Rijk de Gooyer Movies

The official Dutch entry for the 2000 Academy Awards, this family drama, directed by Ineke Houtman, is adapted from Guus Kuijer's popular children's book. Little Madelief (Madelief Vereist) is forced to think about her grandparents during her grandmother's funeral. Her grandfather, a stern and forbidding man, tells her not to go to the mysterious hut in his swampy backyard. This is of course exactly what she does, and in the process, Madelief learns that her grandmother was denied all that she loved by her strict husband. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

In this Dutch drama, a former vaudevillian tries one last time to find the dignity of a legitimate role. Instead he finds himself faced with a past he tried hard to bury. It is base upon a 1982 novel by Harry Mulisch. Willem, a 78-year old man, comes from a long line of illustrious stage actors. But unlike them, he was never able to rise beyond the level of vaudeville performer. This has caused him tremendous pain. His break finally comes after he is offered the part of an aging classical actor who kills his male co-star/lover before he goes on to play Prospero in The Tempest. He takes the role, and the resulting heat from his castmates who change when he demonstrates real talent. He has major problems though. He butts heads with the director. He becomes confused when a younger actress makes untoward advances. Finally he has trouble playing a homosexual. The strain causes him to suffer disturbing flashbacks about his dysfunctional family life and his mother's death. The weight of the memories causes him to collapse during the final rehearsal. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The daughter of a Jewish couple who survived the Holocaust is soon to marry a doctor, which is an occasion for celebrating. Thus, the girl's parents have decided to have a prenuptial feast at their country estate. Among the invited guests is a woman who fostered their child during the Nazi era. Instead of being grateful, the girl's mother is mostly jealous. Despite the fact that this is a celebration, memories of the past threaten to overpower the proceedings. This affectionately told story is based on the Dutch stage play Leedvermaak by Judith Herzberg). ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

During the Nazi invasion of Holland, Jewish pacifist Edwin De Vries and resistance leader Jeroen Krabbe react in different ways to the fall of Amsterdam. De Vries tries his best to peacefully coexist with the occupation forces, in hopes of helping his fellow Jews escape. Krabbe prefers the direct approach of guerrilla warfare, killing as many Nazis as possible. Though given fictionalized names, the central characters of Shadow of Victory are based on two real-life figures, theologian Friedrich Weinreb and freedom fighter Gerrit van der Veen. This film was originally distributed in the Netherlands as In de Schaduw van de Overwinning. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A well-wrought sequel to the popular Schatjes, Mama Is Boos! draws on the same styles and themes that inspired the success of the earlier comedy. The all-out war between the parents and their children in Schatjes has become an all-out war declared by Danny Gisberts (Geert de Jong) against her two-timing, fickle husband John (Peter Faber). She throws objects as well as tantrums, is not above kidnapping her kids, and has a final, glorious say about what she thinks of him at a NATO gathering featuring her husband. NATO's stage entertainment is cleverly sub-par, but that cannot be said for this comedy, which is fast-paced and fun. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

In this standard suspense story aimed for a teen audience, Valerie (Maayke Bouten) is a young woman who plays detective as she tries to track down her mother's killer while at the same time trying to avoid being the next victim. When Valerie's mother dies in a hit-and-run "accident," the grieving daughter is in for yet another shock: the woman she thought was her mother, was not at all. Now Valerie is not only hunting for the hit-and-run driver, but also for the identity of her real mother. As she is led from one piece of evidence to the next, she comes closer to finding out the truth in both cases, and her own safety will depend on how soon she reaches the end of her quests.
~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

In one action-filled segment after another, this spoof of Hollywood exaggeration, rebellious teenagers, military machos, and domineering parents mimics some well-known characters and scenes from American movies, and pits a family's brood of kids against the Dutch army. In the constant battle with their parents, the son blows up their bedroom, and the daughter fights it out with her mother over a new boyfriend (they both want him). The father is a helicopter pilot from the nearby military base and as his children's activities escalate into setting up barbed wire around the house, the military gathers its forces for an attack. While a kind of uncontrollable anarchy pervades each step in the story, this fast-paced spoof does not have a definitive plot to hold everything together, and nor any noticeable character development - though for some viewers, the incongruous scenes would be entertaining enough by themselves. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

This Dutch melodrama is grounded in the activities of the post-WW II black market. Specifically, the protagonists are involved in a risky butter-smuggling operation along the Belgian border. Hugo Metsers plays a young man who is conscience-stricken by the fact that his former Resistance buddies are now mixed up in criminal activities. Ultimately, Metsers has an irreparable falling out with his best friend, a personal tragedy that leads to wider-ranging ramifications. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this mystery, a vengeful husband goes looking for the six people who tortured him and then killed his wife. The husband is a WW II vet and one of the killers is now a high-ranking German official. The plot is based on a Mario Puzo story. The film is also titled Seven Graves for Rogan. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Nicky (Benthe Forrer) and her father (Rijk de Gooyer) go for a vacation (her) and for business (him) to Aruba, the Dutch island just off the coast of Venezuela, with the added twist that they have not really known each other all the while Nicky was growing up (she is now a buxom young 15 year old). Nicky's ambivalent feelings for her father churn up almost immediately, and she indirectly asks him (employing her invented alter-ego, Sabine) if it is okay for a teenager to fall in love with an older man - wanting to see what his reaction might be. Nicky is conflicted: possessive, jealous, and upset when her father sees no reason to change his style of living just because she is there with him - and he continues to stay out late with one woman or another. Nicky vows "revenge" and carries through by taking up with the piano player (Mike Burstyn). Meanwhile, the father has had problems with his business dealings, partly caused by Nicky's demanding presence, and partly because of a good friend, now a competitor. Nicky's relationship with the piano player starts to develop in earnest, and not surprisingly liberates her from the tempestuous feelings that dominated her relationship with her father - perhaps now the two can get along as normal people. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

This well-wrought family comedy-drama by director Max Fischer is set in Holland during World War II. Young David (Brett Marx) has been separated from his parents because they were taken prisoner by the Nazis and sent away to a concentration camp. David ends up living on a Rotterdam farm as one of their workers and spends his time as best he can. He has always been entranced by American westerns and this infatuation gives him a certain confidence when it is most needed. David is inspired by his screen idols when he sees a chance to capture Colonel Gluck (Rod Steiger), an officer in the German army. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

A few notches more vulgar than their American counterparts, Grijpstra (Rijk de Gooyer) and De Gier (Rutger Hauer) are partners in the Amsterdam police force who get involved in the world of prostitution, drugs, and off-the-wall religious cults in this glib crime story from Wim Verstappen. De Gier and Constanze (Willeke Van Ammelrooy) spend some amorous moments together when he is able to escape the seedy demi-monde. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide