The film follows three days in the life of a widowed mother living in Brussels with her teenage son (Image: BFI)
Some films come and go. Others quietly grow in reputation until they are suddenly being called the greatest ever made. This 1975 classic is one of them. For years, it was seen as a slow, unusual drama. Now, nearly five decades later, critics have crowned it the best film of all time.
In 2022, it topped the British Film Institute’s Sight and Sound poll, a once-every-10-years ranking voted for by film critics around the world. It also holds a strong 95% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes. But it is not a big Hollywood blockbuster. It is not packed with action or special effects. Instead, it focuses on something much simpler and much more uncomfortable.
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Delphine Seyrig in Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du Commerce, 1080 Brussels (Image: BFI)
The film is Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles.
Written and directed by Chantal Akerman and starring Delphine Seyrig, the film follows three days in the life of a widowed mother living in Brussels with her teenage son.
Shot over five weeks on location and funded by a $120,000 grant from the Belgian Government, it premiered at the Directors’ Fortnight section of the 1975 Cannes Film Festival on May 22 before being released in France in January 1976.
The story unfolds slowly. Jeanne cooks, cleans, shops and carries out her daily routine with near-perfect precision.
Each afternoon, she receives a man in her flat for a brief encounter, hiding the money afterwards. As tiny mistakes creep into her routine, the tension quietly builds towards a shocking final scene.
Over time, the film has been re-evaluated as a feminist landmark and an early example of “slow cinema”. For many, it is now essential viewing.
One person wrote in a review on Rotten Tomatoes: “There is a reason this is considered the greatest movie ever made. It is a brutally hard watch because of how real it feels.
“A lot of people don’t seem to have the capacity for empathy during the gruelling, long and boring scenes of housework that reflect how women were and are isolated and oppressed.”
Another added: “Absolutely deserving of its present status as the greatest film ever made. If you watch it passively, you won’t appreciate or enjoy it. It will seem boring or pointless.
Each afternoon, Jeanne receives a man in her flat for a brief encounter (Image: BFI)
“If you watch it actively and engagedly, you will find it stunning and richly rewarding. And the ending is a whopper!”
A third wrote: “Absolute masterpiece. Mesmerizing. Beautifully shot. Very interesting idea that is well executed. The film has its own pace and makes the monotonous everyday life intriguing and hypnotising.”
Someone else commented: “This might be one of my new favourite films! Every frame had meaning and information that built the story. Every moment was essential to the larger message. My own boredom, if any, came from incorrectly reading the information presented.”
Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles can be streamed on the BFI player.