Het bombardement

Poor acting and a thin story. Such a shame because the bombing of Rotterdam is a good subject for a great movie. Unbelievable script with situations that will never happen, therefore a bit hard to chew on. Maybe someone else is looking for a story to tell the right way, find your inspiration in Rotterdam!

Knowing the bombardment of Rotterdam is a brutal tragedy, in the beginning I was surprised by the light hearted teenage love story as the main part of the film. But as it progresses, so many casual moments and tiny things gradually make sense. The war is there, the huge casualties and lifetime loss is there, how do you deal with it? As the boy tells the girl to laugh instead of fear, and the girl later tells the boy to do boxing with waltz, I think that is the message how people could endure the war and achieve love. Some German characters here may be snobbish, but the war tells them what is truly valuable; Dutch people may be considered victims, but some Dutch characters show their speculative minds in the warfare. After all, love without boundaries, save those you love, live with those survived by your side. I think it's a good movie about love at wars.

The bombing of Rotterdam deserves a good movie as it is such a defining happening in Dutch history. This movie isn't it. In fact it is horrible.

Jan Smit, a Dutch singer (who cannot sing) is not an actor (so he cannot act as well) and he is not from Rotterdam. So he does not know Rotterdams sentiment about the bombing. Why does he have the lead role?

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Rotterdam was bombed by the Germans, early may 1940. Because of this bombing the Dutch army surrendered. Rotterdam was destroyed in under 15 minutes during the bombing and (in 2015) is still recovering).

This movie is a love story during the days before and after the bombing. And it is horrible. Do not watch this movie.

Jan Smit is miscast as Vincent a poor, semi-orphaned bellboy/baker/boxer who falls in love with German girl Eva (Roos van Erkel), who's about to embark on a marriage of convenience with a powerful businessman to save her mentally handicapped brother Herman (beautifully played by Jelle Pelmaerts) from almost certain death at the hands of the Nazis. Although it is suggested that Vincent is illiterate (he only 'reads' a boxing magazine for its pictures) he somehow speaks fluent German which is pointed out, and then ignored. Moreover, Jan Smit looks far too squeaky clean to convince as a young man struggling to make ends meet in Rotterdam, just days before it is bombed to smithereens by the Germans. Nevertheless, Jan Smit does a very creditable job and handles the lighter scenes quite well, coasting on his seemingly natural charm which has made him the Dutch pop icon he is. There is also palpable chemistry between him and Van Erkel, who is also somewhat miscast as she is too plain-looking. Why would a shrewd, materialistic businessman - who is in a position to pick his women - settle for her? The voice-overs by venerable story-teller Aart Staartjes are disappointingly bland, and repetitive. The love story between the two leads, however, works surprisingly well, and is helped immensely by the stunning cinematography by Gabor Szabo, who creates some unforgettable moments. The bombardment of the title is well-designed and beautifully shot, and underlines the ambition of this film to be the Dutch answer to Titanic, which it has tried to emulate a bit too obviously. Not a great film, but quite entertaining and definitely worth watching.

The movie is well worth seeing. The story itself it quite elaborate, with a love story and action sequences synchronized with the short-lived war in the Netherlands in May 1940. Many facts about the war are well interwoven with the story-line and give some interesting historical background. The back-grounds of the two main characters are defined by their having to do something important in their lives which they do only out of altruism for a brother, and the love they are starting to experience is jeopardizing their former resolve. The main characters are quite believable and show real chemistry, the action stunts grip you, and the photography sublime. Roos van Erkel really shines. Many critics are far too easy and harsh. They try to frame it as a Titanic-me-too, but ever heard of the age-old story of Romeo and Juliett? Because Jan Smit is known for being a singer, that doesn't mean he can't act. I could go on. If you are willing to let the actors and the story move you, this is a moving experience for the whole family.