January 21, 2026
FILM: YOUNG MOTHERS
DIRECTED BY: JEAN-PIERRE & LUC DARDENNE
STARRING: BABETTE VERBEEK, ELSA HOUBEN, JANAINA HALLOY
RATING: 3 out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
The Dardenne Brothers have directed numerous film that have achieved international acclaim, including Two Days, One Night, which earned Marion Cotillard an Oscar nomination, and Rosetta and The Child which both won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. Personally, I’ve been a bit cold on some of their films. This includes Young Mothers, which won them another Cannes prize, Best Screenplay at this past year’s festival. I may not be the right audience for this one though. It is about, as the title suggests, young mothers. We’re talking teenaged mothers who arrive to their new role with a variety of issues including those from their youth. The film is essentially a somber character study of a few of these girls whose lives intersect at a facility for new young moms. Fortunately, for as dark as some of their individual narratives are, the Dardennes do offer a sense of hope. Getting there is the tough part.
We are introduced to five of these girls as the film cuts between each of their respective stories. Jessica struggles with her newborn because she feels nothing for her. She wonders if this is what her own mother felt when Jessica was “dumped” as a baby. Perla became pregnant by a boy named Robin who has no interest in being a father. This is a big concern for Perla who doesn’t want to be a single mother. Julie has a drug problem and at one point forgets about her new daughter Lili. Ariane wants to give hers up to a foster family but her own physically abusive mother fights her about it. Naima is the character we spend the least amount of time with, but she has spent a year at the shelter and now celebrates obtaining her dream job. Sounds like a dedicated group of mothers, right?
Clearly, the issues they face become quite trying at times. Viewers hear fairly constant crying throughout the film and that isn’t only from the babies. Some have to make significant choices such as adoption. Ariane has made up her mind that she wants her child to have a better life than she did. Her story suggests that some young people can make good, although difficult, decisions regarding their newborns. Others may be more idealistic. However, each is given an arc that leads them somewhere in their lives they could only have gotten had they not had their children. The Dardennes don’t address abortion much as the film is about women who have already made the decision to have their unborn children. I’d imagine a focus on such stories might be even heavier than this one.
I saw this film as a part of the Chicago International Film Festival last Fall where another film, the Rose Byrne starrer If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You also played. Both are rough watches, but the advantage Young Mothers has is that it does offer some hope. The other is pretty relentless in its depiction of mothers who probably shouldn’t have been mothers. While that film also boasts a great performance by Byrne in the lead, this one features primarily unknown actresses who are also very good at communicating the variety of conflicting emotions their characters face. Ultimately, both films suggest that there is no magical spell for being a good mother. Not every young woman is ready for it and not every child should remain with their birth mother.
Young Mothers, which was also Belgium’s submission for the Best International Film Oscar this year, is playing in limited theatrical release, including the Gene Siskel Center in Chicago.
FILM: YOUNG MOTHERS
DIRECTED BY: JEAN-PIERRE & LUC DARDENNE
STARRING: BABETTE VERBEEK, ELSA HOUBEN, JANAINA HALLOY
RATING: 3 out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
The Dardenne Brothers have directed numerous film that have achieved international acclaim, including Two Days, One Night, which earned Marion Cotillard an Oscar nomination, and Rosetta and The Child which both won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. Personally, I’ve been a bit cold on some of their films. This includes Young Mothers, which won them another Cannes prize, Best Screenplay at this past year’s festival. I may not be the right audience for this one though. It is about, as the title suggests, young mothers. We’re talking teenaged mothers who arrive to their new role with a variety of issues including those from their youth. The film is essentially a somber character study of a few of these girls whose lives intersect at a facility for new young moms. Fortunately, for as dark as some of their individual narratives are, the Dardennes do offer a sense of hope. Getting there is the tough part.
We are introduced to five of these girls as the film cuts between each of their respective stories. Jessica struggles with her newborn because she feels nothing for her. She wonders if this is what her own mother felt when Jessica was “dumped” as a baby. Perla became pregnant by a boy named Robin who has no interest in being a father. This is a big concern for Perla who doesn’t want to be a single mother. Julie has a drug problem and at one point forgets about her new daughter Lili. Ariane wants to give hers up to a foster family but her own physically abusive mother fights her about it. Naima is the character we spend the least amount of time with, but she has spent a year at the shelter and now celebrates obtaining her dream job. Sounds like a dedicated group of mothers, right?
Clearly, the issues they face become quite trying at times. Viewers hear fairly constant crying throughout the film and that isn’t only from the babies. Some have to make significant choices such as adoption. Ariane has made up her mind that she wants her child to have a better life than she did. Her story suggests that some young people can make good, although difficult, decisions regarding their newborns. Others may be more idealistic. However, each is given an arc that leads them somewhere in their lives they could only have gotten had they not had their children. The Dardennes don’t address abortion much as the film is about women who have already made the decision to have their unborn children. I’d imagine a focus on such stories might be even heavier than this one.
I saw this film as a part of the Chicago International Film Festival last Fall where another film, the Rose Byrne starrer If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You also played. Both are rough watches, but the advantage Young Mothers has is that it does offer some hope. The other is pretty relentless in its depiction of mothers who probably shouldn’t have been mothers. While that film also boasts a great performance by Byrne in the lead, this one features primarily unknown actresses who are also very good at communicating the variety of conflicting emotions their characters face. Ultimately, both films suggest that there is no magical spell for being a good mother. Not every young woman is ready for it and not every child should remain with their birth mother.
Young Mothers, which was also Belgium’s submission for the Best International Film Oscar this year, is playing in limited theatrical release, including the Gene Siskel Center in Chicago.