Belgian screenwriters, producers and directors Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne's sixth feature film which they wrote and co-produced, premiered In competition at the 58th Cannes International Film Festival in 2005, was screened in the Masters section at the 30th Toronto International Film Festival in 2005, was shot on location in Seraing, Liège in Belgium and is a Belgium-France co-production which was produced by French producer Denis Freyd. It tells the story about a nineteen-year-old man named Bruno who makes a living as a criminal in a city in Belgium where he hangs out with adolescent boys and lives with his girlfriend named Sonia. After Sonia has given birth to their first child, they are evicted from the apartment they have been living in, and Bruno decides to get himself involved in more serious criminal activity to support his girlfriend and their new-born son named Jimmy.Distinctly and engagingly directed by Belgian filmmakers Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, this finely tuned fictional tale which is narrated from multiple viewpoints though mostly from the male protagonist's point of view, draws a vital, gripping and prominently authentic portrayal of how a Belgian couple's relationship is altered after they become parents for the first time. While notable for it's distinct and naturalistic milieu depictions, sterling cinematography by Belgian cinematographer Alain Marcoen, production design by production designer Igor Gabriel, costume design by costume designer Monic Perelle and use of sound, colors and light, this character-driven and narrative-driven story about a man's unusual ways of coming to terms with becoming a father and how instantly and poignantly affected his life is by the arrival of his first son, depicts two isolating and merging studies of character. This down-to-earth, at times conversational and at times humorous drama from the mid-2000s which is set during the course of five days in a municipality of Liège in Belgium in the 21st century and where a newly mother is expecting her boyfriend to be the family provider and he figures that the best way to fix the situation they have gotten themselves into is by selling their infant, is impelled and reinforced by it's stringent narrative structure, substantial character development, rhythmic continuity, dense examination of its central themes and Bruno's internal changes, scenes between Bruno and Sonia and Bruno and Steve and the reverent acting performances by Belgian actor Jérémie Renier and French actress Déborah Francois. A consistently dramatic, charmingly romantic and increasingly heartrending narrative feature which gained, among other awards, the Palme d'Or at the 58th Cannes Film Festival in 2005.

A captivating 'peephole' into welfare-life in Belgium's dark under belly, L'infant is a unique movie in its stark realism, intentional lack of a musical backdrop, and limited, authentic and sometimes painfully awkward dialogue. It centres around a young, poor couple - Bruno (Jeremie Renier) and his girlfriend Sonya (Deborah francois), and their meandering descent from 'carefree' love. They are seen play fighting and horsing around many times at the beginning of the movie and their lack of meaningful (or any) dialogue lends itself to the sense of childishness, youthfulness and naiveté that characterizes them both. Bruno thinks 'working is for fools' and sporadically brings in money from petty criminal activities carried out with the help of his underage 'gang' of disaffected school boys. It is clear from the start that Bruno is immature, thoughtless, impulsive and self-obsessed, and one cannot help but be contemptuous of his unawareness of others' needs or feelings. When Sonia shows him their baby son for the first time, Bruno shows next to no interest in the baby. Although one sees his fondness for Sonia, his immaturity does not allow him to see beyond the moment, or beyond the next opportunity to make 'easy' money. Neither Sonia or Bruno grasp the 'reality' of having a baby nor how it will impact their lives; Sonia, however, bearing the brunt of the responsibility and having, it appears, some maternal instinct cannot escape that reality as readily as her lover. Even so, she is painfully unaware of the extent of Bruno's recklessness when she gives him the baby to 'take for a walk'; Bruno seizes upon this as the ultimate money-making opportunity, and seeks out an illegal, underground 'adoption agency' where he can sell their baby and make more money. His naivety is apparent in his total astonishment at Sonia's reaction to this shocking misdemeanour and his desperate pleas - 'but the money's for us! We can have another one (baby)'. These puerile words seal his fate in Sonia's eyes.L'infant, despite its minimalism, harsh realism and dismal portrayal of life, is nonetheless entrancing and engrossing; from extended 'road-crossing' scenes, to Bruno's realisation that he really has over-stepped the line and must return to the criminal 'baby adopters' to get his child back. It is here we see that beneath his brash, indifferent, superficially carefree exterior is a child-like, fearful young man, very much in love with Sonia, and totally unhinged by her contempt for him. Even after a nail bitingly suspenseful scene where Bruno retrieves the child, he is still backed into a corner by his foolish actions and helplessly sucked into a vortex of blackmail, violence and censure. He is now very much a tiny fish, swimming against the current, in a large and vicious pond. One realises that maybe Bruno, all along, is 'L'infant'; so foolish and infantile his actions, and so desperate his desire for forgiveness and acceptance. L'infant's cinematic naturalism, sparse dialogue, suspenseful scenes, and bleak realism make it a great film for the discerning movie goer.

I will admit up front that I didn't watch this entire movie. Why? Because I couldn't make it past the first 30 minutes.The mother and father are portrayed as adult children with a child of their own. I suppose if I had kept watching, the father, Bruno, would be revealed to be the true infant who proceeds to grow up during the film.Whoever wrote and directed this movie obviously has no experience with childbirth. The young lady who has just given birth is shown dashing around, chasing and being chased by her boyfriend, and also telling him she wants to sleep with him. I've given birth 4 times, and can guarantee you that running, chasing, and sex are not something that new moms are capable of doing! Ridiculous.I only scored this 3* because I didn't see the whole thing, and perhaps it gets better as it goes on. Please, don't waste your time.

There should be a genre that describes slow building, horrific but humanistic dramas such as this and 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days. Technically, none of the plot points that happen in the movie are all that surprisingly, mostly because the synopsis gives you the basic gist: in this case, a young man sells his and his girlfriend's newborn for money and, when she understandably freaks out, he has to get the kid back and is further in the hole than when he started. However, what keeps you watching the movie for an hour and a half is not wondering how he gets the kid back, but the results of that initial poor decision coming out into their inevitable outcome. Meanwhile, you basically watch Bruno as he operates against time to rebuild the steady life that he never had in the first place.The whole thing is shot in somewhat long takes, with simple stripped down perspectives that usually involve just staying within the space of the characters themselves. Most of this movie, after the opening scene of Sonia returning from the hospital, is Bruno's story, so for the most part from their on what you can see is either what he's doing or what he can see. Digital photography helps keep this movie looking cold and miserable (seriously you wonder about Sonia walking around in that skirt all the time) with the over-cast exteriors, and everything is muted and undertoned. The acting is stupendous, from childlike joviality to brooding barely concealed by stoicism. The best part is how this movie leads up to probably the most understated prolonged chase sequence in contemporary cinema, one that's tense and suspenseful but completely devoid of the flash of usual excitement-inducing action cinema.The Dardenne brothers seem to be making quite a name for themselves in the international market, and from what I understand this movie doesn't deviate too far from their usual style. They are certainly a brother-director troupe to check out.--PolarisDiB