#Karim Ouelhaj

[anhed-nia]

MEGALOMANIAC (2022)

For viewers like myself, a lot of descriptors have a double life. Sometimes if I say that a movie is misanthropic and nihilistic, and populated by ugly, unlikable characters, I mean that it's a dreary, unrewarding slog; other times (probably a lot more of the time, due to my habits) I mean that it's a fascinating and challenging reflection of real life's lack of justice and resolution. On rare occasions both things are true, and I'm stuck with an experience that irritates and fascinates in equal measure, and I'm just like, you know. What the fuck.

Karim Ouelhaj's MEGALOMANIAC is a Belgian psychological thriller about the children of a serial murderer whose adult lives revolve around the question of whether and how to deal with their father's violent legacy. Brother Felix is an indulgent perpetuator, while sister Martha is burdened with upholding a veneer of normality, even though her miserable daily existence continuously begs for brutal retaliation. The film tours one intolerable circumstance after another leading up to its final explosion of savagery, which may or may not feel like the equal of the vile injustices that have gone before.

Whether MEGALOMANIAC is "good" or not will depend largely on the individual viewer. I want to say that many things about it are of a genuinely high quality, especially its handful of excellent performances. The movie is well-dressed and nicely shot, and often boasts a daring visual inventiveness even at the risk of skirting camp. Though it achieves a certain strange beauty, the production is drenched in blood, piss, stale cum, and industrial grime; if MEGALOMANIAC were a scented candle that you lit in your home, you'd have to find a new place to live. What can I say, some of us dig that sort of thing.

Narratively, it teases the question of how much of this misadventure is a figment of the protagonist's imagination, which I usually find a little annoying unless a very specific point is being made about the nature and function of delusion; in this case the story orbits around ideas about intergenerational trauma and abuse cycles, so maybe that's the big excuse, although I'm not sure that any compelling conclusions are drawn. That said, there is a certain honesty in the film's characterizations, especially Martha (Eline Schumacher) who simultaneously inspires pity and loathing. I wondered if Martha weren't named after Shirley Stoler's character in THE HONEYMOON KILLERS, a lonely nurse who kills for love. Both Marthas seem determined to establish the bare minimum requirement for being redeemable, while also posing the question of whether and why that should matter. If that's the kind of thing you often wonder about, you can watch MEGALOMANIAC now on Shudder! I know I'll be thinking about this movie for a long time, whether I like it or not. Sometimes that quality is more impressive than just being "good".

[moviemosaics]

Megalomaniac

directed by Karim Ouelhaj, 2022

[cultfaction]

New poster and trailer released for Megalomaniac!

Directed by Karim Ouelhaj and starring Eline Schumacher, Wim Willaert, Benjamin Ramon, Pierre Nisse, and Raphaëlle Lubansu, Megalomaniac follows Martha and Félix, the children of the Butcher of Mons, a notorious Belgian serial killer from the 1990s. Unstable and riddled with insecurities, Martha lives vicariously through social media. Her brother, crushed by the family legacy, takes over their…

[gebo4482]

MEGALOMANIAC | Official Trailer (2022)

Dir: Karim Ouelhaj Star: Eline Schumacher / Wim Willaert / Benjamin Ramon

[applicationitunesplayvod]

Regardez Megalomaniac en streaming sur l’application iTunes PlayVOD

Si vous souhaitez regarder un film ce week-end, pensez à installer l’application iTunes PlayVOD ! Vous y trouverez « Megalomaniac », un long-métrage de Karim Ouelhaj proposé en streaming.

[whatsonmedia]

