North Sea Texas

[Guest thaiworthy]

No one has to know about this, Pimmie. It's between us.
 
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plUVkwvk21w
 
North Sea Texas explores emergent sexuality and first love with a refreshing optimism. I saw it at The House Theatre in Bangkok last September.
 

 

Pim lives in a small town on the Belgian coast, together with his single mother Yvette, a local accordion starlet. It's an ordinary existence which Pim brightens up by dreaming of princesses, beauty queens and handsome Gino, the boy next door. But when hunky traveller Zoltan blows through town, Pim's life takes an exciting and unexpected turn. North Sea Texas is the feature film debut from cult director Bavo Defurne, whose short films, love letters to the male form and soaked with lush visuals, have garnered fans from across the globe - drawing comparisons to Pierre et Gilles, Herbert List, Dreyer and Eisenstein.

 
This gay-themed movie is the winner of both the Montreal World Film Festival (2011) and the Seattle International Film Festival (2012) it is an excellent film.
 
http://www.filmfestivaltoday.com/fft-festival-coverage/belgian-films-are-big-winners-in-montreal
 
The only indiscretion I have noted about the film is the relationship appears to be with an underage boy.
 
The film is available in iTunes starting today.

[KhorTose]

Not sure what you are trying to say here.  Are you shocked or scandalized, or touting the film?  If it is the former, the age of consent for most of Europe is 16, but if the boy next door is also a teenager I doubt whether their age difference would matter law wise in Europe. 

[Guest thaiworthy]

I am certainly not shocked or scandalized. I liked the film. I am careful about recommending something in which such young ages are involved. The film doesn't specifically state how young the character is, actually. He could be 16, or he could be younger. But since they are both teenagers, you are probably correct. I am just overly sensitive about age issues.
 
In researching this further, I found some interesting points about age in Belgium, particularly the age of 18. However, this has nothing to do with the film, other than my disclaimer near the end. The age of consent is indeed 16 for both girls and boys.

 

I found something from a forum, and is the author's own opinions, so I don't know how much of it is fact. I'm just throwing it out there for discussion. It is interesting:
 
18 years old is the age of majority in most Western countries (apart from some Canadian or US states where it is 19 or 21). In Asian countries it is usually 20 (Japan, Thailand) or 21 (Malaysia, Singapore). This makes it special in itself, because it means that someone has reached the official threshold of adulthood, which means that they are free to act without their parents' consent, sign contracts (e.g. job) by themselves, vote at elections... 
 
But in Belgium, turning 18 means much more than that.
 

Like in the rest of Europe (except UK and Ireland), but contrarily to the USA, 18 is also the legal age to obtain a driving licence. 

Belgium being one of the rare countries with compulsory voting at elections, 18 does not only become the age when one can vote, but when one must vote (if elections are held that year, but chances are quite high with all the levels of government in Belgium).

Belgium is also one of the few countries to have compulsory education until the age of 18. So not only do 18-year-olds become "free" from the the tutoring of their parents, but also free to quit school if they want.

One major difference with other countries is that criminal responsibility (different from the legal responsibility conferred by majority) in Belgium is also set at 18 years old, contrarily to the vast majority of countries around the world where it is almost always lower (as young as 6 years old in some US states). This means that if a 17-year old Belgian kills someone, commit a arson or robbery, etc., he or she is not considered responsible of their acts, and thus cannot be sentenced by a criminal court, and will usually be purely and simply acquitted. I personally think that this is abusive and the age should be set around 14 or 15, if not lower.

18 used to be the age for compulsory military service for men, but this was abolished in the early 1990's.

There are a few legal rights which do not coincide with the age of 18 thanks to Belgium's permissive laws, such as the right to buy or drink alcohol (no legal age), buy tobacco (16 years old, although there is no legal age for smoking), or have a bank card (12 years old). The legal age of sexual consent and marriage is 16 both for boys and girls.


In brief, the age of 18 in Belgium is synonymous with :

- legal adulthood/majority
- legal responsibility
- criminal responsibility
- right and obligation to vote
- right to be elected (except for Senate)
- legal age for driving
- minimum age to stop school

The bold indicate what makes 18 very special in Belgium compared to the rest of the world, and especially the rest of Europe.

 
http://www.eupedia.com/forum/threads/24245-Why-is-it-so-special-to-turn-18-in-Belgium

[Guest fountainhall]

Sorry thaiworthy, most of the reviews I just looked at state quite clearly the character of Pim is 15. The Chicago Tribune review 5 days ago even says he is 14.  As you point out, the age of consent in Belgium is 16. In neighbouring Holland, it can be less, but there are still quite serious legal consequences is either of the two boys and/or their parents lodge a complaint.

 

If the reviewers are correct, I have some concern about this thread being on this Board - whatever its merits and awards elsewhere.

[Guest thaiworthy]

Sorry thaiworthy, most of the reviews I just looked at state quite clearly the character of Pim is 15. The Chicago Tribune review 5 days ago even says he is 14.  As you point out, the age of consent in Belgium is 16. In neighbouring Holland, it can be less, but there are still quite serious legal consequences is either of the two boys and/or their parents lodge a complaint.

 

If the reviewers are correct, I have some concern about this thread being on this Board - whatever its merits and awards elsewhere.

 

Yikes! Thank you for checking that out. That is exactly what I was worried about. I also share your concern. If the axeman cometh, so be it.

