Zus & Zo (2001) User Reviews (21)

Perhaps not the best example of Dutch cinema, but still a very good movie

[philip_vanderveken · 7/10 · 20 September 2005]

Before watching this movie I didn't know anything about it except for the fact that it was Dutch. Even though their film industry isn't the biggest of all time, I've already seen several good Dutch productions and I know that the standard level of quality is often very high. That's also the reason why I try to watch as many of them as I can. However, when I saw on this website that this movie had actually been nominated for an Oscar, I must admit that I was very surprised. Not because I didn't like it or because it wasn't any good. No, I was surprised because over here no-one has ever payed any attention to it.

"Zus & zo" tells the story of three completely different sisters who don't always get along that well, but who now have to fight for a common goal, called Hotel Paraiso, a hotel on the coast of Portugal that will be theirs unless their brother gets married before a certain age. Normally that shouldn't have been difficult, because the man is gay, but now that he has announced his marriage with a woman, they will have to try to prevent it. To stop their would-be sister-in-law, they are willing to go very far, because nothing or no-one should come between them and their inheritance...

Like so often with Dutch movies, I can't say that I had heard of any of the actors before, except for Halina Reijn. But just like in those other movies, this time too I really liked the performances by all of them. Even though this is a comedy, they never went too far in their performances, but instead made all the characters look very human, with all their little problems, flaws and weird specialties. That's of course not only thanks to the actors, the writer of the script has a lot to do with that too, but still, they did a fine job.

I don't know if Paula van der Oest, the woman who directed and wrote this movie, has ever been in a similar situation, but she sure knows perfectly how to describe the greediness and the double-faced way of acting from people that are about to inherit a lot of money or an important piece of property. She really did a very nice job with it and was able to add some very fine humor to it all. The entire idea behind it makes it all very suitable for a comedy of course, but that doesn't mean that it is automatically good of course. There are many things that could have gone wrong, but Paula van der Oest avoided the traps and made a very good movie out of it.

In the end this may not be the best Dutch movie that I've ever seen, but the humor and the overall quality are very good. I really had a good time with this movie and that's why I give it a 7.5/10.

Great flick!

[Exiled_Archangel · 9/10 · 12 March 2004]

I had promised myself to see every Dutch movie there is, after seeing the wonderful "Spoorloos" and "Soldaat Van Oranje". Zus & Zo came up as the first Dutch movie I found on DVD with English subtitles, and I couldn't miss it. Well, good thing I didn't. I enjoyed every single frame of it. It's really light, yet close to being a masterpiece. It's not the least bit surprising that this movie was nominated for an Academy Award, it's really great. By the way, I don't want to mislead anyone: It has absolutely nothing to do with the two movies in question, it's 100% different. I just mean it's *almost* as fantastic as they are.

Zus & Zo is not exactly about gays, nor is it about family hardships; it's mostly about feelings and true love. The pure feelings of two men for each other, and the not so pure feelings of 3+1* women for money.(*One of the women is a little more "innocent"; the sisters, however, are not quite that pleasant.*) But the ending comes such that you do not end up hating the women in question. That's for me to say, the rest is for you to watch. And DO watch it, you won't be disappointed. I repeat: It's not a movie for gays, I liked it very much as a straight guy. And Monique Hendrickx is a goddess. I'll marry her when I grow up ;-) I just had to add that!

8.5 out of 10 for Zus & Zo.

Enjoy the funny and moving portrait of a slightly derailed family

[alexvanderlinde · 8/10 · 24 May 2002]

Even in The Netherlands, Dutch movies hardly ever get the attention and number of viewers as movies from the United States. I don't know what the box office results for 'Zus & zo' finally will be. But it is very likely that the American remake (RCV bought the rights) of this movie will be more successful than the Dutch original.

This is unjust. 'Zus & zo' is a romantic comedy, with a soap like story-line, and is very funny, yet moving - and thus nothing like a soap at all. The timing of the actors - very important for a comedy - is good, as most actors know each other from the same theater company. Every character - both male and female - gets it's share of scepsis by sharp observation of their manners, yet the director managed to prevent over-the-top acting.

'Zus & zo' provides a real life mirror for everyone. Choose your own character to take 'example' from: one of the three jealous sisters in their thirties, not satisfied with their lives, but also not able to change it. Or one of the husbands, one addicted to women, or the other being a doormat suffering under his wife's hospitality for just about every one who needs help. Or the timid gay brother, marrying a woman (!) to inherit his parents summer residence in Portugal. Or the optimist (opportunist?) bride-to-be Bo, much more self-confident than the three sisters and apparently without a weak point.

Or just enjoy this tragi-comic portrait of a slightly derailed family.

This got an oscarnomination?

