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Ben X is a 2007 Belgian film about the tribulations of a teenage boy afflicted with Asperger's Syndrome, a milder form of autism that makes a sufferer socially awkward but not actually a retard. Ben has no friends and has awkward manners, so he is naturally a target for bullying. Like most autistic kids, he just can't seem to stand up for himself. One day, the bullies pull down his pants in class, and the humiliation leaves him too traumatized to report the incident to the headmaster. The lead actor, Greg Timmermans, pulls of an excellent performance. He oozes vulnerability and tragedy, but also pitifulness. Nothing is sugar-coated here. Had this movie been made in Hollywood, the filmmakers would have given Ben some charming qualities to make him more likable. Maybe they would have shown him to be really caring, or be a prodigious artist. Instead, Ben's condition is more true to real life. He is graceless and self-absorbed, thus he has no friends to stick up for him. Only the very caring and patient can even approach him. His inability to put up even basic resistance towards his bullies makes it hard to root for him. He spends all his spare time playing MMOs instead of anything constructive or artistic. This is not a pleasant film to watch. The lead character is charmless (though inoffensive). The story is wall-to-wall misery with little humor or warmth to relieve it. It will leave you as exasperated as Ben's long-suffering parents. At times I even wanted to join the bullies in tormenting Ben, as they exude much more vigor and personality than their pathetic victim. The resolution of the film is disappointing not just because it is saccharine and unrealistic but because it is forcibly delayed, as if the filmmaker wanted to put Ben (and the audience) through an extra hour of tragedy when it could have been resolved quickly and cleanly by the first half. 3/5 Baron Bifford fucked around with this message at Jan 11, 2012 around 00:17 |
| # ? Jan 10, 2012 19:48 |
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| # ? May 24, 2013 19:10 |
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