Forty-four Years Later

Following a stroke, Louis can no longer live at home with his wife. Before he has to leave for the care home, the whole family wants to give him one last unforgettable day. Everyone desperately tries to come up with nice memories so that they can give him the send-off he deserves. But all of the guests are wrapped up in their own problems and frustrations, so not everything goes as planned.

Michaël Olbrechts takes plenty of time to relate the events of the weekend, which allows him to develop the main characters and their problems with one another very nicely. The planned highlight of the weekend, a performance by the Front Soldiers, a re-enactment group founded by Louis, goes completely wrong and an old family tragedy surfaces. Who is Ronny? That’s the question.

Olbrechts once again sketches a very convincing family portrait. With his cleverly chosen lines and colours, he knows how to make facial expressions hugely believable. But it is not only his drawings that radiate authenticity and humanity: the subtle emotions that Olbrechts incorporates in the story demonstrate a maturity that is generally reserved for old hands.