R... Doesn't Answer Anymore

1981

52min

For three months, the Dardenne brothers investigated independent local radio stations in Belgium, France, Italy and Switzerland. The result is a fascinating picture of the arrival of independent radio in Europe as a subversive alternative to the official media (public broadcasters and commercial mass media). To do this, the filmmakers spoke with pioneers. They also took an interest in the installations, such as hidden transmitters. One of them is a radio which broadcasts in the Alsatian dialect in order to protect a minority language. R… ne répond plus is a virtuoso work in which the Dardennes experiment with sound, only logical since the subject concerns radio stations. The film ends in an almost deafening cacophony of voices, static and other sounds that fill the airwaves.