Oscars: Belgium Selects Lukas Dhont’s ‘Coward’ For International Feature Film Race

Lukas Dhont’s latest feature, Coward, has been selected as Belgium’s entry for the Best International Feature Film category at the 99th Academy Awards. Directed by Dhont from a screenplay he wrote with Angelo Tijssens, Coward is set at the height of the First World War and follows Pierre, a soldier newly arrived at the front, who is eager to prove himself. Behind the lines, he meets Francis, who decides to lift the spirits of his comrades by putting together a theatre show. While the violence continues, both men try to find ways to escape the brutality of war, even if only for a moment. Coward is a Reunion, Lumen, Topkapi Films & Versus (Opus) production in co-production with France 2 Cinéma, VTM, RTBF, Proximus, BeTV & Orange. The film was produced in association with The Common Humanity Art Trust and Portobello Productions. Watch on Deadline The film will be distributed in Benelux by Lumière and in France by Diaphana Distribution. Mubi has acquired Coward in the UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Italy, Spain, Turkey, Latin America, Australia, and New Zealand. Mubi also released Dhont’s Close, which was nominated for the Best International Feature Film Oscar. The Match Factory handles international sales. In his review out of Cannes, Deadline’s Peter Hammond described the film as a “heartbreaking screen love story.” “Lukas Dhont in his brief filmography has proven to be a filmmaker whose eye is on people and what makes us who we are,” Hammond wrote. “That is a rare talent, much needed in these daunting times. Coward may be a story taking place in war, but it is set firmly in the human heart.”