SWEET JAM (CONFITUUR) International Feature Competition

Belgian director Lieven Debrauwer (PAULINE & PAULETIE) delivers a poignant yet wry second feature about love and the confounding ways we find to test its limits.

As the entire village celebrates, Tuur looks more like a man attending his own funeral, rather than a Golden Jubilee celebration commemorating 50 years of marriage to his devoted wife, Emma. Numbed by his life as a cobbler and caretoker of Gerda-his invalid, maddeningly demanding sister-Tuur simply leaves it all behind, seeking refuge at the brothel run by his estranged sister, Josee. Rather than run after her sulking husband Emma uses his absence to empower herself and, ultimately, enhance their union.

Like the best Flemish pointers, Debrouwer has on exquisite eye for detail, manifesting itself in both the simple yet rich look of the film, and the stellar performances he elicits from his cost, especially Marilou Mermans as the triumphantly resilient Emma.