Soldier of Orange

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Alec B @Alec97 05/03/2025 Verhoeven has a good handle on these movies about the Dutch resistance ("Black Book" is the other one) in that he avoids mythologizing while still getting the audience deeply invested in the main characters. See more William L @RT77267842 10/23/2021 One of the films that put Paul Verhoeven on the international cinematic map and a perennial favorite in its native Netherlands, Soldier of Orange takes advantage of a compelling design - a group of friends drifting in different directions, a war creeping into a country far from the front, and clandestine rebellion. There are immediately evident similarities to Verhoeven's later WWII film Black Book, particularly in toeing the line between collaborator and resistance fighter, the thriller elements, and the narrative swings. In each film, it feels like the script is driving towards a dark place only to pull up short and move on before asking particularly subversive questions; in Soldier of Orange, we go from Nazi officials using finesse and cunning to sway opinion in their favor and a protagonist who must compromise rather than run afoul of the same fate as his morally unbending friends, before slipping back into traditional action-thriller territory, treating Hauer's Erik Lanshof as a mix of James Bond and Steve McQueen, jumping from street fighter to impeccably dressed spy to RAF flyboy (the latter almost an afterthought). What Soldier of Orange ends up feeling like is a missed opportunity; it establishes a group friends with the intent to highlight stark differences in character development, but never delivers. With its diverse cultures, relatively incremental invasion, and range of responses to Nazi influence, the setting feels ripe for difficult choices and tension. However, instead of rationalizations and painful self-reflection, the characters are relatively predictable: Lanshof and Krabbé's Guus are hotblooded Dutch freedom fighters, Rooymans' Jan is a strong Jewish man who stands for the morally upright and is brought down by cruelty, and Habbema's Robby technically turns traitor, but only when his fiance is threatened. There was a hint of complexity in de Lint's Alex, who joins the SS, but he makes too few appearances to really even factor into the story. By the end of the film, everything is awfully ... alright, given the heavy material that there was to work with, with subplots almost hastily tied up as the editing team realized that they were already pushing two and a half hours. It's a film with its heart in the right place and a lot of potential, but it's far from thought-provoking. There is also a scene in which a character is tortured via enema, first time for everything, I guess. (3/5) See more 08/03/2019 It is a masterpiece co-directed by the main character himself. It takes you through an era where without warning an entire country is occupied by night. No internet, no mobiles and no drones. Close to Germany the resistance in a small country was extremely dangerous, taken in account the amount of resistance died in camps or who were shot all over the country. Dozens of pilots were helped to escape to the UK, and numerous Jews survived thanks to the bravery of a few. The film takes you to the daily life and struggles and decisions of the 30's. A Dutch top cast including Hauer, Krabbe, and many others. That's why Verhoeven is Verhoeven. See more s r @ScottR 02/17/2018 1001 movies to see before you die. This one had some entertainment for its unique Dutch perspective on WW2, but was a little off in how it handled things for shock value. It was on Internet Archive. See more nicholas g @tyrionthedwarf 12/07/2015 Most of the movie is set during World War 2 when Germany invaded Holland. While this movie is historically interesting it has too many characters and thus feels disjointed. See more Niels S @RT70735068 05/02/2014 Tidlig Verhoeven (1977) med Jan de Bont som fotograf og Rutger Hauer og Jeroen Krabbé i hovedrollerne. Det veloplagte manuskript skildrer Anden Verdenskrig set med hollandske øjne i en elegant balance mellem dokudrama og kulørt underholdning. Holder fint den dag i dag og er faktisk mere end en tand bedre end Verhoevens senere (og også ganske glimrende) krigsdrama Zwartboek.. See more Read all reviews

Soldier of Orange

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