EditJeanne Dielman, 23, quai du commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (1975)

This is not an ordinary film one would watch for fun or to make time pass more quickly. On the contrary, watch it if you are ready to experience a social experiment that, by chance, has been filmed. The viewers are silent observers of the daily routine of a middle-aged housewife. Jeanne Dielman is a lonely widow, living with her teenage son, and trying to make ends meet. We see every step of her chores - making beds, cooking, cleaning the table... all done in real time. Little by little we realise that Jeanne’s life is desperately boring, that no matter how safe such lifestyle may seem, it is actually a prison. Suddenly, a change occurs and puts an end to Jeanne’s routine. The director and writer Chantal Akerman has created a film that will make you cherish the underestimated everyday efforts needed to keep a home clean and tidy.