[Weary76 · 8/10 · 23 April 2006]

In the first 10 minutes: "Oh no, our gay brother is getting married to a girl just to inherit daddy's hotel in Portugal!"

Half an hour later: "Oh no, our gay brother is getting married to a girl just to inherit daddy's hotel in Portugal!"

An hour later: "Oh no, our gay brother is getting married to a girl just to inherit daddy's hotel in Portugal!"

And finally in the last half hour they actually do something about it, but I wasn't interested anymore. The rest of the film is filled with the life of the sisters themselves. But personally I thought all of them were quite annoying, so I couldn't have cared less. And that ol' Dutch provocative sex comes through as well. Filmmakers don't seem to notice the majority of the Dutch saying they're getting pretty fed up with all that.

I have no idea why this film was nominated for an Oscar, since it has very little interesting to offer. "Character" which won an Oscar before was absolutely worth it. See 'm both and see the difference.

Engaging script and competent acting

[tommyg · 9/10 · 20 August 2003]

When I heard about ZUS AND ZO there was something about it that was familiar. Then I read it was a 2002 Foreign Language Film Award nominee. Then I remembered my attendance at the Symposium in March, 2003, at AMPAS (i.e. Academy who plies the Oscars) in which Director Paula van der Oest presented a short clip from the film in turn with four other nominees the day before the big OSCAR event.

I totally enjoyed the film in a discussion and clip screening of four other 2002 nominees.

There were two things I remembered in Director van der Oest's discussion about the movie and the movie's making. The first relates to comments already posted: the acting / direction it is more like a play than a movie. Well, this is true, since the Netherlands does not have an embedded source of film actors. She had to recruit actors from the theatrical pool of talent.

The second thing in memory was: 'remain for all the credits at the end of the film'. Well, I did that and this part -- which I enjoyed - totally shifted my opinion of events much before the closing credits.

The parting scenes at the hospital left me hanging a bit simply because of something not said or even hinted before. Up to this point we know of the prior lover relationship between Nino and Felix - the successful cable / satellite chef who is a charmer as he hashes hash. In Felix I saw a gay man who loves gay men. I did not see in Felix a gay man who loved transsexuals or transgender or cross dresser men. So, I missed something in the story ending when he accepts his ex-boyfriend with a new sex change as his lover and lifetime partner. That was a giant leap of faith. I can only backpedal to think that Nino's problem with his sexual identity was indeed the problem between himself and Felix. And now that Felix is financially and career successful, why would he flip to the other side of the ten sided sexual coin?

Other than that, it is an excellent film, well written and well directed. It was screened in Los Angeles as part of a two-month weekend program at Laemmlie's theaters with the banner AROUND THE WORLD IN SIXTY DAYS in which six foreign films rotate between four theaters.

It is nice to have theaters that screen more than Hollywood cash-cow films!! Of course, the hope is that the milk will get sweeter and the butter richer with more independent and foreign films. Otherwise, life could grow dull.

"Yada yada yada" in Dutch

[=G= · 6/10 · 15 September 2003]

"Zus & Zo" is all about three adult sisters who conspire to thwart their gay brother's forthcoming wedding thus preventing him from inheriting a beautiful hotel on the Portuguese coast. Their late patriarch wanted his gay son to go "straight", so he left the hotel to him if he married. However, the bro wants to acquire the hotel with a marriage of convenience so he can sell it to pay for transsexual surgery - something the distaff want to prevent each for their own selfish reasons. This Dutch flick gets busy and stays busy with nonstop prattling about the "this and that" (zus and zo) of the family, the bro, the hotel, and miscellaneous side plots making it a beautifully filmed and wonderfully cast dialogue-intensive subtitlefest for those who don't spekadalanguage. Mildly amusing, sometimes sentimental, occasionally poignant, always enjoyable, and incessantly yappy, "Zus & Zo" is just too much reading for too little payoff. (B-)

highly positive

[girafjes_zijn_lief · 8 October 2002]

This movie once again proves the viability of Dutch cinema. It has wit, pace and some very endearing and convincing characters. It shifts through both serious and lightweighted issues without ever losing balance, whilst maintaining a number of different viewpoints (right vs. wrong, true vs. untrue), and perhaps its highest achievement lies in the way it treats a taboo subject (which I will not reveal here) with daring and care. I was particularly touched by the way the two main themes of family and identity were brought to life. I left the cinema just wanting to see my brother and parents again and see how they were doing. It was that good.

