Tall Tales (2010)

Directed by: Kees van Nieuwkerk, Teddy Cherim | 85 minutes | comedy | Actors: Achmed Akkabi, Matthijs van de Sande Bakhuyzen, Sallie Harmsen, Manuel Broekman, Isis Cabolet, Gwen Pol, Geza Weisz, Hans Kesting, Pierre Bokma, Halina Reijn, Jon Karthaus, Youp van ‘t Hek, Olga Zuiderhoek, Daniël Boissevain, Kees Hulst, Yahya Gaier

It’s like a story from a boys’ book: two 22-year-old film students who go after their dream and make their own film. Amsterdammers Kees van Nieuwkerk (Matthijs’s son) and Teddy Cherim made their dream come true. “In the Netherlands, teen films are usually made by confident 40-somethings who make their cast say things like ‘retecool’, making it feel like your parents made the film,” said the young directors. The makers themselves are all just out of high school and you can see that in their film. “’Strong Stories’ is full of what we like ourselves.” The idea for their debut film arose when Kees and Teddy moved to London (they were accepted at the Metropolitan Film School in that city, unlike the Film Academy in Amsterdam) and they began to miss their hometown and friends there. They found great pleasure and comfort in telling tall tales about their friends. And that’s exactly what ‘Strong Stories’ is about. Without (financial) support from the Film Fund, a broadcaster or distributor – but with the help of dozens of friends who are also involved in the film world, producer Martin Lagestee and a clothing brand as main sponsor – Kees and Teddy managed to do it.

‘Sterke Verhalen’ (2010) opens when a group of young people takes shelter from a thunderstorm in a wooden house on a playing field. They begin to tell each other tall tales about other young people. One of the stories (told by Matthijs van de Sande Bakhuyzen) is by far the strongest of all. It is about the adopted Moroccan Dennis van de Molen (Achmed Akkabi), a country boy who comes to Amsterdam to study. He would love to make friends quickly, but he still needs to work on his image. He meets the beautiful Sanne (Sallie Harmsen), who hands him a flyer for a spectacular party. Dennis definitely wants to be there! In order to impress the party organizer – egocentric player Marlon (Manuel Broekman) – and his wannabe gangster friend Mario (Geza Weisz), he gets drunk and persuades them to steal a penguin from Artis at night. . Of course this has consequences for him. Because a disappeared penguin does not go unnoticed for long.

‘Strong Stories’ is rightfully a film for young people, by young people. Sex, drugs and nights of partying play a central role in this comedy, set in the sultry summer between high school and the start of college. Because this is about tall tales, you already know in advance that the story will go off the rails here and there, especially towards the end of the film. Is that really disturbing? Not really, because it kind of belongs to this type of film. What’s more annoying is that not every scene that is intended to be comical turns out equally well. This is mainly due to the fact that a successful joke by Van Nieuwkerk and Cherim is immediately repeated three or four times, so that it loses its effect. Dennis driving into Amsterdam on his tractor full of stuff is fun once, the second time too, but the third time is just one too many. The same goes for Dennis’s gibberish neighbor boys (probably everyone over 25 is chattering when they start talking – just like Dennis by the way). In the cast, the film has some strong assets. Achmed Akkabi captivates the audience with his naive, sympathetic interpretation and Geza Weisz (son of director Frans Weisz) also impresses in a role that has much more depth than you initially realize. Thanks to Weisz (or at least his father), people like Halina Reijn, Hans Kesting and Pierre Bokma were happy to sign up for a guest role.

‘Strong Stories’ is a film that radiates youthful enthusiasm. You can see and feel that everyone who has been involved in this project really enjoyed it. That is what sticks with ‘Strong Stories’: not the story, not the actors or the setting, but the commitment and swagger with which the film was made. The fact that there is quite a bit to criticize about this comedy and that Van Nieuwkerk and Cherim still have a lot to learn should not obscure the fact that there are enormous growth brilliance in these young filmmakers, from whom we will probably hear a lot more in the future. The way in which they themselves ensured that their film could be made is impressive. Many older filmmakers can learn something from that!