grodscorp@grods.com
Film rating: 5/5
Walkouts: 0/5
Pretentious clapping at credits: 4/5
BPM sighting: No
Ben suffers from Asperger’s syndrome, a type of autism that prevents him from interacting socially with those around him. The victim of relentless bullying at his high school, his only retreat is the fantasy world of Overlord, an online game where he is free to transform himself and dispatch his enemies without effort. But when the bullying invades his online world things spiral out of control, and Ben is forced to take real action.
The debut feature from Belgian director Nic Balthazar, Ben X is an exploration of school bullying, autism and the effects of online culture.
It’s lucky that this film is engaging right from the start because I watched the start twice. Arriving ten minutes before the scheduled screening time I was shocked to find the opening credits rolling as I walked into the cinema. Obviously the projectionist got his or her arse kicked pretty quickly because the lights came up and the film stopped before the end of the credits sequence. At the scheduled time the film started for proper and I don’t mind admitting that 88 minutes later I had tears in my eyes.
Ben X takes you inside the mind and world of autistic Ben and charts his struggles with living in the real world, drawing constant parallels with his life inside an online game. The lead actor is mesmorising in his dialogue-free performance and the film’s visual direction helps you to empathise even more with the character. The plot is just unpredictable enough, and the twists just plausible enough, that you are taken on an extraordinary and emotional journey from beginning to end. The film’s climactic scene avoids unnecessary cliches, and challenges you to think and feel rather than simply absorb.
A worthy five star film.
