Matthew (2011)

Directed by: Leni Huyghe | 18 minutes | short film | Actors: Mateo Bal, Dolores Bouckaert, Arieh Worthalter, Pieter Genard, Seppe Cosyns, Filip Vekemans

A young family moves to the countryside. There, their son becomes enchanted by a strange neighbor’s comment; he is no longer Matteo, but Matthew. He finds a Bible and one thing leads to another; he becomes involved in the cult-like atmosphere of the village. His mother can no longer get through to him. People fall to their knees in devotion when they see him in the neighborhood supermarket and he puts his hand on their heads like a true saint. He stands alone in the attic, claiming Bible texts, and he talks about the sons who will rise up against their parents.

The dreamy short film ‘Matteus’ is very dark and has an almost horror-like atmosphere. The fact that there is little awareness of the passing of time in the film is confusing, but it does contribute to the alienating atmosphere. Very little is spoken and all the more suggested. It is also a freely interpretable film, it could be an indictment of the strict village life, or of Christianity. Perhaps it is a manifestation of the age-old generational conflict and divide, with this time the youngster suddenly becoming conservative. But above all ‘Matteus’ is a film about the alienation of a child, while the parents are busy with other things.