Belle Douleur – Joji Alonso – 98’ (2019)
February 26 – 3pm – Room 2
Liz, 45 and single, is a clinical psychologist who works with special and gifted children. She has spent much of her adult life looking after her sickly parents. After her parents passed, Liz finds herself alone and resigned to a
solitary life. Upon advice of her friends Marco and Lauren, Liz begins downsizing her home and meets Josh, 26, a young antique dealer. Josh has been living on his own for years, after losing his father and grandfather, and without much memory of his mother. With their loneliness drawing them together, Liz and Josh create a special bond. In resolving the issues that confront them, Liz breaks free from the confines of society that shackles women.
This was director Joji Alonso’s first feature film. I have produced some of her films including Ekstra (included in this retrospective), Tandem and Ilawod both shown here in Fantasporto.
Joji was my first female director and this film was a selection in the Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival.
Joji Villanueva Alonso is a producer and director. She produced the award-winning films The Bet Collector, The Woman In The Septic Tank, The Bit Player and Big Night. Her films Tandem and Ilawod were shown here in Oporto.
Her first short film Last Order won the Best Short Film at the Pyongyang International Film Festival in 2018.
Belle Douleur received the Audience Award at the Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival and won the Best Actor award for Kit Thompson at the Houston International Film Festival and more importantly, the Special Jury prize from the same festival.