Features: DVD, Unrated, English, Subtitled
Editor's Note
Flemish filmmaker Felix Van Groeningen's debut feature STEVE SKY, a gritty romantic drama about a struggling petty criminal and his shockingly beautiful stripper lover, takes place amidst a backdrop of crime and shady goings-on in the red light district of Ghent. Recently released from a prison stint for a drug violation, scrawny Steve (Titus De Voogdt) looks up his cell-mate Jean-Claude (Johan Heldenbergh) and immediately joins him in a motorcycle-stealing racket and the reopening of his exotic dance club. Along the way, he meets the gorgeous Sky (Van Groeningen's girlfriend and fashion model Delfine Bafort), a wounded soul looking for her place in the world. As their unlikely romance develops and Sky grows dependent on Steve's affections, he rejects her love and his alienation places a nearly fatal strain on Sky's fragile psyche.Influenced by films like PULP FICTION and ALL THE REAL GIRLS, Van Groeningen has created a whirlwind of a story, with a constantly thumping soundtrack by Belgian DJs Soulwax (aka 2 Many DJs) setting off the action. In Flemish Dutch language, STEVE SKY is the first feature film to use the Ghent dialect of the language rather than the usual Antwerp dialect. Additionally, there is a brief cameo as a bouncer from former Belgian boxer Jean-Pierre Coopman, famous for a 1976 fight with Muhammad Ali. An admirable mix of action and intense character drama, STEVE SKY is a fast-paced and touching drama about real people trying to fulfill their hopes and dreams as they dodge both the law and social conformity.
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