TBS

TBS is a movie I watched a long time ago and re-watched today - I've figured it's still worth it.

For a quick in simple summary of the movie, it works. The dialog seems a bit 'blunt', and this is a problem more Dutch movies haves. Everything else however, is seriously well done. The cameras are in the right spots, acting by Maassen and Smit is tremendously well done (I was surprised to see that this is the only 'big' movie Smit has acted in) and the story is a very good one as well.

The movie doesn't have any of the cheesiness more often seen in Dutch movies and the story is one that moves you - I myself was heavily affected by the ending, in a way few movies have managed to do (Sin City or Lord of the Rings come to mind). I really wish I would've rated the movie lower than a 9 to make my review seem less cheesy, but really, it is that good. If you've had the pleasure of hearing about this movie, then by all means watch it - you won't regret it in the slightest.

Maassen did do a good job acting and the director succeeded in taking me on a trip. For me watching this movie was enjoyable for 80%, but the main reason I eventually did not like it, was because afterward I started thinking about the question: what did the movie want to tell me? I did not find an answer. This means either I did not understand the plot, or the story just did not appeal to me. I guess the last.

For being a Dutch movie the style of this work did impress me, but I would not recommend my friends to watch it.

Nice trivia: Maassen was brought to the premier in a police car and stepped out being hand coughed.

Faced with life-long detention as a habitual offender, Johan (Theo Maassen) escapes from a mental institution. Tessa (amazing newcomer Lisa Smit) happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. A teenage beauty on her way home from a night at the club, Tessa is right up Johan's aisle and promptly taken hostage. The trip that unfolds is in many ways a road movie, but at the same time, it's a chamber play: There are really only two characters, Johan and Tessa, and it's mostly set in cars. Until very late, we don't know whether Johan is essentially a good guy in a hard place or a dangerous madman out for a kill. Surely he can't be both? TBS is a flawless thriller with a great script brought to life by two terrific actors that keep you on the edge of your seat. Theo Maasen's Johan is an ambivalent character not unlike Edward Norton's altar boy Aaron Stampler in "Primal Fear", but rendered with even more subtlety and wit.

First of all, this movie is very well acted. Since this is a dutch movie, I never had heard of the actors before, but seeing them here, proves that they do have what it takes to lead any other movie, too. And it's shot as raw and real as a movie with a theme like this can be shot.

Speaking of which (theme), this movie is anything but easy viewing. But it's pretty ambiguous. Maybe for some it might seem pretty straight(forward), but the ambiguity lies within, what the viewer is supposed to feel in any given moment of the film. Again, Kudos to the actors, who do their best. The script is pretty slick too. Recommended viewing, if you can handle it!

This film premiered at the Rotterdam International Film Festival. It's about a criminal who's under a special type of therapy, TBS. He manages to escape. The TBS method is very controversial and is often criticized in the Netherlands for the amount of escaped criminals lately. Director Pieter Kuijpers achieves to create an interesting mood, blending fear, violence, feelings of safety and dreamy thoughts in one paranoia mixture. This atmosphere is really powerful and easily keeps this movie interesting along the way. I'm not sure about the performance of Theo Maassen (he's a dutch comedian, couldn't really get that thought out of my head) but he's not a miscast. Lisa Smit surely fulfills her roll decently. The script is excellent and suspense is present at almost every moment. It's really powerful. I found the use of sound impressive, it's pretty special and powerful.

Overall it's just a great movie. It's still lingers in my mind a bit. I would recommended this film to everyone.