Battle Without End

Battle Without End

1955 · 25 min · ★ 7.5 · Documentary

A Shell Film Unit documentary by Bert Haanstra examining humanity’s struggle against insect plagues, filmed across Egypt, Iraq, Kenya, Sudan, Tanganyika, and Uganda. The film combines scientific documentation with visceral imagery, including extreme close-ups of insects and an aerial sequence flying directly through a locust swarm. Framed within postwar scientific optimism, it presents pest control and pesticide technology as instruments of human survival, offering a stark, industrial counterpoint to Haanstra’s more lyrical documentaries.

Directed by Bert Haanstra

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The Detection of Mineral Oil

The Detection of Mineral Oil · 1954

The Detection of Mineral Oil

MovieDocumentary

Documentary on oil exploration, the phase before drilling.

The Manneken Pis Case

The Manneken Pis Case · 1960

The Manneken Pis Case

MovieComedyRomance

Kamiel steals the famous Brussels statue of Manneken Pis to impress his girlfriend Denise, the daughter of the man who is supposed to guard it. The Belgians, however, wrongly accuse the Dutch of having stolen their statue and hit back by stealing the statue of Hansje Brink.

Glass

MovieDocumentary

This short documentary, shot in the glass factories of Leerdam and Schiedam, demonstrates how glass blowers do their work. But thanks to the superbly edited ballet of working hands and the sequence of mechanical motions of the engines, is it especially a cinematic tour de force. That the industry can’t do without man’s involvement is shown in the scene where we hear the voice of Haanstra himself counting the bottles on the conveyor belt, until one bottle breaks…

The Netherlands

The Netherlands · 1983

The Netherlands

MovieDocumentary

Bert Haanstra was commissioned by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to make a short film about his own country. It had to be a piece of the work that mainly would be shown abroad, so that the rest of the world could make acquaintance with the beautiful countryside, with the modern side of the Dutch society and with historic building and old customs. After everything he had already made about these subjects, Haanstra was able to find a new angle, this time by observing the matter from the air. The result is a pretty mosaic of The Netherlands like it looked in the early eighties.

Delta Phase 1

Delta Phase 1 · 1962

MovieDocumentary

Everyman

Everyman · 1963

MovieDocumentary

Bert Haanstra paints a portrait of The Netherlands and the Dutch, in his own unparalleled manner. Partly with the aid of a hidden camera he observes people in the most diverse situations. He shows the unusual in the usual and the usual in the unusual. The harsh years of the post war era of reconstruction have passed and for most people life is better than before.

Fanfare

Fanfare · 1958

MovieComedyMusic

In the small Dutch village of Lagerheide, two members of the local brass band get into a fight, forcing the band to be split in two. The two hotheads and their followers are doing their utmost to sabotage each other’s attempts at becoming the band who will represent the village at the upcoming brass band competition.

Trafic

Mr. Hulot is the head designer of the Altra Automotive Co. His latest invention is a newfangled camper car loaded with outrageous extra features. Along with the company's manager and publicity model, Hulot sets out from Paris with the intention of debuting the car at the annual auto show in Amsterdam. The going isn't easy, however, and the group encounters an increasingly bizarre series of hurdles and setbacks en route.

Zoo

MovieDocumentary

A perfect, fast and hilarious montage. Using images from Artis (Amsterdam Zoo), Bert Haanstra shows that a couple of similarities can be discovered between human and animal. Particularly the manner in which human and ape are confronted with each other, is significant. The images speak for themselves, human voices or commentary is absent. The ironic music of Pim Jacobs does add an extra dimension to the whole. With regards to human and animal Haanstra limits himself for the time being to this short film, recorded with a hidden camera. Later on, in several big films, he would return to this subject.

And There Was No More Sea

And There Was No More Sea · 1955

And There Was No More Sea

MovieDocumentary

Short poetic documentary about the southern sea in the Netherlands.

Children of Ghana

Children of Ghana · 1988

Children of Ghana

MovieDocumentary

God Shiva

God Shiva · 1955

MovieDocumentary

Impressive, abstract dance film from Bert Haanstra.

The Family of Chimps

The Family of Chimps · 1984

The Family of Chimps

MovieDocumentary

A subtle account of the chimpanzees' behaviour in Burgers Dierenpark in Arnhem, on the occasion of the publication of the book Chimpansee Politiek by ethologist Dr. Frans de Waal. A unique experiment shows us how complex the social strategies in the community of this fascinating anthropoid ape are. Haanstra managed to capture almost all aspects of chimpanzee behaviour: display of skill, teasing and pestering, grooming, resting, playing, motherly behaviour, submission, sex and violence. Eventually, the film was also screened to the apes.

Rembrandt, Painter of Man

Rembrandt, Painter of Man · 1957

Rembrandt, Painter of Man

MovieDocumentary

In Rembrandt, Haanstra shows that it is possible to make a fascinating film only with images from paintings. He had to travel though all over Europe to numerous museums and private owners in order to film the works of art. In the work of the great painter, Haanstra recognizes his particular interest in man as an individual human being, cutting straight through all the religious motives. And Haanstra also wants to see Rembrandt as an individual.

Myrte & The Demons

Myrte & The Demons · 1950

Myrte & The Demons

Myrte and the Demons is a hallucinatory trip through a world shot in chiaroscuro in which lugubrious forest spirits take human forms at night. Myrte, symbol of good, enters into battle with evil, aided by a colorful group of fantasy creatures, including the moon. Special: Bert Haanstra made his film debut as a cameraman on the set of Myrte en de Demonen.

Retour Madrid

Retour Madrid · 1968

MovieDocumentary

Documentary about Ajax Amsterdam in 1968.

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