Aaltra (Gustave de Kervern & Benoît Delépine, 2004)

Two Belgian feuding farmers find themselves both confined to wheelchairs after being mangled by the harvester that was the focal point of their enmity. Aggrieved and still backbiting, they set out across Europe to confront the manufacturer of the culpable machine.
Aaltra is a small film with an idea probably only broad enough to cover a short, but it's still filled out with enough fun interludes, such as when the grumpy duo massively outstay their welcome with a benevolent German family or attempt to rob anyone who'd choose to aid two poor cripples. Culminating with just a surly Nordic/Gallic shrug of the shoulders - including the apposite cameo by a certain poker-faced director - is a fitting end for a black comedy that resolutely avoids either forcing its protagonists to learn to love each other or giving their quest a redemptive end.

6/10