Top 100 Most Anticipated Foreign Films of 2018: #25. Fabrice du Welz’s Adoration

Adoration

Belgian genre auteur Fabrice du Welz has been fast-tracking the third installment of his Ardennes Trilogy, which began with his delightfully macabre 2004 debut Calvaire and continued with the director’s greatest international success to date, 2014’s Alleluia (read ★★★★½ review) — both featuring Laurent Lucas. While 2008’s underrated Vinyan and 2016’s English-language Message from the King (read review) starring Chadwick Boseman received less-than-satisfactory US premieres (the latter went to Netflix without any fanfare), his latest project, titled Adoration promises to cast a wider net. Twelve-year-old Paul lives alone with his mother, who is a cleaning lady for a private clinic in the woods. When a schizophrenic woman named Gloria arrives for treatment, the young boy develops a fascination with her and agrees to help her escape. A stellar, mouth-watering cast, which includes French icons Beatrice Dalle and Emmanuelle Beart (who headlined Vinyan) alongside Belgian stars Benoit Poelvoorde and Peter Van de Begin (of the latest Woodworth and Brosens film King of the Belgians) and newcomer Fantine Harduin (of Haneke’s Happy End) should enhance the anticipation.

Release Date/Prediction: While the film received CCA funding in early May and a summer 2017 production had been mentioned, the latest casting news arrived in November. While the other portions of du Welz’s trilogy premiered at Cannes (Calvaire in Critics’ Week, Alleluia in Directors’ Fortnight), a delayed shooting schedule for Adoration might mean du Welz will return to Venice, where Vinyan premiered in 2008 out-of-competition.