The Fourth Man (1983)
"De vierde man" (original title)

A man who has been having visions of an impending danger begins an affair with a woman who may lead him to his doom.

Director:

Paul Verhoeven

Writers:

Gerard Reve (novel), Gerard Soeteman

Stars:

Jeroen Krabbé, Renée Soutendijk, Thom Hoffman

4 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jeroen Krabbé	...	Gerard Reve
Renée Soutendijk	...	Christine Halsslag
Thom Hoffman	...	Herman
Dolf de Vries	...	Dr. de Vries
Geert de Jong	...	Ria
Hans Veerman	...	Begrafenisondernemer
Hero Muller	...	Josefs
Caroline de Beus	...	Adrienne
Reinout Bussemaker	...	Eerste echtgenoot
Erik J. Meijer	...	Tweede echtgenoot
Ursul de Geer	...	Derde echtgenoot
Filip Bolluyt	...	Surfer
Hedda Lornie	...	Verkoopster boekhandel
Paul Nygaard	...	Violist
Guus van der Made	...	Treinkelner

Storyline

The morbid Catholic writer Gerard Reve who is bisexual, alcoholic and has frequent visions of death is invited to give a lecture in the literature club of Vlissingen. While in the railway station in Amsterdam, he feels attracted to a handsome man who embarks on another train. Gerard is introduced to the treasurer of the club and beautician Christine Halsslag, a wealthy widow who owns the Spider beauty shop, and they engage in a one night stand. On the next morning, Gerard sees the picture of Christine's boyfriend Herman and recognizes him as the man he saw in the train station. He urges her to bring Herman to her house to spend a couple of days together, but with the secret intention of seducing the man. Christine travels to Köln to bring her boyfriend and Gerard stays alone in her house. He drinks whiskey and snoops through her safe, finding three film reels with names of men; he decides to watch the footage and discovers that Christine had married each; all of whom died in tragic ...

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Plot Keywords:

vision | spider | catholic | alcoholic | writer | 

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Taglines:

Christine is young, beautiful and rich. Her three husbands all died tragically. It's time for Christine to find her fourth man.

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Details

Country:

Netherlands

Language:

Dutch

Release Date:

24 March 1983 (Netherlands)

Also Known As:

The 4th Man

Filming Locations:

Central Station, Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands

Company Credits

Production Co:

Rob Houwer Productions, Verenigde Nederlandsche Filmcompagnie (VNF)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Paul Verhoeven:  [religious imagery]  Gerard's visions include seeing the object of his lust being portrayed as a crucified Jesus, the loincloth replaced by a pair of speedos. The lady in the blue robe represents the Holy Mary, and in the train scene, she is holding an apple skin over her little boy's head as if it were a halo. The opening credits also feature the symbolic image of a spider crawling over a crucifix.

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Goofs

At the beginning of the movie, as Gerard is getting out of bed, the boom mic is visible in a mirror behind him.

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Quotes

Gerard Reve, Herman: [are confronted with a sudden shower]
Herman: Damn weather!
Gerard Reve: [yelling and pointing to trees] There!
Gerard Reve, Herman: [ran to the trees]
Herman: We all get soaked!
Gerard Reve: That one's open!
Gerard Reve, Herman: In that tomb?
Gerard Reve: Dead men don't bite, only live ones do.
Gerard Reve, Herman: [going inside]
Herman: [got licked by Gerard and turns towards him] Do you want to get hit?
[...]

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Connections

References Cannibal Holocaust (1980)

User Reviews

Brilliant Dutch psycho thriller

"De vierde man" (The Fourth Man, 1984) is considered one of the best European pycho thrillers of the eighties. This last work of Dutch director Paul Verhoeven in his home country before he moved to Hollywood to become a big star with movies like "Total Recall", "Basic Instinct" and "Starship Troopers" is about a psychopathic and disillusioned author (Jeroen Krabbe) going to the seaside for recovering. There he meets a mysterious femme fatale (Renee Soultendieck) and starts a fatal love affair with her. He becomes addicted to her with heart and soul and finds out that her three previous husbands all died with mysterious circumstances...

"De vierde man" is much influenced by the old Hollywood film noire and the psycho thrillers of Alfred Hitchcock and Orson Wells. It takes much time to create a dark and gripping atmosphere, and a few moments of extreme graphic violence have the right impact to push the story straight forward. The suspense is sometimes nearly unbearable and sometimes reminds of the works of Italian cult director Dario Argento.

The cast is also outstanding, especially Krabbe's performance as mentally disturbed writer that opened the doors for his international film career ("The Living Daylights", "The Fugitive"). If you get the occasion to watch this brilliant psycho thriller on TV, video or DVD, don't miss it!