It's All So Quiet

The late Dutch actor Jeroen Willems's character is a mystery for most of It's All So Quiet, where he plays a solitary, taciturn farmer named Helmer, who resists companionship and serves as caretaker—with no evident warmth—for his bedridden father (Henri Garcin). As the film's title suggests, Helmer's daily routines are low-key, cleaning up after his cows and other animals, dressing and undressing his father, and ducking out of sight when a dairyman turns up in his truck—repeatedly dashing the visitor's hopes of making an earnest connection. In time, however, the viewer begins to put together little clues of who Helmer is, generating sympathy for his past and the torments of his present mid-life. Based on a 2006 novel (published as The Twin in English) by Gerbrand Bakker, filmmaker Nanouk Leopold's affecting character study is recommended. (T. Keogh)