Carmen van het noorden

I've seen this film in a sneak preview yesterday and I was poitively stunned by this new Dutch film. First time director Jelle Nesna shows us a raw and dark city of Rotterdam in which the old story of Carmen has been set in present times. IN this version "Carmen" is played by the debutante Sanguita Akkrum who really gives an oudstanding performance as an actress, but also as a singer. She plays a R&B singer who has the dream of being a star and performces 2 times live in the film. The main character is Joz - played by actor Tygo Gernandt - who is about to marry his girlfriend, but then falls for the sexy Carmen and his lifes tumbles and everything changes. The film has this raw and dark look and really feels authentic, with a lot of characters in it who make their first appearance on the big screen and they really rock. Popular rappers like Jiggy Dje, Turk and GMB play and perform in the film and the score by composer Perquisite (als a firsttimer!) is absolutely brilliant! Rapper Duvel is kind of the story teller performing like a Greek choir with heavy lyrics and an impressive performance on the screen. This film is really a mustsee for hiphopfans and fans of an urban genre.

Finally a Dutch feature film that exceeds expectations. The film retells the story (originally a book, then an opera, and then a film in 1919). The story is, as can be expected with a history like that, timeless. A classic tragedy, hence the title of this post. And I did not even exaggerate! The story is not only still good and relevant for the Zeitgeist, the update to Rotterdam in 2009 only adds to the allure. The acting, mainly provided by veterans from Holland and led by Tygo Gernandt, is great. There are a few weaker roles, sometimes because of the lines they have to utter, sometimes because of the actors. Cinematography is amazing, as are the colors. In special I have to mention the music. A couple of dutch rappers, who all worked with Perquisite (check him out!). He is amazing on his albums, and now we can officially say he is the to-go to man for film music. The leading lady (Sanguita Akkrum) sings pretty awesome too! Any way, i'm not usually this enthusiastic about Dutch films, so I can't stress enough that this is the one2watch.