European cinema rewarded at Portugal's film festival

If life begins at 40, then Fantasporto, Portugal's international film festival, has not only found its feet, but is also certain of its place and purpose in the years ahead. Despite its association with horror and fantasy, the generalist festival took place this year at a new venue in Porto. Indeed, the 43rd edition of one of Europe's oldest film festivals dedicated to European cinema, maybe in contrast to earlier editions where the organizers accused of prioritizing Asian films, but more on that eventually... Megalomaniac (Belgium) and Narcosis (Dutch) Megalomaniac (Belgium) won the big prize in the Fantastic Movies section, while the Dutch film Narcosis triumphed in the Directors Week - a category with growing importance at the festival dedicated to cinema of all genres - and there was home-grown success for the Portuguese film Incubus, by Tito Fernandes, which won the short film and the Portuguese film gong, an unusual achievement for a national production. https://youtu.be/NNd2Zcp1NNA It also proved a success for European cinematography at a festival that evolved into a public platform for productions from across the world. "It's curious that practically only European films triumphed in this edition, when we often accused of privileging Asian cinema," one of its co-founders, Beatriz Pacheco Pereira, writes with Mário Dorminsky. But it's not entirely unreal, given the festival's recent emphasis on Asian cinematography (Japan, China, South Korea, Philippines, etc.) and the number of winners in the key categories from these nations.  Who said what? This refocusing on Europe comes with a distressing film, heir to a Belgian heritage of sociological filmmaking. Lawrence Trott, a jury member and former director of Scotland Yard's audiovisual section, told Euronews Culture that he was both happy and proud of Megalomaniac's win: "I've spent most of my life fighting racism and misogyny, so awarding this film was important to me." However, as the film's director, Karim Ouelhaj, noted to Euronews Culture, this is far from a basic anti-misogyny statement. If the main heroine, Martha, raped while working as a factory cleaner, she also becomes an executioner by assisting her brother, a serial murderer, in his horrific mission. "I refuse Manichaeism or the way of portraying the characters only as good or bad," the filmmaker adds. "The victim frequently becomes violent, and there is a boomerang effect." Megalomaniac also won Best Actress (Eline Schumacher) and Best Director, in addition to the Best Film prize. If "Megalomaniac" shows a terrible spiral of violence, Martijn de Jong's Narcosis, winner of Directors Week, is about loneliness and the anguish of losing someone. https://youtu.be/tSDNcI3n61M What distinguishes this film, according to the jury, is "the way in which the fluctuations of a grieving woman's scattered mind interrelate with the hectic autumn landscape outside and with the overall rhythm of the story's atmosphere." In the Orient Express section, which dedicated to Asian cinema, Kargo, by Filipino TM Malones, took top place, beating out other opponents from Japan. Historic venue Special edition of Fantas held at Batalha Cinema Center, one of Porto's iconic venues for the seventh art. After being closed and abandoned for years, this top Porto cinephilia destination has restored to its former glory. This cinema is a site of devotion for film fans and a landmark for art. And the work of Julio Pomar's frescoes that decorate its walls, making it an important monument in the city. Júlio Pomar's frescoes have pride of place at film Festival Batalha - Ricardo Figueira / Euronews The frescos emerged in the 1940s and covered with numerous layers of plaster by the Salazar regime before they fixed almost miraculously. After being assumed to be lost for nearly seven decades, several generations are suddenly discovering them for the first time. "I began attending film sessions in Batalha; this is a place that has been extremely important in my development as a film lover." Discovering these frescoes for the first time and being able to work near them is a big delight," remarked Beatriz Pacheco Pereira. Read the full article

[moviesandmania]

MEGLOMANIAC (2022) Reviews of gruelling Belgian horror

MEGLOMANIAC (2022) Reviews of gruelling Belgian horror

Megalomaniac is a 2022 Belgian horror film based upon the real-life serial killer known as ‘The Butcher of Mons’ who was never caught. The plot suggests he had offspring that carried on his grisly campaign of murder. Written, co-produced and directed by Karim Ouelhaj. Also produced by Nicolas George and Florence Saâdi. The movie stars Eline Schumacher, Wim Willaert, Benjamin Ramon and Pierre…

[thepeoplesmovies]

GRIMMFEST - Film Review - Megalomaniac (2022)

GRIMMFEST – Film Review – Megalomaniac (2022)

The knives and hammers are out in this grueling tar pit of original sin as we follow the imagined offspring of the real-life serial killer the Mons Butcher. Felix has grasped the family baton of butchery and continues the work of his notorious father who slaughtered women and dumped their hacked-up remains in bin bags on the streets of Mons. Meanwhile, his mentally ravaged sister Martha is…

[cultfaction]

Megalomaniac arrives this September!

Directed by Karim Ouelhaj and starring Eline Schumacher, Wim Willaert, Benjamin Ramon, Pierre Nisse, and Raphaëlle Lubansu, Megalomaniac follows Martha and Félix, the children of the Butcher of Mons, a notorious Belgian serial killer from the 1990s. Unstable and riddled with insecurities, Martha lives vicariously through social media. Her brother, crushed by the family legacy, takes over their…

[dangercinema-blog]

Merci au Nova d’avoir au l’audace de nous faire découvrir les films de Karim !

Plus d’info ici : http://www.okayss.com/film/une-realite-par-seconde/

rencontre à chaud : https://www.mixcloud.com/radiocampusbruxelles/danger-cinéma-interview-à-chaud-d-une-réalité-par-seconde-de-karim-ouelhaj/

Rencontre au calme découpée en partie: 

https://www.mixcloud.com/radiocampusbruxelles/interview-de-karim-ouelhaj-part1-son-parcours/

https://www.mixcloud.com/radiocampusbruxelles/interview-de-karim-ouelhaj-part2-son-paysage-cinéma/

https://www.mixcloud.com/radiocampusbruxelles/interview-de-karim-ouelhaj-part3-génèse-de-son-film-une-réalité-par-seconde/

https://www.mixcloud.com/radiocampusbruxelles/interview-de-karim-ouelhaj-part4-le-film-une-réalité-par-seconde-et-lavenir/

[gebo4482]

MEGALOMANIAC - Originaltrailer

Dir: Karim Ouelhaj Star: Eline Schumacher / Wim Willaert / Benjamin Ramon

[okayss-tundra]

TUNDRA

" Créer c'est résister, résister c'est créer"  Stéphane Hessel /CNR

Karim OUELHAJ continue à dépeindre avec brio pour son 3ème long-métrage la société et son acteur principal : l'homme. Sous son objectif, l’acharnement d’un homme pour un éveil de conscience collective sur l’évolution de notre monde, un monde en perte de repères.

Le film est en ce moment au montage, mais on ne résiste plus à l'envie de vous partager notre engouement quant à ce projet audacieux.

Symopsis

Tundra est l’odyssée chaotique du « Grec », un homme qui a décidé de tout plaquer. Dénué de tout, sauf de son sens critique, il voyage au hasard de ses envies.

Avec humour, et parfois férocité, il va tenter d’ouvrir les yeux de tous ceux qu’il croisera sur son chemin.