rows is radiant.  The rock soundtrack illustrates well how Alex uses his rage in a positive way, to succeed in his sport and forge his own identity.  It contrasts with the darker side of the tale, in his apartment, where much tension is felt.  This is the story of a harsh relationship between a father and his son, the inability to show love when suffering is overwhelming.  At the Rowing Club, with the help of his coach, Sergi, and Murielle, the girl he is in love with, Alex will learn how to regain human values, to exchange with others and to love.  He is initiated in the life-affirming values of rowing: willpower, surpassing oneself, solidarity and team spirit.  It is a sport requiring strength and endurance, and Alex needs these qualities if he is to escape from his suffocating past.

La Régate has earned critical acclaim and has won prizes at the Namur Film Festival in 2009, the International Rome Film Festival in 2009 and the Angers Film Festival in 2010.  The film ends on this quote: "To the men who will never be sons.  To the sons looking for their fathers.  To the fathers who don’t know their sons anymore.  To my future children I can finally dream of."  A poignant, uplifting and beautifully crafted piece of drama.

© Hélène Rémond (France) 2010 

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