Zus & Zo Characters to cherish

[ronslaunch · 10/10 · 12 February 2003]

After the bit confusing end from; Zus & Zo, i found myself very amused and impressed by the actor's and actresses work in this "mess up comedy". Although i could understand most of it's strange happenings, the best happening is the smile which stayed with me for several days. This is about respect, and the jealousy money brings into a family. So well played and directed that it deserves a break through in America (in small theaters, i know, but nevertheless, the fun is huge!) Ron vanderspek

This is not a comedy

[c_attila · 3/10 · 26 June 2003]

I saw this movie on vhs, the cover box lists the movies as "Comedy/Gay." First of all there is no such genre as "gay," in my books. That is like saying movies are "Black," "Hetero," or "Jewish." Secondly, I am of the belief that for a movie to be considered a comedy it should be funny in some way. I did not laugh once while watching this movie. I was slightly sickened by the way that the characters treated each other. The sisters are ruthlessly out to thwart their brother, while he is out to screw his sisters out of potentially inheriting their father's hotel so that he can sell it. All of these characters have shady motives and treat family and friends like dirt. Sisters who sleep with their sister's husbands, a sister who cheats on her husband (that husband also happens to throw a mother and two children with no place to go out of his home as soon as his wife is out of town). How can anyone defend this film as funny? It is mean spirited, boring and wildly maladvertised. It is a pity that films like this are directed towards a gay audience simply because it involves in part a gay character. For a movie to be marketed towards a gay audience it should have a gay theme, not simply be a movie that happens to involve in some way a gay character or two.

A human story

[runsa · 23 July 2004]

This film is just wonderful. It tells the story of three different women that have lived their lives very differently and whom aren't happy with their present. The marriage of their brother is just the starting point of a bunch of situations, some funny, some sentimental, all very human. For me it isn't a gay story it's a lot more, it's a way to show the reality of how the life can take you by roads you even imagine and turn you into a person you are not, until you realize that you aren't doing what you want. Also it presents the importance of family, even if it isn't the ideal one. I recommend this movie with my eyes closed because for me it doesn't have any flaws. It's characters, the performance of the actors, the way the director tells the story, the script it self and the end are perfect.

Good but not exactly Oscar worthy

[Gordon-11 · 25 December 2012]

This film is about three sisters who has to stop their gay brother from marrying a woman.

"Zus & Zo" has many main characters, and hence I was rather confused with who is who for the first half of the film. After I was able to recognise who is who, the film gets better. The plot is more about the three sisters' unhappy lives, than their common goal to stop Nino's wedding. In fact, they only talk to Bo the fiancée about Nino's predilection for men; there aren't desperate attempts to stop the wedding. It is sad that the three sisters only care about money and not about Nino's happiness. As an Oscar nominated film, I was expecting the film to be funnier and more edgy, but I was disappointed.

just not funny

[filmfreak44 · 16 March 2003]

an oscar nomination? why? this is first of all a play...not a movie. i don't think the people who made this ever heard of the "don't tell them, show them" concept. and if only the dialog was funny. but i didn't think it was. i missed the most important thing in this movie, the clear reason i should care (or understand) why the sisters wanted to stop the wedding. Yes, to keep the hotel. But why, other then for sentimental reasons, make such a big fight about it. There should have been a stronger reason for them to try and stop the wedding. All in all, it was a boring experience for me because i didn't care about (nor understood) the people and it just wasn't funny.

a mildly interesting tale about a bunch of people I hate as well as an "agenda film"

[planktonrules · 3/10 · 26 March 2006]

I have a standard for films that not every reviewer has, and that is I must find something to connect me with the characters for me to like a film. So, if you don't mind watching a film where most of the people are selfish, hypocritical scum, then you might just like this film.

The film, to me, seems like an "agenda film", just like the more famous Dutch film ANTONIA (1995). Both seem to show "normal" straight supposedly monogamous people as generally hypocritical and those with a "new morality" to be superior. Well, at least this film did not have a strong anti-male theme like ANTONIA, but seems to strongly show traditional values as being outmoded. The straight people in the film are either sexually obsessed or frigid, while the gay and bi- characters are shown as being "nice". Why does this have to be so "black and white" an issue? In other words, can't films show people as PEOPLE and stop with silly stereotypes. In the old days, gay people were subhuman--an evil stereotype indeed. Now, the "politically correct" stereotype is that gay people are noble and straights are often narrow-minded hypocrites. Some middle-ground would sure be nice for a change! Apart from the agenda, the film is reasonably well-acted and technically sound, so it deserves a score of at least 3. However, parents are strongly warned to either watch this and discuss it with their teens or just let them wait until their adults to see this indoctrination film if they must.

Boring and boring .

