YOUNG MOTHERS
Canadian premiere
De / from :
Jean- Pierre Dardenne et Luc Dardenne
Avec / with :
Babette Verbeek, Elsa Houben, Janaina Halloy, Lucie Laruelle, Samia Hilmi, Jef Jacobs, Gunter Duret, Christelle Cornil, India Hair, …
Durée en minutes / Runtime :
105
Genre :
Drama
Langue / Language :
French with English Subtitles
Pays / Country :
France, Belgique
Au Cinéma le / in theaters :
Sunday, November 16, 2025 at 7.00 p.m.
Date de sortie / Release date :
May 22nd, 2025 (France)
THE DARDENNE BROTHERS –
A major influence on contemporary French-language cinema
« Young Mothers » will be preceded by Catherine Dultude’s short film
Petit Mollusque
Narrated by a father, Petit Mollusque is the story of a family that navigates between joy and fear at the news of a pregnancy, having already experienced two perinatal bereavements.
Jessica, Perla, Julie, Ariane, and Naïma are staying in a maternal home that supports them in their lives as young mothers. Five teenage girls hope to achieve a better life for themselves and for their child.
Translated into English from Jeunes Mères – Film (2025) – Sens Critique
- “The directors balance the narrative threads well, and the film moves at a brisk pace. Jeunes Mères isn’t a downer, either. The film doesn’t give us much backstory (when Jessica finally gets some from her mother, it’s rather thin). The emphasis is on the future. We realize that the center is like a womb that the girls are not only mothers but will themselves be reborn as whole persons – as adult women.”
Jeunes Mères (Young Mothers): Little Women – and Their Babies – Bright Lights Film Journal - “Young Mothers is a film rooted in empathy and interested in the invisible realities of shouldering adult responsibilities in the wake of adolescence. While the Dardenne brothers maintain their signature approach, their reliance on performance and overstuffing of the film’s narrative occasionally undercuts its emotional power. Still, there’s no denying the weight of the subject matter, the sincerity of its approach, and the invitation to witness these young women’s lives by feeling the weight of their choices.”
Awards Watch – ‘Young Mothers’ Review: The Dardennes Mine Emotional Trauma and Resilience of Teen Motherhood [B-] Cannes
- Cannes Film Festival, May 2025
- Edinburgh International Film Festival, August 2025
- Cannes Film Festival, 2025 –Nominee Palm d’or
- Cannes Film Festival, 2025– Winner Best Screenplay
- Cannes Film Festival, 2025– Winner Prize of the Ecumenical Jury
Co-presenter: Oasis Centre Femmes
