When the Belgian movie Black had its cinema run I read a lot of positive things about it. It is set in Brussels and focusses on the criminal part of society, specifically local gangs and their rivalry. Because of the subject matter and the fact I had seen various American movies dealing with the subject I watched this with some expectations, but that the movie would be so extreme during a couple of points, shocked me.
The two rival gangs are 1080 and Black Bronx, who mainly make their money doing small stickups and stealing handbags. One of the members of 1080 is Marwan (Aboubakr Bensaihi), the little brother of the leader of the group, Nassim. When Marwan end up at the police station he meets Mavela (Martha Canga Antonio). He doesn’t know she is a gang member of the rival gang, Black Bronx. The two talk to each other and as they like each other they start to meet up, even though they realize it is a very risky thing to do because of their gang affiliation.
The story of forbidden love is of all ages, but directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah make sure it never feels stale. They show you what gang life is like and that is anything but pleasant. It’s a male dominated culture in which women are oppressed and where group rape is considered as something just to intimidate others. These are shown in gruesome detail twice, which makes it very hard to watch.
Thanks to the convincing portrayal by Antonio and Bensaihi and the very raw feeling of the movie you are pulled into its world and you start to understand why it is so difficult to get away from the gang. Black is a film filled with emotions which won’t leave the viewer unmoved.
Trailer