06/05

A shocking assassination of a controversial public figure, muddy, insufficient explanation, hence a logical ground for a conspiracy theories. If you add that the director of the movie gets murdered himself, soon after finishing this film,it all gets even more convoluted. Pim Fortuyn was labeled with the extremist labels, racism, intolerance, but he was much more complex person. An open homosexual, asking hard but not unfair questions. Without any answers or useful suggestions, he was smeared and easily dismissed. And shortly after killed. The movie is powerful, but little disjointed , as if the director wasn't sure himself of his intentions.

Being of Dutch origin and reading Dutch newspapers almost daily, I should have known about the existence of this film. But I did not. By accident I came across this DVD at my favorite movie-letter. This is the first full length Dutch feature film I ever saw and I must say, I am impressed. It is a very typical Dutch film-too much emphasis on family problems and never ending discussions about understanding each other-, the story though is very acceptingly with the stumbling role of the Dutch version of the CIA (the AIVD)and the political lack of interest in finding out the truth. Pim Fortuyn was too big for Holland, his violent death was too much for the rather closed and upright society, that Holland in fact still is. The repetition of the things politicians of that time ventilated about Fortuyn was shocking and amazing. It is obvious that Holland is still suffering about his loss and about the circumstances that lead to his brutal death.The wound is too fresh to be dealt with in a objective manner. Theo van Gogh tried to do that and was also murdered, although for different reasons, you might think. But there is a connection for sure.

Found this movie in the library, had never heard of it, although i had read of Van Gogh's murder. Interesting to see the casting of Americans as the money-men behind the plot to assassinate Pim. this would probably not have appeared in such a routine, "everybody knows" manner if this were an American film. But if it were an American film, it wouldn't have been made at all. we in the US are pretty protected from news about what our weapons manufacturers are really doing. It helps us to not understand things like Iraq, prepares us to believe whatever Bush tells us. funny to run across this detail in a European movie. I believe it explains so much. But about the movie, see it. What do idealists do, when the money is all against them? What do lovers do when they're blackmailed by the cops? Is every woman in Holland that beautiful? Is it possible to love someone for their posture?

Well, I actually really liked it. Next to the tension this movie builds on, it has a very warm, very dutch, comforting seventies-based and natural feel to it. Despite of the actual storyline and the grim ideas behind it, I could understand where Theo was coming from when he wanted this to be made. Having lived the day when Pim Fortuyn got killed, and knowing the many unexplained details surrounding it, I think parts of the movie are terrifying in that they might very well be more true than most of us would like to believe. Just waving away the entire story as fiction somehow doesn't cut it for me. Knowing Theo Van Gogh quite well from local TV etcetera, I expected some hidden messages, telling us things beneath the surface of it all; They're not getting through to every viewer, but they're all over the place.

Theo shot this movie using the very fast 3-camera technique, giving it a documentary-like speed, which fits the writing. Some of the action scenes could have been done better (with a bigger budget perhaps), but aside from a few lesser moments (which didn't really bother me) the movie had me hooked, and the only thing I didn't like was that it ended. You know good guys can't always win, but you really want them to this time around. Even today, you'd like Pim and Theo to just re-appear on-screen like nothing had happened in our 'innocent' little country. It's hard to view the film not knowing the sickening story behind his killing, and it's even harder to notice how wrongfully he and Pim have been accused of being racist and right-wing extremists (or similar accusations). If anything, this movie is telling it like it is, and shows us how the exact opposite was true for both Pim and Theo.

The movie would have looked quite promising for Van Gogh, and still does for most of the actors in it. Theo was clearly getting better by the year, so it truly saddens me to see what could have been if he would still be alive. It's all been so silly, so stupid, so useless, and when you see this movie you want to snap out of reality, but you know you can't, because it is all so real...

Never really had any interest in watching this movie, since it got mixed reviews at the time of its release and it just never seemed like a very appealing movie to watch, also due to the fact that it got directed by Theo van Gogh, who I wasn't a particularly big fan of. But I think I should give his movies a second chance, since I actually really ended up liking this movie!

Think that one of the problems at the time was that this movie felt far too modern at the time, for normal Dutch cinema standards. This movie is more slick and stylish looking, like am expensive Hollywood production. It also was a movie that came too soon and used a questionable premise. It got made and released just 2 years after the murder of Pim Fortuyn and at the time the movie always got advertised and presented as the story behind the murder, while in fact this movie is truly a work of fiction. People were perhaps a bit offended by all of the conspiracy theories presented in this movie, as if it was being the Dutch "JFK".

And it was no big secret that director Theo van Gogh truly admired Pim Fortuyn and some of his ideologies. I think that therefore also some people had a problem with the movie its objectivity but in all truth, this all hardly seems an issue nowadays. I had absolutely no problem with this movie and simple watched it as a fictional thriller, based on some true events.

It's still a bit ridicules to see how everybody seemed to be against Pim Fortuyn in this movie. The police, politicians and plenty of other groups and ethnicities all wanted to get rid of Fortuyn and were more than happy to conspire in his murder and cooperate with each other. I was however able to step over this fairly easily, simple because the story itself was some good thriller material. Again, as a work of fiction this movie is truly great and even somewhat tense, so please, also just simply look at it that way and as nothing more and nothing less as simply just that.

It's a fast paced movie with some great direction and style to it, that takes the story too many different places. There are plenty of great thriller developments and characters in this movie, that help to keep the movie and its story interesting, no matter how far fetched the movie gets at times.

The professional approach and style to its story are the foremost reason why this movie works out so well. It doesn't even feel like Dutch movie at all and is more like a well written and well put together American production, in which everything feels right and comes together. Story, cinematography, acting, directing, all of it combined makes "06/05" a more than just good or average thriller. It's simply a great genre movie, that works out surprisingly well as such!

8/10

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