Double face

I watched this movie without subtitles in its original language given as Dutch. Being able to speak Dutch I had great difficulty in understanding what was actually being said, only to discover it was a mixture of Dutch and a Flemish dialect which I couldn't understand.

This spoilt the movie to a great extent but I pressed on watching. It is a slow paced thriller, with lots of dialogue. It has a number of twists but the movie is much too long. In the end it reached a conclusion with a bit of action which probably saved the movie from failure.

Make sure that you watch it with subtitles, which is bothersome to read but would make the film more understandable. I was robbed of this but would not want to see it again with subtitles. It is no more than an average movie at best.

Another example of how bad the Belgian movie industry has turned out to be these last years, especially then these detective movies are starting to be all the same. In the old days they wouldn't dare to call it a film, they would just call it an episode in the German crime series on TV. Really: why would anybody give points to this piece of junk? It is not worthy to be taking your time of life. Fits Verheyen's very own "Night of the Disgust" rather well. This flick proves that anybody can make a movie nowadays, no matter who they are or how the end product will turn out to be. Thumbs way low below the lowest of the low.

"Control" is a much better title than "Het Tweede Gelaat," which translates as "Double Face." The film is a police procedural / psychological thriller / bromance. Commanding officer Vincke is a bit of a control freak, while Chief Inspector Verstuyft goes by his instincts. Rina keeps her patients under control with psychoactive drugs, but is out of control personally. Various VIPs attempt to control the investigation. The investigating judge is frustrated in her attempts to control Verstuyft, as is Vincke.

It's a well-made film with a Byzantine plot, plenty of red herrings, credible performances, three-dimensional characters, solid production values, a good chase scene, an effective climax and poetic justice for the villain.

This movie is one of the better Belgian crime movies I've seen so far. In the beginning the movie has its flaws with some unclear scenes or stereotypes, but the more you get involved in the murder case, the more clear it becomes how excellent the cinematography fits with some exciting action scenes. Towards the climax of the movie there are some very well directed action scenes and the movies becomes more tensive and the story as well proves to be more ingenious.

Actors don't know their characters anymore. Professor T and Vincke are mixed up