King of the Road (2019)

Directed by: Danyael Sugawara | 97 minutes | thriller, drama | Actors: Guido Pollemans, Majd Mardo, Sophie Höppener, Rian Gerritsen, Tygo van Schie, Fenne van Schie, Henk Brugge, John Delwel

It is a tried and tested recipe: to immediately mislead the (film) viewer with the help of standard prejudices. One of the first episodes of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” already did that: we see a sweet-looking blond girl, with a tough guy, enter the deserted Sunnydale High in the evening. We think “that boy is up to no good”, but when the roles are reversed and the blonde girl turns out to be the legendary vampire Darla, we are shocked for a moment. The same trick is applied in Telefilm ‘King of the Road’, although we have to wait a little longer for this ‘revelation’.

Barry is a truck driver and he has nothing good to say about foreigners. Moroccans in particular have spoiled it for him. When he shows his displeasure at the presence of two Moroccan boys in a bar, they are waiting for him and his colleague. That does not end well for the colleague. He is hospitalized. You can imagine what this does for Barry’s racist thoughts.

Because Barry makes many international trips, a replacement for him is quickly sought. The Dutch-born Sadiq (Majd Mardo), with Moroccan parents, is the lucky one, but Barry just about freaks out when he finds out that he has to work with Sadiq. He behaves rudely and inhumanely and refuses Sadiq access to the cabin to sleep on the first night. As a result, Sadiq is forced to spend the night in the filthy toilet room in a parking lot. When he is awakened the next day by a pretty Algerian cleaning lady, you feel like you can predict the rest of the story. But screenwriter Marcel Visbeen has a big surprise in store.

Racism must stop, that’s for sure, right? It is simply not possible to lump an entire nation or religion with a few rotten apples. Prejudices are there for short-sighted people (or is that also a prejudice?), but if you open up to the other person and assume that everyone deserves your respect, you’ll have a better life. However, ‘King of the Road’ seems to give a different message and that’s a problem. It is not clear what exactly the makers want to convey to the viewer: that you always have to be on your guard and can’t trust anyone? That people who are racist can sometimes be right?

It is commendable that the film makers have not opted for the standard ‘protagonist repents’ story, because that pattern is no longer worth any credit, but ‘King of the Road’ lacks subtlety. The only character who can count on the viewer’s sympathy is the policewoman who senses from the outset that something isn’t right (but her shit-stubborn superiors are so clichéd that you can’t help but choose her side). But even she couldn’t have predicted that horrific end. Good roles by Guido Pollemans, Majd Mardo and Sophie Höppener.