Face of Flanders: Matthias Schoenaerts
It made its way around the internet faster than a tourist can buy a waffle: Matthias Schoenaerts is off to the US to star in the Hollywood remake of the hit Flemish film Loft. Rarely is a Flemish actor the recipient of such an honour, especially in a film in need of such a strong ensemble cast.
But Eric Van Looy, the Flemish director charged with re-shooting his film in the atmospheric New Orleans, pushed the American producers to consider Schoenaerts. They reviewed his work and were convinced, much to the amazement of a Flanders now bursting with pride.
But the film critics of Belgium are not particularly surprised. It was clear from Any Way the Wind Blows, released eight years ago, that Schoenaerts would not disappear from movie screens any time soon. He’s got the roots (his father is the late, great actor Julien Schoenaerts), he’s got the looks, and he’s got the talent. Schoenaerts, 33, is adept at smashing all expectations, as he goes from good guy (Pulsar) to bad guy (Rundskop) to that jittery place in-between (My Queen Karo).
Loft is definitely in the bad guy area. He’ll be reprising his role as the youngest member of the film’s group of five men, who band together to rent a secret loft apartment to which they bring their mistresses. When one of them finds the bloodied body of a dead woman in the king-size bed (the focal point of the room), members of the group begin to turn on each other.
Of course, it’s one thing to speak your native language in a film; it’s another to join a group of American actors and speak theirs. Van Looy is unconcerned. “Matthias’ English is very good; I know that because he did Robert De Niro imitations on the set,” he joked with Humo magazine last week. “And I’ve seen Rundskop. If someone can learn Sint-Truidens dialect, he should be a master at English.” The film shoots this summer and should release next year. It’s a brilliant chance for Schoenaerts, and if he pulls off the role in the States the same way he did here, it’s hard to imagine he’ll be satisfied with spending every minute of his future at home in Antwerp.
