Amsterdamned (1988)

A hard-boiled police detective sets out to capture a gruesome serial killer terrorizing the canals of Amsterdam.

Director:

Dick Maas

Writer:

Dick Maas (script)

Stars:

Huub Stapel, Monique van de Ven, Serge-Henri Valcke

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Huub Stapel	...	Eric Visser
Monique van de Ven	...	Laura
Serge-Henri Valcke	...	Vermeer
Hidde Maas	...	Martin Ruysdael
Wim Zomer	...	John van Meegeren
Tanneke Hartzuiker	...	Potter
Lou Landré	...	Chef
Tatum Dagelet	...	Anneke Visser
Edwin Bakker	...	Willy
Pieter Lutz	...	Skipper
Barbara Martijn	...	Prostitute
Door van Boeckel	...	Maniac (as Door van Boekel)
Simone Ettekoven	...	Salvation Army Soldier
Koos van der Knaap	...	Environmentalist #1
Pieter Loef	...	Environmentalist #2

Storyline

A mysterious diver hiding in Amsterdam's canal system embarks on a rampage of gruesome murders, terrifying city officials and leaving few clues for the city's best detective, who doesn't suspect that both his new girlfriend and twelve-year-old daughter may be closer than he is to finding the killer.

---

Plot Keywords:

detective | murder | canal | diver | serial murder | 

---

Taglines:

Be glad you're afraid. It means you're still alive.

---

Genres:

Action | Crime | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

---

Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

DaaVeeDee - UK Distributor

Country:

Netherlands

Language:

Dutch Spanish Mandarin English

Release Date:

25 November 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Amsterdamned

Filming Locations:

Leiden, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$14,819, 27 November 1988

Gross USA:

$98,003

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$98,003

Company Credits

Production Co:

First Floor Features

Technical Specs

Runtime:

114 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Huub Stapel, Monique van de Ven, and Serge-Henri Valcke dubbed their own voices in English for the English dubbed version of the film.

---

Goofs

The great chase-scene starts in Amsterdam, then suddenly leads through the Canals of Utrecht, and then back to Amsterdam again.

---

Quotes

Ruysdael: I wanted him to be happy. I didn't know his intention.
Eric Visser: Revenge on society. Innocent people had to be slaughtered.
Ruysdael: I can't believe it. He is sick and so is society.

---

Alternate Versions

When released in the UK, this title was cut by 6 seconds by the BBFC. A close-up shot of a knife between a woman's parted legs was removed. The cuts were waived for the 2009 Nouveaux release.

---

Connections

Featured in Allemaal film: De amerikaanse droom (2007)

---

Soundtracks

"Aan de Amsterdamse Grachten'
Music by Dick Schallies as Schallies
Lyrics by Pieter Goemans as Schott
Sung by Jetty Pearl as Perle

User Reviews

The muddy, toxic canals of Amsterdamned

When this movie was first released in theaters, back in 1986, it got quite a buzz and it was certainly a winner at the box office. I went to see this picture back then and, I must say, was scared s***less at the end. I was 12 at the time and not used to seeing stuff like that on the big screen, I had nightmares the following several nights. The severed heads, the dangling body on the bridge, to name but a few instances, made an enormous impact on me.

Now, when you think I am going to praise this movie alround, you are wrong. See, I was twelve and was not in any way educated in film arts. Nowadays, my knowledge in the film department has quite significantly improved and when I now watch this movie it certainly lacks a lot.

As is normal in Dutch movies, it seems, in particular the sound editing is dreadful. I do not know where this constant deficiency comes from, but it is omnipresent in just about every movie that is released from Holland. The acting is not all that great, but given the material that the cast and crew were presented with, it is still a pretty nice job. Production values are absolutely high-standard for a small country like Holland. The fact that some scenes in the boat chase were filmed in Utrecht is something that is absolutely unforgivable, but sometimes a director has to make sacrifices towards this sort of thing to make the story work. The chase scenes were absolutely riveting to say the least. Regrettably, the make-up on the villain was a little crappy when I look at it now.

Story-wise this was pretty decent. The tension was kept on a good level in the high-octane speed of situations that followed each other. Some of the photography was better than average, the stalking POV was awesome. Some scenes really stood out above the rest, for instance the girl who is resting in her little rubber boat and subsequently being sliced and diced in the middle of the Amsterdam canal, this is timeless stuff. I love it.

Overall this was a decent movie not to be viewed by the smallest among the family. The pace in the story will keep you tied to your seat. Look past its flaws and just watch this movie unprejudiced. At least it's a hell of a lot better than Maas' clunker of 1999 "Do Not Disturb".

7/10