When two young siblings decide they can no longer live under the same roof, their parents require a Manual for a Divorce.
This is the setup for Peter Ghesquiere’s theatrically staged comedy which owes a significant stylistic debt to the work of Wes Anderson, which it resembles both in visual composition and its deadpan execution, albeit with a distinctly European sensibility. When brother (Luca Van Steen) and sister (Willow Rose Wood) decide enough is enough, their parents (Nico Sturm and Helene Devos) are forced to live in different homes, being swapped from one to the other in alternate weeks. It’s an absurdly enjoyable twist on the real-world situation and revels in a somewhat bleak sense of humour.
This is a world of unreality, where parents hide under the bed while their children are fighting, and a home is sawn in two and dragged across the landscape by a lorry when the divorce goes through. Ghesquiere’s script leaves all of the exposition to a narration (Flavie Dachy) from the daughter, otherwise allowing the film’s visuals to speak for themselves. Whether that is the mother and father battling over what to watch on the tv – which has also been sawn in two, but each is still able to watch their half – or the further complications that are thrust upon the parents as their children find new siblings and their forced to co-habit with new step-husbands and wives.
The action all takes place in a misted, gloomy sound-stage vista that adds to the mannered theatricality of the production. However, what – of course – makes the ensuing narrative so funny is how well-observed it is in lampooning the expectations place on children of divorce. Despite being patently farcical, Manual for a Divorce, also lands a few well aimed blows that make its tragi-comic denouement surprisingly agonising as well as amusing.
Director, screenplay: Peter Ghesquiere
Cast: Nico Sturm, Helene Devos, Luca Van Steen. Willow Rose Wood
Producers: Hans Everaert, Bo De Group Cinematography: Piet Deyaert
Editing: Ward Geerts
Sound: Raf Enckels
Music: Hannes De Maeyer Art direction: Toon Marien
Costume design: Sofie Callaerts
Makeup: Dorien Van Poucke
Sales agent: Radiator IP Sales (Belgium)
Venue: Cairo International Film Festival (Short Film Competition)
In French 12 minutes
