Un monde or Playground is a 2021 Belgian drama by debutant director Laura Wandel. Boasting a 100 per cent score on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, Playground has been highly rated by critics and bagged several accolades.
Shot at a child’s eye-level and through the perspective of Nora, a seven-year-old girl who is witness to her older brother, Abel, getting bullied at school, the powerful Belgian drama sees the little girl confide in her father as the situation gets out of hand, even though her sibling swore her to secrecy.
With the siblings left to navigate the brutality of social hierarchies in the playground and come to terms with the sometimes-harsh reality of childhood — Nora is caught between helplessness and loyalty to her brother, while Abel’s torment only intensifies due to the adult intervention.
Taking the audience through the visceral emotions felt by children — a scenario they largely have to understand and cope with on their own — Playground is a rousing and emotionally resonant drama which portrays how kids’ innocence can be corrupted and how, sometimes, even well-meaning adults can make things worse.
Playground stars child actors Maya Vanderbeque as Nora and Günter Duret as Abel, alongside Karim Leklou, Laura Verlinden, Lena Girard Voss, and Thao Maerten.
One critic said about the film: “This may be the most stress-inducing, heartbreaking movie of 2022, and it’s only 72-minutes long.”
While a second reviewer felt Playground should be mandatory viewing in schools: “This is a film that, similar to Eighth Grade, should become required viewing in schools. Providing many teachable lessons for pupils and staff alike.”
Another critic said of the film: “[Laura] Wandel’s film is too wrenching to be called a movie for children. But children would recognise the truth and the complexity of it, which is surely the highest praise.”
While one spoke of its impact: “I was on the point of tears throughout, just as she is, knowing there’s no saving her, or anyone else, from what’s waiting ahead. It’s a film that will stay with me for a long time.”
In 2021, Playground was selected to compete in the Un Certain Regard section at that year’s Cannes Film Festival and went on to win the FIPRESCI Prize in the category.
Wandel’s debut feature also bagged the André Cavens Award for Best Film by the Belgian Film Critics Association.
The heartwrenching drama was also Belgium’s official submission to the Best International Feature Film category at the 94th Academy Awards and even made it to the shortlist.
Not just critics, but audiences were also left impressed by the Belgian drama, with one viewer commenting: “This is quite a powerful film, even quietly devastating in a way, about the impact and implications of childhood bullying. It’s hard not to feel for both Nora and her dad, as well as her brother Abel. Imagining myself in Nora’s shoes, I’m not sure what I’d do differently. It seemed very realistic and it was certainly insightful. A good film for starting a discussion about school bullying, I’d recommend this, yes.”
Another audience review stated: “A brilliant film debut from Laura Wandel in this Belgium drama. The film is shot from a child’s perspective which makes it feel authentic. There are some VERY disturbing scenes, but they are totally necessary to the totality of the feature. The two main child actors, Maya Vanderbeque and Günter Duret are extraordinary. They have a chemistry that is, frankly, remarkable. It is just over an hour, but at times it’s such a hard watch you may have to hit the pause button.”
While a third viewer wrote: “It’s fantastic. No doubt. The filming at the level of a 5-6 year old is brilliant. But it is so painful to watch. And that is part of its brilliance.”
Playground is available to rent on Amazon Prime Video £1.99.