Ex Drummer (2007)

Three handicapped losers who form a band ask famous writer Dries to be their drummer. He joins the band and starts manipulating them.

Director:

Koen Mortier

Writers:

Herman Brusselmans (novel), Koen Mortier (screenplay)

Stars:

Dries Vanhegen, Norman Baert, Gunter Lamoot

3 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dries Vanhegen	...	Dries (as Dries Van Hegen)
Norman Baert	...	Koen de Geyter
Gunter Lamoot	...	Jan Verbeek
Sam Louwyck	...	Ivan Van Dorpe
François Beukelaers	...	Pa Verbeek
Bernadette Damman	...	Mother Verbeek
Joris Van Der Speeten	...	Jan Verbeek 10 years
Nancy Denijs	...	Ivan's Wife
Nomie Visser	...	Ivan's Daughter
Dolores Bouckaert	...	Lio
Wim Willaert	...	Jimmy
Barbara Callewaert	...	Christine
Jan Hammenecker	...	Dikke Lul
Vinnie Bonduwe	...	Friend Dikke Lul
Chantal Wannyn	...	Erna

Storyline

Every village has its band of fools, trying to get to the top, following their idols in drug habits, but staying losers till the end of their pathetic days. They all do this in the name of rock & roll. Three disabled rock musicians are looking for a drummer. Dries, a well known writer, seems the right guy for the job, were it not for the fact that his only handicap is that he can't play the drums. He joins the group as a perfect, but evil god walking down his mountain to play with the populace. With the arrival of this infiltrator, personal disputes and family feuds start to jeopardize the band's fragile future. Dries will manipulate them till they are willing to drink each others blood and their only future is written down in many Punk lyrics: "No Future".

---

Plot Keywords:

misogynist | homophobia | physical disability | mother son relationship | battle of the bands | 

---

Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Drama | Music

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Rival band in the movie, "Harry Mulisch", is named after prominent Dutch writer Harry Mulisch.

---

Quotes

Lio: Why do you want to play with that f**king band?
Dries: I don't really know. I think I want to step outside my happy world. Descend into the depths of stupidity, ugliness, obtuseness, unfaithfulness and fakeness. Latch onto the life of losers, but without belonging to that world - and in the knowledge that I can always return to my own world... and to you.

---

Connections

Referenced in Quarto de espera (2009)

---

Soundtracks

Need You Now
Written by An Pierlé, Koen Gisen
Performed by An Pierlé & White Velvet
Courtesy of PIAS Recordings
under license from PIAS Recordings

User Reviews

On a big screen, this one will leave You whimpering.

There needs to be films made that have this type of shock effect to your mental and emotional system, but it took me three years to work it out. I watched it at the Gothenburg Film Festival and my immediate reaction was: "Heck, this shouldn't have been shown in public, I am now permanently damaged in my mind and in my soul. Help me." Now, however, after a few years of pondering the images and issues presented to me and how it was done, I must say that it is a masterpiece, utterly destroying previous conceptions of what the world is like. With great "wit" and "style" (I will refine these points!) the story is told in a rapid tempo and with no loose ends and no censoring. The "style" thing: I propose that this is realism taken to a new level, with the really, really shitty reality of these low-life misfits shown at its worst, both from within and from without as is should be presented, uncensored like a bad nightmare, but presented a if it were true. And this is the shocking part: the movie makes you feel like it is true. This is sort of balanced with the "wit" part; burlesque, ironic and totally black humour; to make a soup so thick it can't be swallowed without being chewed really well, and when you chew it you just want to spit it out because the taste makes you want to throw up. 9/10, would have got full points if it had actually made me throw up.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Belgium France Italy

Language:

Dutch Flemish

Release Date:

31 January 2007 (Belgium)

Also Known As:

Ex Drummer

Filming Locations:

Belgium

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$231,156

Company Credits

Production Co:

Czar Film, Quad Productions, Mercurio Cinematografica

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min 104 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1