Let's not talk awards for once, but let's talk applause. Not just the sound of two hands clapping, but the real thing: a standing ovation. Which was something Flemish director Geoffrey Enthoven's new movie Meisjes got three nights in a row at the Montreal World Film Festival. A full house last Saturday and there you have it: Meisjes was all the rage at the festival over the last couple of days, the buzz flick of the weekend.
Meisjes - which translates simply as 'girls' - is the story of a musical reunion. After the sudden demise of hubby (heart attack), 68-year-old Claire finds herself alive but not quite kicking, all alone in a house that is big, empty and expensive to keep up. Son no. 1 is a banker and does what finance people do best, namely being matter of fact and all business and giving mom the advice to sell the place. Son no. 2 is a penniless rock musician and does what artists do best: pursuing one's wildest dreams. Or rather; in this particular case, helping someone to search high heaven. Mom used to be one of the three Sisters of Love, a vocal trio that was mildy successful quite some decades ago. So basically it's a wild scheme to reunite three septuagenarian women, and to bring them into the 21st century at the same time. The son agrees to find a suitable studio and to get his band to accompany the perennial girls, provided that they are willing to update their sound and repertoire. There's a television talent show coming up and he's entered them as 'The Over the Hill Band'...which leads to what the makers refer to as 'a dramatic comedy'.
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