Dan van Husen Movies
- 2008
As helmed by Martin Koolhoven (Het Zuiden), the Dutch-language saga Oorlogswinter stars Martijn Lakemeier as Michiel van Beusekom, a young man who becomes involved in the Dutch resistance during the final winter of World War II. Though this represents a heroic move on the boy's part, the experience ultimately leads to complete disillusionment, as it brings Michiel face to face with the realization that during times of war, good and evil are actually intertwined. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Martijn Lakemeier, Yorick Van Wageningen, (more)
Rock & roll superstars The Killer Barbys have arrived in Costa Del Sol for an electrifying concert, but they soon find that their music has the power to raise the undead when Dracula himself takes an interest in the band in this outing from cult legend Jess Franco. The Barbys may think they have the king of the undead eating from the palms of their hands, but when the sun goes down the count is about to turn the tables on the hard-rocking fans. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
Based on the novel by John Katzenbach, author of Just Cause (1995), this prison camp drama combines elements of A Soldier's Story (1984) and the classic Stalag 17 (1953). Colin Farrell stars as Lt. Tommy Hart, a second-year Harvard Law School student who enlists to fight in World War II but ends up being taken prisoner by the Germans. When a murder at the Nazi-run Stalag Luft 13 leaves a black Tuskegee airman named Lt. Lincoln Scott (Terrence Dashon Howard) accused of the crime, high-ranking prisoner (and fourth-generation war hero) Col. William McNamara (Bruce Willis) persuades camp commandant Col. Werner Visser (Marcel Iures) to allow the prisoners to hold their own trial. Hart is recruited to defend his fellow officer, but as he reluctantly investigates, he discovers that not all of his fellow allied soldiers are fighting the same war and that his "client" may well have been framed. In the meantime, it becomes apparent that McNamara is using events to mask his true intent, a mission to destroy a nearby munitions plant that he still intends to carry out despite his incarceration. Hart's War (2002) co-stars Vicellous Shannon, Cole Hauser, Rory Cochrane, and Jonathan Brandis. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bruce Willis, Colin Farrell, (more)
- 1986
In a puzzling study of a Finn's sojourn in Berlin, this understated (if not experimental) drama features Redbeard (Anssi Manttari, also the director) as he wanders around the city looking for a piano player and some lost music. He not only finds the man but also has a curious, brief relationship with the silent Morena (Caroline Kruger), a beautiful Italian waitress. For some inexplicable reason, Redbeard sends her packing and does not carry their budding liaison any further. Some reflection of Redbeard might be found in a small German boy who tries to become his friend and has quite a miserable home life -- his parents argue and are uncaring, at the very least. With the lovely Italian woman who is sent away and the unhappy German boy, could Manttari be thinking of his native Finland and its relationship to both Germany and Italy before the war? ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anssi Manttari, Caroline Kruger, (more)
- 1985
- R
Laurence Olivier trots out his late-career German accent once again, playing Rudolf Hess in this sequel to Wild Geese. Richard Burton was set to star in the film, but when he died, Edward Fox was brought in as a replacement, playing Burton's younger brother. (the film is dedicated to Burton). The story concerns John Haddad (Scott Glenn), who is hired by a television company to engineer the kidnapping of Rudolf Hess from Spandau prison. Helping him with his assignment are the brother and sister team of Kathy (Barbara Carrera) and Michael Lukas (John Terry). The mercenaries hopes to force Hess to divulge hidden Nazis secrets left unrevealed since World War II. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Scott Glenn, Barbara Carrera, (more)
"Gotcha!" is a puerile but popular campus game at UCLA in which students stalk one another armed with paint-spewing pellet guns. Veterinary student Anthony Edwards may not be any great shakes in the classroom, but he's a whiz at Gotcha. His skills come in handy when Edwards, on vacation in Paris, becomes acquainted with the mysterious Linda Fiorentino. She gets him mixed up in international espionage; fortunately, the well-armed spies aren't quite as adept at "Gotcha" as Edwards is. Most of the film was lensed in Paris and Berlin. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Set in India during World War II, this fair action drama relies heavily on the good acting talent gathered to convey its slight, uninvolved story. Gregory Peck is Col. Lewis Pugh, backed up by Roger Moore as Capt. Gavin Stewart, David Niven as Col. Bill Grice, Patrick MacNee as Major Crossley, and several others -- all retired and past the age for active duty. At issue are three German freighters that are parked in the waters off Goa, the Portuguese coastal colony on the subcontinent of India. Since Portugal is neutral, the regular army cannot destroy the freighters, and it is up to the retired army officers and a large corps of over-the-hill volunteers to take on the mission of eliminating the German ships. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gregory Peck, Roger Moore, (more)
- 1980
An insightful, well-rounded, and often acerbic look at the slow burn of a middle-aged housewife, Lena Rais says a lot in its 116-minute running time. Lena (Krista Stadler) begins to feel like a tool for her husband's sexual needs and an automatic machine for her children. Her life is losing its meaning and she wants to do something about it. She wants out -- but when she leans in that direction, her husband starts to abuse her physically. He wants the old passive Lena back again and abuse is the only way he understands to get what he wants. Lena muddles along awhile longer and ends up rebelling by having a brief fling with an altogether bad sort, which lands her in psychotherapy. This chain of events finally gets her the advice and encouragement she needed all along, and the brave woman faces up to her violent husband and a future without him. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tilo Prückner, Nikolaus Paryla, (more)
Screenwriter George Axelrod turns Alfred Hitchcock's classic comedy-thriller into a capering screwball comedy showcase for Cybill Shepherd and Elliot Gould in this style-less remake of The Lady Vanishes. On an express train traveling through pre-World War II Germany, Amanda Kelly (Cybill Shepherd) befriends a cute old nanny, Miss Froy (Angela Lansbury). But when Miss Froy disappears and the rest of the passengers profess no knowledge of the old woman, Amanda and Robert Condon (Elliot Gould -- the only person aboard who will believe her story about the missing woman -- search the train trying to find out what happened to Miss Froy. In the meantime, they uncover an insidious German plot and fall in love. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elliott Gould, Cybill Shepherd, (more)
For Werner Herzog's 1979 remake of F.W. Murnau's classic 1922 silent horror-fest Nosferatu, star Klaus Kinski adopts the same makeup style used by Murnau's leading man Max Schreck. Yet in the Herzog version, the crucial difference is that Nosferatu becomes more and more decayed and desiccated as the film progresses. Essentially a retelling of Bram Stoker's Dracula, Nosferatu the Vampyre traces the blood-sucking progress of the count as he takes over a small German village, then attempts to spread his influence and activities to the rest of the world. All that prevents Dracula from continuing his demonic practices is the self-sacrifice of Lucy Harker, played by Isabelle Adjani. Director Werner Herzog used the story to parallel the rise of Nazism. The film was lensed in the Dutch towns of Delft and Scheiberg. Nosferatu the Vampyre was filmed in both an English and a German-speaking version; the latter runs 11 minutes longer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Klaus Kinski, Isabelle Adjani, (more)
21 Hours at Munich is a grim reenactment of the darkest days of the 1972 Munich Olympics. A gang of eight Arab terrorists storm the Israeli dormitory, killing two and taking hostage nine athletes. The terrorist's demands include the release of 200 Arabs held in Israeli jails; Israel follows its standard policy in dealing with terrorism and refuses to capitulate. There can be only one way that this film will end, but the tragedy of the occasion is buoyed by isolated moments of inspirational heroism. William Holden and Franco Nero head the cast, while sportscaster Jim McKay, whose emotional coverage of the actual events has since become famous, narrates the film. 21 Hours at Munich first aired on November 7, 1976. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1975
Adapted from the novel Die Döppelgänger by Theodor Storm, this black-and-white drama tells the tragic story of a war veteran who, in 1860, returns to his home in Schleswig Holstein after serving a term for robbery. There he finds nothing but hardship and rejection, save from the town's mayor and a young servant girl, whom he marries. Ridiculed and abused, with practically no work, he turns to drink and one night accidentally kills his wife. The child of their marriage is taken away from him, and at this point he is left with the options of becoming a robber, starving to death, or emigrating. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dieter Laser, Marie-Christine Barrault, (more)
- 1974
- PG
An Irish journalist (Lynn Redgrave) will do anything she can to support a peasant revolution in Mexico. The rogues played by Franco Nero and Eli Wallach will do almost anything for money, but they will also do a lot for a charming lady: particularly when she has saved one of them from certain death in front of a prison firing squad. After arranging Wallach's prison escape, the trio heads for Mexico, where incredible things happen. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lynn Redgrave, Eli Wallach, (more)
- 1971
- R
Most westerns wrap their stories, legends really, with a light clothing of history and period. Any history found in them is usually a mix of legend and fantasy. By way of contrast, in this film, an attempt is made to accurately portray the lives and persons of Doc Holliday, Wyatt Earp, and the now-legendary events that took place in the town of Tombstone. Those looking for fast-paced action will be disappointed in this film, as it deals more in psychological character studies than action. Sheriff Wyatt Earp (Harris Yulin) is shown to be a fairly ordinary politician, and the romance of Doc Holliday (Stacy Keach) and Kate Elder (Faye Dunaway) is highlighted. As it must, however, the film concludes with the well-known gunfight at the O.K. Corral ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stacy Keach, Faye Dunaway, (more)
Based on a novel by Louis L'Amour, this comedic western tells of a thieving man who tries to get his hands on two million dollars of government cash while trying to avoid his friend--who happens to be a lawman. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
A Native American working for the government must investigate the Indian Commissioner's death. Soon he uncovers the schemes of a wealthy land owner and an assassination plot which will further victimize the local natives. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lee Van Cleef, Carroll Baker, (more)
- 1970
- R
Jim Brown and Lee Van Cleef team up for this western set on the Mexican border. Brown is Luke, who escapes from a chain gang after learning that a fortune in gold is hidden in the Mexican fortress of El Condor. He joins up with the snake-eyed crook Jaroo (Lee Van Cleef) and together they round up a tribe of Apaches, headed by Santana (Iron Eyes Cody), to attack the fort -- convincing the Indian renegades that the fort houses food and guns greatly needed by the Apaches. During their first crack at taking the fort, Luke and Jaroo are captured by the fort's commandant, Chavez (Patrick O'Neal). Claudine (Marianna Hall), the wife of the commandant, falls in love with Luke and she aids them in their escape from the fort. Later on, she is instrumental in getting Luke and Jaroo's band into the fort -- diverting the gaze of the fort's defenders by disrobing in front of a well-lit bedroom window. Chavez escapes, but Santana is shot by Jaroo after discovering that Jaroo deceived him. With Santana shot, the Apaches leave the fort, carrying the food and ammunition. Now the only ones left to defend the defenseless fort are Luke, Claudine, and Jaroo. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Florencio Amarilla, Per Barclay, (more)
