REVIEW: ‘The Belgian Wave’ is a movie that searches for those lights in the sky
Photo: The Belgian Wave stars Karim Barras as Elzo Durt, right. Photo courtesy of Film Maudit 2.0 / Provided by klhPR with permission.
Film Maudit 2.0, a film festival highlighting indie movies that are outside the mainstream, has set up shop at Highway’s Performance Space in Santa Monica, California, for its fifth year of programming. The fest continues until Sunday, June 16, and one of the highlights in 2024 is Jérôme Vandewattyne’s The Belgian Wave, a UFO-centered film that travels to some bizarre places.
There is some truth to the setup of The Belgian Wave. There was a series of UFO sightings in Belgium in the early 1990s, and that is the impetus for this original tale about two investigators — Karen (Karen de Paduwa) and Elzo (Karim Barras) — who go searching for a journalist (Dominique Rongvaux) who went missing during the height of the ET craze. What they find is equal parts astonishing, head-scratching and thrilling.
There are many genres that The Belgian Wave could fit nicely into, including science fiction and screwball comedy, but the one that stands out is road trip movie. Following Karen and Elzo is a laugh and a half, and after a while, one forgets about the ultimate goal of their journey. Instead, the searching and adventuring are just as exciting and engaging. Like a modern-day Odysseus, they travel far and wide, coming into contact with a host of believers who point them in the right direction to find this missing person.
Vandewattyne, to his immense credit, does not hold back in the final act of the film, and this is probably why The Belgian Wave works so nicely as part of Film Maudit 2.0’s programming. This is no mere X Files episode with a believing Mulder and a furrowed-brow Scully. Karen and Elzo find the answers, and then some. In fact, what they find could almost never be guessed at by the audience, which means it’s best to simply strap in to this flying UFO and go for the ride.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
The Belgian Wave (2023), directed by Jérôme Vandewattyne, is part of this weekend’s Film Maudit 2.0 festival at Highway’s Performance Space in Santa Monica, California. Written by Vandewattyne, Jérôme Di Egidio and Kamal Messaoudi. Starring Karim Barras, Karen de Paduwa and Dominique Rongvaux. Running time: 90 minutes. In French with English subtitles. Rating: 
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