wierpmesch

This is a tremendously funny Dutch comedy about a small group of nihilistic twentysomethings in 1990s Amsterdam, and the relationships between them. The key character is Dimitri (Van Uchelen), a nice but very shy boy who is desperately trying to end up in a woman's bed, helped by advice from his know-it-all macho friend (or is he?) Maarten (Ekkel). Dimitri would very much like to get involved with his close friend Esther (Lodeizen), but she is unwilling to go further than a platonic relationship. After some time, Dimitri is desperate and tells Esther to walk out the door. Precisely in that moment, he just about falls into the arms of another lovely lady, Susan (Hüpscher)...

The script tells the story from two different angles, first Dimitri's, and then a second time from the perspective of his girlfriend-to-be Susan and her annoying boyfriend Gino. Only then do we get a surprising new insight into the night when Dimitri and Susan first sleep together...

The film was made with an incredibly low budget and shot and cut in just a few weeks' time, but that doesn't show at all. The acting is good and natural, the story line doesn't feel artificial and the script has lots of very humorous twists. Watch, for example, the visualisations of Dimitri's fears and fantasies, or the running gag of the drug addicts carrying cartons of custard around. This is a very sympathetic film, it has really captured my heart. Decide for yourself: did you ever see a film whose closing credits include apologies to all the extras who were in scenes that didn't make it into the final cut?