La Promesse

Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne

Jérémie Renier, Olivier Gourmet, Assita Ouedraogo, Rasmané Ouedraogo

In Belgium. The present. Igor, a young adolescent, helps his father, Roger, run an illegal immigrant labour ring, while continuing to indulge in childhood pastimes (building a go-kart with two pals). For Igor, taking part in his father's scams is part of the natural order of things, like stealing a purse from the old lady whose car he is repairing. "Innocent" wrong-doing...He is to lose this "innocence" abruptly, the day when, with Roger, and on his orders, they leave Hamidu, an African immigrant, to die, after he accidentally falls from some scaffolding. Before he dies, Hamidu asks Igor to promise to look after Assita (his wife) and Tiga (his son). Igor made this promise without Roger's knowledge.This is the beginning of the gradual awakening of moral awareness in Igor, who is torn between fear, loyalty to his father, and loyalty to his promise. When he correctly guesses what his father intends to do with Assita, who is stubbornly wainting for her husband's return, and refuses to go back to her own country, Igor, runs away with her, without, however, revealing the truth to her. This is the first break with his father, the first betrayal.While on the run, Igor helps Assita and her son, Tiga, and little by little discovers compassion and mutual commitment. When Assita places her trust in him after a series of clashes, Igor feels that the only response this trust deserves is to tell her the truth about Hamidu's death. He tries to persuade his father to join him in telling her the truth, but when he refuses, he makes up his mind to betray him.He thus undergoes a long initiation into truth, during which he loses his father, and finds human dignity.

Type : Feature film
Genre : Fiction
Running time : 93''
Year : 1996
Funding : None