My girlfriend ran into some very cheap DVD boxes with Dutch classics, “De Lift” (“the elevator”) is the first we watched. “De Lift” came out when I was 7 or 8 and I remember it caused quite a stir. It might have been the first Dutch horror. I do not remember when I first saw it, but I do remember that I was still fairly young. The film made quite an impression, since it is a descent thriller/horror. In the Netherlands we have but a handfull of actors so almost everybody in this film I also know from some TV serie. Dutch films, especially of that time, were characterised by bad acting, foul language and unnecessary, cheap sex scenes; as if the directors always wanted to portray us as the lowest-of-the-low. Seeing “De Lift” again decades later I must way that the acting is not all that bad, safe for the opening scene the Dutch typicalities are abscent and the tension of the film is still very good. The story is about a brandnew flat with an elevator with its own will, a will to kill. An elevator repair man wants to get to the bottom of things, annoying his boss and business partners. The minimalism in filming and background sounds is well done. The scene with the man who gets stuck between the doors with his head and sees the elevator coming down is still impressive. Yep, I was possitively surprised by the classic. I have no idea if that English remake that has been spoken about for so many years has ever been made, but since the original is well available on DVD, I suggest you just watch the real deal.
The second Dutch classic that we watched (see “De Lift“) is also of Dick Maas. I remembered “Amsterdamned” as an action film, undoubtely because of the chasing scenes through the alleys of Amsterdam, but mostly because of the speedboat chase through the canals which still looks spectacular. “Amsterdamned” is about a killer that seems to come from the canals. A hunt develops, because a killer loose in the streets is bad for Amsterdam as a city for tourists. The acting is not all that bad, the foul language is pretty funny at times and the atmosphere is quite good too. “De Lift” is better, but “Amsterdamned” is nice too. Justly a Dutch classic.