[Rogie]

I vote the axeman keeps his axe in its sheath

[Guest bbillybb]

Why not take the film for what it is and not debate if the boy is under ages of what you feel comfortable with or not.  That is not the issue of the film. The film has merit in its entirety. If it does not belong here let the powers to be take it away. I saw it and I liked it so that is that. That is the whole and only point as I see it.

[Rogie]

I haven't seen this film, and may never see it, but it's been shown at film festivals and at at least one cinema in Bkk (OP), and presumably far farther afield, so why the fuss? If there ever was a fuss. If there's been a fuss anywhere it's been shown then fair enough let's pause for thought and take that into account. But if not, why should we be the first?

[kokopelli]

One must be careful what films they recommend. I recently viewed a coming of age film featuring a young girl in a relationship with an older guy;  I was aghast to discover she was only 13 yo!  Her name was Juliet.

[Guest thaiworthy]

One must be careful what films they recommend. I recently viewed a coming of age film featuring a young girl in a relationship with an older guy;  I was aghast to discover she was only 13 yo!  Her name was Juliet.

 

In many cultures and time periods, women did and do marry and bear children at an early age. My question is: how old is Romeo? I can't seem to find anything definitive online about that.

 

Conversely, Summer of '42 featured an older woman with an underage boy. It was well-received despite the fact it was illegal behavior. However, I would amend Kokopelli's statement by saying "One must be careful what films they recommend on this board." This has no bearing on the merits of the film itself. However, I am not sure if this discussion necessarily promotes such illegal behavior and if it doesn't, perhaps that is why some posters advocate a discussion based on the film and not the age of the characters.

[KhorTose]

One must be careful what films they recommend. I recently viewed a coming of age film featuring a young girl in a relationship with an older guy;  I was aghast to discover she was only 13 yo!  Her name was Juliet.

Shocking.  When they are in a serious relationship at that age, it often leads to tragedy.  I just feel there was no happy ending possible in this story. 

[kokopelli]

 

 My question is: how old is Romeo?

 

Romeo was 19 yo, not yet a boy, not yet a man.

[Guest thaiworthy]

 My question is: how old is Romeo?

 

Romeo was 19 yo, not yet a boy, not yet a man.

 

What is your source? Romeo and Juliet is not a love story. It's a 3-day relationship between a 13-yr old and (ostensibly) a 17-yr old that caused 6 deaths. Maybe that's why there's a law against underage sex, whether or not one is of legal age. It has to do with immaturity, and that could be the message in Shakespeare's tale.

[Guest fountainhall]

It has to do with immaturity, and that could be the message in Shakespeare's tale.

 

If not the message, then certainly one of its key marketing points. Although the age of consent in Shakespeare's day for boys was 14 and for girls 12, the average age at which most people got married was around 27! Only those in high society or from rich families could afford to marry young.

 

 

Part of the effect of Shakespearean tragedy is a sense of hyperbole, that one is watching something above or beyond the ordinary. In terms of status, neither Romeo nor Juliet is of outstanding importance in their society; it is their extreme youth that gives the tragedy much of its force--and it is probable that this effect was as true of Shakespeare's audience as of today's.

 

http://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/Library/SLT/society/family/marriage.html#juliet

[kokopelli]

What is your source? Romeo and Juliet is not a love story. It's a 3-day relationship between a 13-yr old and (ostensibly) a 17-yr old that caused 6 deaths. Maybe that's why there's a law against underage sex, whether or not one is of legal age. It has to do with immaturity, and that could be the message in Shakespeare's tale.

 

I was 13 yo when I fell in lust with Romeo; he was a senior and I a freshman in high school. By serendipity  I became his roommate in college when I was a freshman and he a senior. I can tell you he carried a large dirk and was an accomplished swordsman. Yes, Thaiworthy, there was a Romeo and he was well named.

[Guest fountainhall]

But you cannot leave it there, Popopelli! Don't keep us in suspense! What was his fate?

[kokopelli]

You mean besides sitting around nude ?  Well, he graduated from college, got married, had kids and was employed in the care and maintenance of WMDs.  After graduation I never heard from him again for 40 years until a few months ago when he contacted me by email.  Guess we were both surprised that we were still alive.

[Guest fountainhall]

That's what I meant. He actually lived to tell the tale. So not really a classic Romeo figure or he'd have been six feet underground decades ago! 

[kokopelli]

Yes, Romeo lived, but our other roommate, Roberto, died on the eve of his graduation on the campus of a nearby women's college.  He had just left his girlfriend with whom he was madly in love , fell asleep at the wheel , hit a tree  and died .

And then there was the handsome Lorenzo, but that is another story and we are well off topic.

[Guest thaiworthy]

Koko, Romeo, Roberto and Lorenzo. All names ending in "O." Coincidence or some weird lovers-leap fraternity?

[KhorTose]

Koko, Romeo, Roberto and Lorenzo. All names ending in "O." Coincidence or some weird lovers-leap fraternity?

No, just a coincidence, but his Thai boyfriejnd is named "O".

[kokopelli]

Koko, Romeo, Roberto and Lorenzo. All names ending in "O." Coincidence or some weird lovers-leap fraternity?

 

No coincidence, they were all Italiano. 

[Guest thaiworthy]

No coincidence, they were all Italiano. 

 

Koko is Italian? I should have guessed after seeing him polish off a whole bottle of Italian vino!

[Guest fountainhall]

It was no doubt the typical Italian wine named Chianto