The Dining Club (2010)

Directed by: Robert Jan Westdijk | 90 minutes | thriller | Actors: Halina Reijn, Thom Hoffman, Bracha van Doesburgh, Peter Paul Muller, Angela Schijf, Birgit Schuurman, Mark van Eeuwen, Bas Keijzer, Mattijn Hartemink, Irma Hartog

There you are among fragrant middle-aged ladies in cashmere shawls, waiting for the cinema lights to go out to disappear into anonymity. But it doesn’t get dark during the performance of ‘De Eetclub’. White as an interior by Jan des Bouvrie is the film, shot stylishly and coolly as if it were architectural photography. It is the white of the distant perfection – just the right tone to indicate the proportions in the glamorous ‘Gooise’ world of the characters. And freelance translator Karen (Bracha van Doesburgh) is nothing less than the perfect guide for the viewer. After all, which moviegoer wouldn’t want to identify with a beautiful new kid in town, who gives us a nice insight into a corrupt world, takes the plunge and puts the flowers outside, just to pull out a few clichés? And we can have it from Bracha van Doesburgh.

Less subtle is the way in which the makers guide Karen through Saskia Noort’s story, cut into bite-sized chunks. They put Van Doesburgh as Bambi on a shovel, to make indelible caterpillar tracks in the peaceful hypocritical rich forest. Stupid, stupid, stupid: stick your head in a wasp’s nest and expect the wasps to run away. But we still want Karen to be okay – even if she cheats on her cute catalog guy (Mark van Eeuwen) and baby with Audi-assaulting real estate tycoon Simon Vogel (Thom Hoffman), who doesn’t even have to put in much effort. . After all, if you’ve just picked the right guy for the furniture (or vice versa), it’s time to start in the junk shed. Hormones are never satisfied, which is why the self-confessed victims of the monkey rock – such as Patricia, Angela and Babette – extinguish them with booze.

All the ingredients are there to make ‘De Eetclub’ into a Hopperian morality sketch, but the expectations of this viewer are not completely fulfilled. Only the concentrated Van Doesburgh and the grimacing Hoffman, who seem to like this genre, prove strong enough to cope with the drama crammed into an hour and a half, which eventually ends as a TV thriller. Halina Reijn has a potentially fun role that she seems to be shaping up well, but her Hanneke quickly disappears from the scene; Irma Hartog (eating club chief Patricia) and Birgit Schuurman (vicious tuff Angela) are also not to be blamed; their characters are only outlined. Angela Schijf (Babette) suffers most from the pace, who hardly gets the chance to give shape to her crucial role in the story. Still exciting at the end… What is that Thom Hoffman still a piece… Another chablist?