Tori and Lokita

The miserable narrative feels both honest and a little manipulative.

Posing as siblings, a 16-year-old girl and an 11-year-old boy flee Africa in search of a better life in Europe, where they ultimately find themselves in Belgium. Financially beholden to human traffickers, they find themselves making ends meet by working as couriers for a local drug dealer. Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne's Tori and Lokita is another neo-realist masterpiece from the Belgian filmmakers, a gritty portrait of those leading lives of quiet desperation. Unmistakably the work of the two brothers, the film is austere, to say the least – handheld cameras, plenty of natural light, devoid of a music score, natural performances from a mostly non-professional cast. It's refreshing to experience a meaningful and insightful film in a cinematic world that's otherwise filled with superheroes, remakes, and sequels.

Tori and Lokita is a stomach punch of a film. Authentic to the bone, it's a strong story about survival. Which you come to expect from Belgian directors The Dardenne Brothers. They excel in portraying the real life dramas of people at the edge of society, which definitely occurs here. Lokita and Tori have come from Cameroon to live in Belgium. 16 and 11 respectively, Lokita is waiting for a work visa to support herself and Tori who is posing as her brother. They hang around a restaurant helping run drugs to make ends meet. This sombre and short film ably shows how society doesn't really cater for those at the bottom. Tori and Lokita struggle from scene to scene, often finding themselves in imminent danger. Sad and sometimes hard to watch, a film of great character and strength.

A dark look at life and sweet moments that come with it. The cast does a good job and the tough subject matter is handled well. Not bad, just drags in pacing.

This isn't realism, this is exaggeration of unbelievable proportions. Not being white and subjected to racism and physical assaults after moving to the USA, I should care more, but the plot is too "on the nose" and predictable. At least there is excellent acting.

social realism at its most accomplished, bringing us close to the perilous suspenseful survival stories of two African immigrant children in Belgium. The loving familial relationship between Tori and Lokita sustains them - and pulls us in - while all around them they face indifference, exploitation and abuse. Hard to watch, but truly rewarding and moving.