On Sunday, May 20, 2011, Cinema Art Bethesda will present the Belgian film, Moscow, Belgium (Aanrijding in Moscou). The film is 102 minutes long and is in Flemish and Dutch with English subtitles.

Synopsis

Moscow, or ‘Moscou’ in Flemish, is a densely populated working class neighborhood on the outskirts of Ghent, Belgium.

When Moscow resident Matty (Barbara Sarafian), the harried mother of three causes a fender bender with twentysomething Johnny (Jurgen Delnaet), their flirting blossoms into an unlikely affair. But when Matty’s estranged husband, Werner (Johan Heldenbergh), declares that he wants back in her life, she must choose between old, familiar love and the uncertainty of starting life afresh. Christophe Van Rompaey directs this comedy.

Moscow, Belgium is a dramatic comedy about a woman whose soul is full of dents and bruises.

(adapted text from Netflix and official site)

Selected Awards and Accolades

Winner — Best Narrative Feature
Bermuda Film Festival

Winner – ACID Award, Grand Golden Rail, & SACD Screenwriting Award
Cannes Film Festival

Winner – Best Film
Denver Film Festival

Selected Reviews

The New York Times
– Stephen Holden

The movie’s steady attention to detail lends it a texture rarely found in films about domestic life. Its eye and ear for the particular and for what is left unsaid in tense conversation is unerring. Ms. Sarafian’s natural and expressive performance allows Matty to snap into sharp focus like a digital photograph. By the movie’s half-hour point you may feel as though you have lived with her for several weeks.

The Washington Post
– John Anderson

Director Christophe Van Rompaey has a script, of course, but much of what comes across so eloquently in this Flemish comedy of ill-manners is wordless.

Los Angeles Times
– Kenneth Turun

Nothing will ever be easy for any of these characters, and that is why we care about them so.

Trailer available at official site or watch embedded YouTube video below.