The kid with the bike is Cyril, a red-haired, angry and vulnerable 12-year old played brilliantly by Thomas Doret whom we first encounter trying to escape his foster home. Cyril wishes only to find his father and his beloved bicycle. Cyril’s unequivocal love for his father blinds him from the truth that his dad (Jeremie Renier) has sold his son’s bike and made an escape.
After literally falling into the arms of hairdresser, Samantha (Cecile De France) at a Doctor’s surgery, Cyril is taken in by the woman who agrees to take care of the boy at weekends. Why Samantha takes such a clearly troubled child into her quiet life so quickly and without much hesitation is the only slightly troubling aspect of the film. A common reading of this element of the story suggests the film should be regarded, in some senses, as a fairytale, and that interpretation makes this narrative strand more understandable. What is clear is that Samantha is kind and lonely and sees, behind Cyril’s unpredictable and angry exterior, a boy that is vulnerable and alone.
In arguably the film’s standout scene, Cyril and Samantha track down Cyril’s father, Guy. Here, Cyril’s unquestioning faith in his father’s supposed good nature and love is horribly shattered. Cyril appears outside the kitchen window of his father’s restaurant exuberantly trying to get his father’s attention. Guy’s expression combines total indifference with mild annoyance. Guy makes it clear to both Cyril and Samantha he wants nothing to do with his son and never wants to see him again. What is noticeable in this scene is its understatement and quiet brutality. There are no raised voices and no tears are shed- Guy’s rejection of Cyril is plainly delivered and explained in simple terms. Guy feels unable to take care of his son or financially support him, delivering this news in a way that reduces his son to a mere object that can’t be paid for.
The nature of this story may easily have seemed clichéd and overly sentimental in the hands of other writer/directors. This is a story involving an abandoned child, a pretty and lonely woman and their journey into (literally) each others arms. However, the restraint and naturalism of the Dardenne’s style in this film sums up their style as filmmakers. Rather than using sweeping camerawork or grand orchestral scores, they use a basic but brilliantly effective cinematic style, using hand-held camerawork, close-ups of their actors, minimising their musical scores and allowing the stories they tell to stand alone without assistance. The Kid with a Bike is an excellent way to start exploring the work of the Dardenne Brothers.
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