Playground film review: Trauma at school

Belgian director Laura Wandal delivers an unflinchingly honest, heartbreaking and gorgeously acted tale of schoolyard-bullying in her debut feature Playground.

The film won the FIPRESCI Prize in the Un Certain Regard section at Cannes last year and was later selected as the Belgian entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards. It stars newcomers Maya Vanderbeque and Günter Duret as two siblings attending the same elementary school trying to navigate the cruel world of childhood bullying.

The film follows seven-year-old Nora (Vanderbeque) and her big brother Abel (Duret) who for the first time in their short lives find themselves at the same school. Despite struggling to fit in at first, Nora eventually finds her own crowd thanks to her exuberant personality and ability to connect.

Nora soon notices that Abel is being bullied and rushes to defend him, but is made to promise not to tell a soul, including their long-suffering single dad (a beautifully nuanced turn from the talented French actor Karim Leklou).

Abel endures more daily humiliation at the hand of his tormentors until things go too far and parents are called in to help deescalate the situation.

While things appear to get slightly better for Abel, Nora finds herself having to justify her own connection to her brother as both children are shunned by their schoolmates, leading Nora to act out of character.

Following in the footsteps of fellow Belgian filmmakers The Dardenne Brothers (The Son, The Child, The Kid with a Bike), Wandal has given us a beautifully layered hyper-naturalistic drama about childhood trauma. Her austere, detailed and methodical filmmaking style, coupled with Vanderbeque’s thrilling performance make Playground a unique experience.

Wandal’s use of extreme close-ups and shaky hand-held camera work adds a sense of urgency and realism to this brilliantly thought out story, while keeping the focus on its young protagonists by deliberately setting their experiences aside from their adult counterparts.

Elevated by its sparse dialogue, Playground is a robustly told, heartfelt and bold drama about a subject seldom broached by mainstream dramas. This is a very capable debut from a filmmaker who truly knows her craft.