Spetters (1980)

A Dutch film, post-Saturday Night Fever, which follows the lives of three young men who are amateur dirt-bike motorcycle racers. They each fall in love with a young woman who, with her ... See full summary »

Director:

Paul Verhoeven

Writer:

Gerard Soeteman (scenario)

Stars:

Hans van Tongeren, Renée Soutendijk, Toon Agterberg

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Hans van Tongeren	...	Rien
Renée Soutendijk	...	Fientje
Toon Agterberg	...	Eef
Maarten Spanjer	...	Hans
Marianne Boyer	...	Maya
Peter Tuinman	...	Jaap
Saskia van Basten-Batenburg	...	Truus (as Saskia Ten Batenburg)
Yvonne Valkenburg	...	Annette
Ab Abspoel	...	Rien's vader (as Albert Abspoel)
Rudi Falkenhagen	...	Hans' vader
Hans Veerman	...	Eef's vader
Ben Aerden	...	Oude Homosexueel
Kitty Courbois	...	Doctor
Margot Keune	...	Meisje op bromfiets
Jonna Koster	...	Gerrit's vrouw

Storyline

A Dutch film, post-Saturday Night Fever, which follows the lives of three young men who are amateur dirt-bike motorcycle racers. They each fall in love with a young woman who, with her brother, sells French fries and hot dogs at the races. Everyone is looking for a better life. She wants out of the business and away from her brother. The motocross racers want to make their marks as professional racers, like their hero, played by Rutger Hauer.

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Plot Keywords:

motocross | accident | love | gay | dirt bike | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance | Sport

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Netherlands

Language:

Dutch

Release Date:

28 February 1980 (Netherlands)

Also Known As:

Descontrol

Filming Locations:

Burgwal, Delft, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands

Company Credits

Production Co:

Endemol Entertainment, VSE Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Gerrit Witkamp (Rutger Hauer) was modeled after real-life Dutch motocross racing champion Gerrit Wolsink.

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Goofs

When Fientje confronts the journalist, she pulls her big blue Chevy right in front of the journalists sports car from his left side. He even leans on her car just a few feet away from his car while talking to her. Moments later, they both get into his sports car and he drives forward and to the left, exactly where her car should be.

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Connections

Referenced in Flesh + Steel: The Making of 'RoboCop' (2001)

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Soundtracks

"Eagle"
Written by Björn Ulvaeus & Benny Andersson
Performed by ABBA
Courtesy of Polar Music

User Reviews

Bleak, unrelenting, all the better for it...

Verhoeven's fifth feature-length film was attacked by critics, financiers, and much of the Dutch people alike for being "decadent", or "perverted" when originally released in 1980. Twenty-four years later, and unlike what has happened with Showgirls, Paul is having the last laugh. Even his worst film, 1995's Showgirls, has a glimmer of redeeming value, but the difference in Spetters is that it doesn't need any.

At heart, Spetters is the tale of two young amateur motocross racers and their mechanic. Along with their girlfriend, their lives are irrevocably altered when they cross paths with a fast food vendor and her brother. The whole film runs like a slice of life, and nothing that happens in real life is too distasteful for the camera.

If you don't want elements of the plot revealed, you can stop reading now.

The film has been accused of being anti-gay, anti-women, and anti-disabled. Once again, Verhoeven gets the last laugh when it becomes clear to anyone who watches it with their eyes open that none of these things are true. The story of one character's sexual confusion is played out in graphic detail, sure, but it is portrayed exactly as it would happen in real life. Sure, not every experience of homosexuality is as negative as in Spetters, but enough are to make this portrayal valid. The main woman of the story simply manipulates the situation or uses it as best she can to escape a situation she wants out of. Any woman with an ounce of strength in her character will do the same. The character who winds up paralysed finds himself reflecting on what he has lost, and it is enough to make him lose all sense of value in his life. Again, this happens every day in the real world.

There is a reason why films by Paul Verhoeven attract a certain kind of fan. Regardless of whether he succeeds or fails with his artistic goals, I have yet to see him sell out to the lowest common denominator. I have also never seen a film directed by Verhoeven where the camera is moved extraneously, obscuring details for fear of what the MPAA might have to say. The viewer is spared no details, even if it might make them turn from the screen in disgust.

If I could sum up Spetters in one word, it would be "relentless". I've seen many a film or television show that claims to show what kind of extreme pressures teenagers or young adults live under. Spetters is the first film I have seen in two decades that even makes the attempt, and better still it comes uncomfortably close. All in all, I consider it worthy of a nine out of ten. There are some elements that seem at odds with what Verhoeven would like us to believe they mean, but the effect overall is surprisingly good. Anyone who wants to see what would happen if they merged realistic versions of your typical Brat Packer film with a realistic version of Days Of Thunder will be well-served by checking out Spetters.