Oscar-nominated Close a somber drama about the loss of innocence

Although it peaks at the halfway point, Lukas Dhont’s Close is a well-made, extremely well-acted depiction of a deep friendship between two youngsters that has an unexpected and tragic outcome. The film, which won the Grand Prize at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival (along with Claire Denis’s Stars at Noon), is nominated for the Best International Film Academy Award.

Leo (Eden Dambrine) and Remi (Gustav De Waele) are as close as brothers. They share common interests, they often spend the night at each other’s homes, their parents are friendly, and they’re looking forward to the new school year.

back to school, Leo is told that Remi has committed suicide. For a boy barely entering adolescence, he is unable to grasp how or why. He attempts to maintain an undisturbed façade, but underneath it, his emotions are roiling.

For a time, it seems as if the filmmakers — specifically screenwriters Dhont and Angelo Tijssens — aren’t entirely certain how to proceed following these turn of events. It’s never revealed how Remi killed himself, for one thing (although that may not be necessary), but the film does lose some dramatic momentum, although to its credit it doesn’t go the other way and devolve into mawkish, soap-opera sentimentality.

the role of a sleazy, ill-tempered criminal was not altogether unfamiliar territory, the late actor brings his customary polish and charismatic swagger to the role of Eisenreich’s father, who simply and understandably can’t believe the rampant idiocy of the situation — and his lengthy ‘80s-style locks are a hoot. So too is the film, which is dedicated to him. !

It is there that cracks begin to appear in the foundation of their relationship. Some classmates are curious as to their closeness, while others — perhaps unsurprisingly — make disparaging remarks about it. It can’t help but have an e ect, and slowly but surely they begin to drift apart, which angers Remi far more than Leo. As he sees it, they’re still friends, just not as close as they once were.

This leads to the narrative’s most pivotal turning point when Remi misses a class trip to the beach. On the bus ride

Close marks the impressive feature debuts of Dambrine and De Waele, and it’s Dambrine who literally has to carry the entire film. He does so admirably, perfectly conveying the confusion of someone who will never truly understand why his best friend did what he did. Yet there’s no question it will linger through his entire lifetime, and it’s that lingering sense of loss that Close exploits to oftenpowerful e ect.

In Dutch, Flemish, and French with English subtitles. !

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High Point University invites the community to campus for an exciting lineup of complimentary cultural events. The spring schedule includes a variety of speakers, art, music and theater performances.

For a complete list of community events and to sign up for email notifications on future events, go to: www.highpoint.edu/live.

SPRING DANCE CONCERT

Happenings

March 16-18

7:30 pm

Hayworth Fine Arts Center, Pauline Theatre

EXHIBIT RECEPTION & JUROR’S TALK

ARTIFACT [BOLD] 2023

March 29

4:30 pm - 6:00 pm

Darrell E. Sechrest Art Gallery

INSTRUMENTAL CHAMBER

Ensembles Concert

March 29

7:30 pm

Charles E. Hayworth, Sr. Memorial Chapel

OTHER EVENTS INCLUDE:

April 4

Jazz Ensemble Concert

April 11

A Night at the Movies

HPU Community Orchestra

High Point Theatre

April 14

Clarinet and Percussion Ensembles Concert

April 14-15

BLOOM - Senior Dance

Capstone by Connie Quagliata

April 20-22

Silent Sky by Lauren Gunderson

Theatrical Performance

April 24

Requiem by Mozart Choral Concert

April 26

Departures

Wind Ensemble Concert

BY THE EDITORS AT ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

Fine Points Of The Law

Natalia Harrell, 24, was arrested last July in Miami for allegedly shooting and killing Gladys Yvette Borcela, 28, as they rode in an Uber. Since then, she’s been in the custody of the Miami-Dade Corrections Department — along with her unborn child. Now, Michael O’Brien, the father of the child, has filed a petition claiming the baby has not been charged with a crime and is having its due process rights violated, NBC Miami reported. “I don’t want the baby to be born prematurely or low birth weight,” O’Brien said. “The conditions (in the jail) are terrible and I feel she’s not getting the prenatal care she should be getting.” He seeks the baby’s immediate release. O cials replied that they are reviewing the care Harrell has received “to ensure that all prenatal care being provided in our custody is appropriate.”

Irony

Police in Glemgormley, Northern Ireland, pulled over a Mini Cooper on Feb. 27 and asked the driver for proof of insurance, the Irish Mirror reported. After cagily searching around for the document, the driver admitted they didn’t have insurance — even though they were sporting a bumper sticker that cheekily asked, “My brakes are good!! Is your insurance?” The car was seized and the driver was issued a penalty for the lack of coverage.

New World Order

Tired of your John Hancock looking like a child’s scribble? Priscilla Molina of Los Angeles can help with that. The Associated Press reported that Molina’s business, Planet of Names, will make over anyone’s signature for between $10 and $55. People seeking her service are “not happy with their signatures. They don’t relate to who they are. They don’t give the message they want to convey to the world,” Molina said. She designs up to 300 custom signatures per month, and o ers a range of styles, from elegant and artistic to ... illegible.

My Kindom For An Editor

first African American player to compete in major league baseball. But the DOT forgot the C, spelling the baseball great’s first name Jakie. The sign was quickly replaced with the correct spelling.

Unconventional Weaponry

In a puzzling attempt to draw attention to the climate crisis, three people defaced a woolly mammoth at the Royal B.C. Museum in Victoria, Canada, on March 1, the Times Colonist reported. A woman allegedly used her hands to paint the mammoth’s tusks pink. A group called On2Ottawa has claimed responsibility for the vandalism; the painter, “Laura,” says in a video posted online, “If the government does not enact a citizens’ assembly to tackle the climate and ecological crisis in the next one to two years, then we will be traveling to Ottawa to demand one.” The water-based paint was cleaned o the tusks and three people were arrested.

Oops

More than 40 high school students from the Barr Beacon School in Walsall, England, were stranded in the U.S. for four extra days after a ski trip to New Hampshire, the New York Post reported. It wasn’t weather that shut down their travel, but the fact that the Kancamagus Lodge in Lincoln, New Hampshire, “accidentally” shredded 42 of their passports. Fortunately, head teacher Katie Hobbs, who was not on the trip, was on top of the situation and had the group move to New York City, where the British embassy was preparing emergency documents. In the meantime, the kids toured the city and took in the sights. “The silver lining is that they can have an amazing experience,” said one parent. The lodge had no explanation for the destruction of the passports other than it happened by mistake.

Perspective

Secure

First it was a misspelling of Georgia O’Kee e’s name in New York City’s new Grand Central Terminal. On Feb. 26, according to the Associated Press, the state’s Department of Transportation installed a new sign in Queens to identify the Jackie Robinson Parkway, established in 1997. Robinson was the

Hicham Argani, a police o cer in Boxtel, Netherlands, was patrolling his neighborhood when he spotted an unidentified object in the sky, the Daily Star reported on March 1. He posted on Instagram about the “suspected ‘spy balloon’” hovering over the Selissen district and followed it in his car. Finally, he decided to pull over to get a closer look at it — which was when he realized the UFO was a blob of bird poo stuck to his windshield. Argani updated his post with his findings and an all-clear: “Boxtel is safe!” !

7 Common infant illness

8 Girl played by Lily Tomlin

9 Bamboozles

10 Anger

11 Quick escape

12 Stuck going nowhere

13 When typical