[reddragon1110 · 26 October 2004]

I love foreign cinema; in fact, most of my favorite films are not in English. And I consider European cinema to be better, to be simply art. Therefore, I saw this film. I have seen some great films, but this is simply boring and in some parts tasteless. This film is original, it is good, but you end up sleeping. I was not expecting to watch some huge blockbuster, I was aware that this was a slow and pacific film. In fact, I have watched slow films, and actually loved them (Los in translation, Talk to her, Dogville, All about my mother) and this film is simply tasteless. It seems to be washed down, the performances where not very good. I can't believe films such as 'Los lunes al sol', didn't get a nomination, because of this film. The same thing happened at this year with TWIN SISTERS getting nominated. It was slooooooow, boring and the typical Jewish film. Don't expect to watch a masterpiece; in fact you loose your time with this film…..

from a trip to Portugal to "Bodies Bodies Bodies"

[lee_eisenberg · 6/10 · 6 April 2024]

Paula van der Oest's Academy Award-nominated "Zus & Zo" is a lighthearted comedy about events surrounding a wedding involving a gay man. The Netherlands was probably the most advanced country in terms of gay rights by the time that the movie came out, so I figure that there was no controversy about it (2001 in fact saw the establishment of marriage equality in the Netherlands). The movie itself isn't anything special. If you're expecting full-scale wacky comedy - i.e., what you get in a Will Ferrell movie - you won't find it here. This movie's all about the characters' interactions with each other and the issues surrounding the marriage. Not a great movie, but passable.

Co-star Halina Reijn, who plays Bo, later directed the 2022 thriller "Bodies Bodies Bodies".

Emotionally very odd

[rbowles-2 · 6/10 · 2 June 2006]

As I watched this movie, I found that rather than being a knock-about comedy which I thought it was going to be, it became very emotional and thought provoking. I didn't know if at the end I should feel happy, sad, disturbed, satisfied or just what. Maybe that is the way it is supposed to be since so oftentimes, life is exactly all of those things at once. The performances are sound, I especially appreciated the work of Jacob Derwig who plays Nino in a performance that is so focused in on a man's struggle to do what is right for himself it is positively inspiring. Sylvia Poorta as Michelle, one of the sisters, also gives a really lovely performance. I wish I knew what the title means. Does anyone know what Zus & Zo means?

Complicated, Yet Convincing

[SelvarajanK · 5/10 · 2 April 2006]

Zuz & Zo, is by far the complicated film that i can remember seeing. The story is not something that you will come across every house you peep in, yet the way in which the movie was conceived was great. The director was so mature in handling certain issues in the film. Its not glorifying any sex, its a film that you can feel for for the honesty each character shows on their lives. The climax was perfect. The reason for the sister to stop the marriage wasn't too strong, neither is Nino's reason to get married to a girl. Apart from this, the music, comedy, cinematography every thing was excellent. If not hilarious for the people who don't understand the language it was funny enough by the expressions on the faces and the situations itself. Its kind of a film you might not fall in love with but you will not regret for seeing it also.

it's a play, not a movie

[rrogerr · 1/10 · 19 May 2002]

This movie is too much a "play", not a movie. The three sisters couldn't convince me, as well as their brother. I liked Bo, as well as the husbands. The movie has nice jokes and a nice setting, but in general it was a big disappointment. It missed something.

yet another senseless and pathetic gay film

[taehanchoson · 30 August 2004]

this movie is about a gay guy, Nino and his upcoming wedding, consisting of his 3 deranged sisters, his fake fiancée Bo, his ex-boyfriend Felix and a range of oddball characters. the plot centres more on the mess-uped lives of the 3 sisters and Nino himself. what strikes me as senseless, is that Felix, a gay man willing got back to his ex-boyfriend who would be undergoing sex change to become a woman. i am confused, is he gay or not? and why would a gay man want to have sex with a woman? as a straight man, i would never ever want to have sex with my wife or girlfriend after she have changed sex to become a man. is Nino a man or woman? the story plot is very hazy and jumbled up. all in all the characters are made to look like their lives revolve around sex and nothing much else.

Nice movie, but what song is in it ?

[jubaband · 7/10 · 16 August 2006]

Hello, I saw this movie about an year or two ago on DVD. This was a nice movie. The cast played sometimes over the top, but there was enough to laugh about. The brother in law of one of the sisters (the one who thinks that he has a disease) is a bit of a loser. Halina Reijn but also Jacob Herwig are very good actors and played very well in this movie. Okay, the end is very sheep ;-)) I have a question for you all; Can someone tell me the title & artist of the song witch is played at the moment that Halina Reijn is dancing in the Hotel ? The others are drinking at the bar...

Already Thanks for the answer!

A laugh from start to finish.

[Theraveness · 14 September 2001]

This movie was fantastic, I did not know much about it on entering in to see it, all I knew is it was about a family of 3 sisters whose GAY brother, Nino, has decided to marry a woman in order to inherit their childhood summer retreat on the coast of Portugal (and an amazing hotel it is too).

I loved it. The characters are so interesting and so much fun. You had some idea of what was coming, but Paula Van Der Oest manages to throw in various twists along the way that are just priceless. Their mother is excellent, a great performance, and Nino's true love Felix is adorable.

Highly recommended.