Jeanne Dielman, 23, Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles story
Jeanne Dielman, 23, Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles is a 1975 arthouse film by Belgian filmmaker Chantal Akerman. Jeanne Dielman examines a single mother's regimented schedule of cooking, cleaning and mothering over three days. The mother, Jeanne Dielman (whose name is only derived from the title and from a letter she reads to her son), has sex with male clients in her house daily for her and her son's subsistence. Like her other activities, Jeanne's sex work is part of the routine she performs every day by rote and is uneventful. But on the second and third day, Jeanne's routine begins to unravel subtly, as she overcooks the potatoes that she's preparing for dinner, and drops a newly washed spoon. These alterations to Jeanne's existence prepare for the climax on the third day, during which she murders a client.
10 total · 2 choice · 4 major · 4 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| gender issue | choice | the film is called a feminist masterpiece and showcases a woman's lot in contemporary Belgium - dreary housework and degrading sexwork |
| prostitution | choice | Jeanne sold sex to provide for herself and her son after she became a widow. |
| equal career opportunities for women | major | Jeanne had a lousy career and resorted to sex work after her husband died |
| mother and son | major | Jeanne was taking care of her son |
| murder | major | The three days of Jeanne's otherwise dreary life culminated in a sudden murder. |
| single motherhood | major | Jeanne took care of her son all alone |
| aunt and niece | minor | Jeanne talked about her and her aunts (or were they her son's aunts?) |
| coping with the death of a spouse | minor | Jeanne did not seem much affected by it but did talk about the death of her husband. |
| husband and wife | minor | Jeanne spoke of her relationship with her late husband |
| the nature of love | minor | there was an esoteric discussion about love |