Johanna ter Steege Movies

A handful of people living in a Belgian suburb react in a variety of ways to news of a tragic accident in this multilayered drama. One evening, Francis (Johan Leysen) returns home from a long day at the office with a large dent on the front of his car and a clearly unsettled frame of mind, both of which are noted by his wife Ann (Johanna ter Steege). A few hours later, the body of a young boy is fund by the side of a nearby road by Christine (Ina Geerts), Francis and Ann's next door neighbor. The police are called, but by the time officer Mark (Peter Van den Begin) shows up, the child's body has gone missing, sending Christine into a panic, a situation made worse by a phone call from her ex-husband Fred (Robby Cleiren), who is deeply depressed and contemplating suicide. As the night wears on, Mark learns that one of his sons is missing, and may be the boy who Christine found earlier, but while his wife Gerda (Natali Broods) works as a cleaning woman for Christine, she finds it impossible to tell Gerda what she's seen, or about Francis's possible involvement. Meanwhile, Johnny the Flow (Jan Decleir), a washed-up fighter who lives in the neighborhood, had heard about the dead child and is certain he knows who is responsible -- Njord (Franck Chartier), a drifter with a history of mental illness. Een Ander Zijn Geluk (aka Someone Else's Happiness) was the first feature film from director Fein Troch. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Writer/director Nanouk Leopold delivers this deceptively simple study in alienation concerning an outwardly contented mother and wife who gradually begins to question her lot in life after discovering the body of a colleague who committed suicide. By all outward appearances, Anna leads a simple life. When she's not at home caring for her young son, she's usually traveling abroad to Egypt for work. It's during one of these regular business trips that Anna discovers the body of her colleague hanging in the shower. By all accounts she was a happy woman, making her desperate last act all the more confusing to Anna. When the woman's husband remarries just a short while later, the discovery that he has recovered from his grief and moved on so quickly shakes Anna to her very core. Though Anna and her husband have grown comfortable in their shared routines, are they truly satisfied with the way their lives turned out? When Anna's father arrives on the island of Guernsey with his own new family, her existential doubts are only amplified. Keeping the secret of her discovery from her loved ones, Anna quietly begins observing the lives of her friends and family, furtively searching for unspoken truths, and mournfully pondering why people seem to drift apart so easily. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

A woman must choose between secure affection and fiery passion in this romantic costume drama. In 1899, Emilie van Thuile (Johanna Ter Steege), a delicate woman prone to fainting, is still getting over the death of her husband, an archeologist, when his assistant Hugo (Anthony Calf) asks for her hand in marriage. Emilie doesn't find Hugo terribly exciting, but she misses the security of a husband and agrees to wed him anyway. She accompanies Hugo to Italy, where he's completing the project that Mr. Van Thuile was working on at the time of his death, the uncovering and reconstruction of an ancient temple. While staying in a nearby spa and hotel, Emilie meets Capt. Aldo (Massimo Ghini), a doctor who has recently returned from military service in Africa. Emilie is captivated by the ruggedly handsome physician, who seems quite interested in her as well. Emilie impulsively runs off with Aldo, despite the warnings of innkeeper DeSantis (Alessandro Haber), who tells Emilie that Aldo is a notorious ladies' man who will abandon her once he's had his way with her. A Woman of the North received its most positive notices for Gianni Giovagnoni's production design and Goert Giltay's cinematography. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

A hangdog, middle-aged painter falls in love with a tender young college student after he leaves his philandering wife and his children in this romantic French drama. To console himself, the fundamentally bohemian Phillippe finds comfort in the arms of various prostitutes, especially Valeria. It is while searching for her that he meets lovely Justine, the student. Sparks fly and they move into together. Things go well until Phillippe begins pining for his children. This makes insecure Justine terribly jealous and tumult erupts until the aging artist is able to discover the true source of his anxieties. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Middle-aged artistes provide the focus of this drama filmed in black and white. The story is set in Paris around the time of the Gulf War. Paul is an actor leading a drab directionless existence. He has an affair with Ulrika, a woman half his age. His wife, with whom he constantly argues, is pregnant with their second child. He does not interact much with his teenage son. Much of the film centers around the emptiness of his life. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

As a young man, Gerard was in a relationship with Marianne, a woman he called the love of his life, someone he would love even beyond the veils of death. However, somehow he drifted out of his relationship with her, though they were occasionally in touch with one another. Many relationships later, he is now married and has children by a wonderfully solid and nurturing woman (whom he is not faithful to). When he hears of the death of his first love, it causes him to reevaluate his relationships, and he realizes that Marianne was indeed the one great love of his life. Only his own lack of a real center caused him to lose that precious relationship. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

The relationship between the obsessive, brilliant painter Vincent Van Gogh and his more practical brother Theo is at the center of director Robert Altman's well-received biography, originally produced as a miniseries for European television. Now universally acknowledged as masterpieces, Vincent Van Gogh's works were ignored in his lifetime, despite the best efforts of Theo, a struggling gallery owner. When he fails to make a profit from his brother's work, Theo finds himself torn between art and commerce, a conflict deepened by Vincent's increasing emotional neediness. Soon, the situation worsens, and both brothers are forced to struggle with depression and madness. Altman's distinctive directorial approach avoids clichés, allowing his leads to create contradictory and sometimes unlikable characters. Tim Roth captures Vincent's devotion to his art, his difficult personality, and his descent into mental illness without resorting to histrionics, while Paul Rhys provides equally proficient work as the more repressed Theo. The cinematography by Jean Lepine illuminates the links between Altman's trademark wandering camera and Van Gogh's impressionistic painting style. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide