Bert van der Linden

The girls of competitive rowing club Nereus are hoping to win the women’s eight. One of them, Jenny, falls for an art dealer and becomes pregnant. Her friends at the club, her coach and her father all pitch in to help. The first Dutch feature length colour film.

“Ciske de Rat” belongs to the Dickensean “little man’s hard life” model and tells a deceptively simple story about a boy in modern Netherlands. Persecution, loneliness, adults’ hostility, fear, mixture of obstinacy and tenderness, and even an imprisonment. Excellent camera movement and delicate portraying of Ciske’s fragile soul put this film out of merely historical context and ensure its place in the history of great cinema.

Martijn receives little attention from his parents, who run a village bazaar, and is often left to his own devices. He has plenty of imagination, but cannot live up to the expectations placed on him. If he fails his school exams, he will be doomed. Only his grandfather in the retirement home understands him and listens to his stories. When a film crew arrives in his hometown to shoot a fairy tale movie, Martijn is chosen for the lead role and his grandfather is given the role of wizard.

Comedian Wim Sonneveld wants to quit his most beloved character, organ grinder Willem Parel. Parel, however, has his own opinion on the subject and decides to save himself from his creator. After leaving the dressing room poster, Parel sets out into the Netherlands to start a organ grinders revolt.