Ben X



A Belgian film from 2007 about an teenager with Aspergers syndrome who has some difficulties dealing with the world and is tormented by his classmates. He seeks solace in an MMORPG, ArchLord, where he has a friend, Scarlite. After a particularly nasty bit of bullying, Ben considers suicide.

While not a darling of Dutch-language critics, the film did please the public, won some international prizes, and was the Belgian entry for the Best Foreign Language Oscar (it did not get a nomination).

The film was written and directed by Nic Balthazar, a Belgian presenter. It's based on a book and play, Niets was alles wat hij zei, also written by Nic Balthazar. It was based on the story of a Belgian teenager with Aspergers.

Tropes:

 * Adults Are Useless: Played with.
 * Awesome but Impractical: Arguably, the 'death cross' that Ben constructs later on in the movie. Hint:
 * Based on a True Story: The book was based on the story of a Belgian teenager with ASD
 * The Bully: The bullies, in this case -- Bogaert and Desmet.
 * Dawson Casting: While Ben is in one of his last years of secondary school, the actor playing him, Greg Timmermans, was 27 when the film was shot.
 * Driven to Suicide:
 * The Film of the Book
 * Gamer Chick: Scarlite.
 * Headphones Equal Isolation: Ben uses an iPod with loud music to drown out the noises in the street and to keep people from talking to him.
 * It Got Worse: Yep.
 * Jerkass: Bogaert, Desmet... nearly everybody at Ben's school.
 * Kids Are Cruel: Especially his 'best friends' Bogaert and Desmet.
 * "Kids like him don't stand a chance. They're easy prey."
 * Meaningful Rename: Ben X, when pronounced in Dutch, sounds the like "Ben niks", which means "Am nothing".
 * Never Bring a Knife To A Fist Fight: Ben
 * The Quiet One: Ben.
 * Tomato Surprise:
 * The Woobie: Oh god, Ben.
 * Never Bring a Knife To A Fist Fight: Ben
 * The Quiet One: Ben.
 * Tomato Surprise:
 * The Woobie: Oh god, Ben.