Daens Movie Review 1992

Looks at the disparity between rich and poor at the turn of the century. Daens, a priest, returns home to Flanders to find desperate poverty among the Flemish-speaking workers of the local textile mill. The French-speaking mill owners are supported by the local Catholic church while Daens believes in the rights of the workers. Decleir makes his priest a complex and troubled man, who must choose between his conscience and social reform and the dictates of his church. Marred by somewhat cardboard villains and a complex political/social situation that isn't adequately explained. Based on the novel by Louis Paul Boon. Flemish and French with English subtitles.

Distribution

Wellspring Media, A Division of Genius Products, Inc., 2230 Broadway, Santa Monica, CA 90904, Phone: (310)453-1222, Fax: (310)453-0074, URL: http://www.wellspring.com

Available on VHS
Running time 134 minutes.
Originally from French, Belgian, Dutch.

Cast and Crew

Genres

Nuns & Priests, Period Piece: 1900s, Labor & Unions

Screenplay

Francois Chevallier, Stijn Coninx

Cast

Jan Decleir, Gerard Desarthe, Antje De Boeck, Michael Pas, Johan Leysen, Idwig Stephane, Linda Van Dijck, Wim Meuwissen

Director

Stijn Coninx

Music

Dirk Brosse

Producer

Dirk Impens