The Only One 2006

Lucien Nand Buyl is a stubborn man in his eighties whose routine becomes a daily clash when he moves into his daughter Gerda’s house after his wife’s death. The transition throws him into a small world of shared living with other residents, and his uncompromising way of life routinely disrupts the rhythm of the home. He resists many of Gerda’s requests, stubbornly pushing back against authority and refusing to cede control over his own life.

After yet another incident, Gerda nears her limit and contemplates placing him in a rest home. To her relief, Lucien abruptly announces that he won’t stay and will return to his own house, insisting that his “new girlfriend” will also come along. Gerda sharpens her budget and worries about the money she had earmarked for a deluxe campervan to visit Spain, fearing this plot is more about fuel for manipulation than genuine affection.

Lucien later confides in his granddaughter Julie that he does not actually have a new girlfriend yet. In the household, Mathilde, the wife of his best friend Felix, becomes a fixture who will handle housekeeping. Mathilde Viviane de Muynck is drawn into the older man’s life in ways that reveal past secrets: the two had already been involved when Lucien’s wife was still alive, and they once promised each other eternal love, though they felt compelled to keep it secret until their respective partners had passed away.

Living on his own proves tougher than Lucien anticipated. He feels the absence of Mathilde when she’s away, and only Julie’s visits bring warmth. When Julie announces she will leave for France to study, the house grows quieter and the days expand with a kind of lonely restlessness.

A sharp turn arrives with a new neighbor, Sylvia Marijke Pinoy, a woman in her mid-to-late forties who piques Lucien’s curiosity. Sylvia brings energy, instruction, and a spark of youth back into his life. She teaches him how to manage the housekeeping routine and even offers computer lessons, reviving his interest in daily life and independence. Yet Gerda and Mathilde remain wary of Sylvia, questioning the motives of this unfamiliar intruder in their family dynamic.

As the friendship between Lucien and Sylvia grows, a delicate balance forms—one that promises renewed companionship without abandoning the responsibilities of his family. But the film turns on a decisive choice: Lucien eventually steps back from this budding relationship, choosing to prioritize his family’s stability and the obligations he feels toward them, even if it means letting go of the possible happiness Sylvia represented.

Throughout, the story deftly explores aging, autonomy, and the tension between living independently and belonging to a family. It tracks how memories of love, secrecy, and guilt shape present choices, and it follows Lucien as he navigates the rough terrain of duty, desire, and the fear that change might undermine the careful, fragile peace he has built.