Release CalendarDVD & Blu-ray ReleasesTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsIn TheatersComing SoonMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersEmmysLGBTQ+ Pride MonthSTARmeter AwardsSan Diego Comic-ConNew York Comic-ConSundance Film FestivalToronto Int'l Film FestivalAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

The Dinner

Original title: Het Diner
  • 20132013
  • 1h 28m
IMDb RATING
6.0/10
2.4K
YOUR RATING
The Dinner (2013)
  • Drama
  • Thriller
Two well-to-do couples with plenty to lose have dinner to discuss the gruesome act their teenage sons may or may not have committed together.Two well-to-do couples with plenty to lose have dinner to discuss the gruesome act their teenage sons may or may not have committed together.Two well-to-do couples with plenty to lose have dinner to discuss the gruesome act their teenage sons may or may not have committed together.
IMDb RATING
6.0/10
2.4K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Menno Meyjes
  • Writers
    • Herman Koch(novel)
    • Menno Meyjes
  • Stars
    • Thekla Reuten
    • Jonas Smulders
    • Daan Schuurmans
Top credits
  • Director
    • Menno Meyjes
  • Writers
    • Herman Koch(novel)
    • Menno Meyjes
  • Stars
    • Thekla Reuten
    • Jonas Smulders
    • Daan Schuurmans
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 2User reviews
    • 11Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win & 10 nominations

    Photos6

    The Dinner (2013)
    Thekla Reuten in The Dinner (2013)
    Thekla Reuten in The Dinner (2013)
    Jacob Derwig in The Dinner (2013)
    Daan Schuurmans in The Dinner (2013)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Thekla Reuten
    Thekla Reuten
    • Claireas Claire
    Jonas Smulders
    Jonas Smulders
    • Michelas Michel
    Daan Schuurmans
    Daan Schuurmans
    • Sergeas Serge
    Jacob Derwig
    Jacob Derwig
    • Paulas Paul
    Kim van Kooten
    Kim van Kooten
    • Babetteas Babette
    Reinout Bussemaker
    Reinout Bussemaker
    • Rectoras Rector
    Hanne Arendzen
    • Naomias Naomi
    Andre Dongelmans
    • Beauas Beau
    Camilla Meurer
    • Reserveringsdameas Reserveringsdame
    Sabine Soetanto
    Serge Mensink
    • Rickas Rick
    Lukas Dijkema
    Lukas Dijkema
    • Fietsenhandelaaras Fietsenhandelaar
    Noah de Nooij
    • Jonge Beauas Jonge Beau
    Wil van der Meer
    • Tonioas Tonio
    Francesca Pichel
    • Serveersteras Serveerster
    Olaf Malmberg
    • Fotograafas Fotograaf
    Raynor van de Water
    Raynor van de Water
    • Cookas Cook
    Anniko van Santen
    • Presenter Tv program 'Opsporing Verzocht'as Presenter Tv program 'Opsporing Verzocht'
    • Director
      • Menno Meyjes
    • Writers
      • Herman Koch(novel)
      • Menno Meyjes
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

    More like this

    Family Way
    6.6
    Family Way
    Love Is All
    7.0
    Love Is All
    April, May and June
    6.7
    April, May and June
    Accused
    7.0
    Accused
    Soof
    6.5
    Soof
    De Marathon
    7.4
    De Marathon
    The Dinner
    6.6
    The Dinner
    Clean Hands
    6.3
    Clean Hands
    So What Is Love
    6.8
    So What Is Love
    De gelukkige huisvrouw
    6.7
    De gelukkige huisvrouw
    Publieke werken
    6.7
    Publieke werken
    Loft
    6.8
    Loft

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Kim van Kooten and Jacob Derwig who play in-laws in this movie are married in real life.
    • Connections
      Referenced in RTL Late Night: Episode #1.50 (2013)
    • Soundtracks
      Happy Home
      Written by Steve Marker, Douglas Erickson, Shirley Manson and Bryan Vig

      Performed by Garbage

      (C) Published by Vibecrusher Music and Deadarm Music

      Administered by Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.

      [PIAS] Cooperative / Stunvolume

    User reviews2

    Review
    Top review
    5/10
    A feast too low in calories
    In the Netherlands, we have had some artistic and commercial success with movies that take place in one room and concern people discussing something they prefer to keep quiet. 'Quiz' was a nice example, and especially 'Loft' was a well-made and tense thriller, although we need to thank our friends the Belgians for that last one, since they provided the also excellent original version. 'Het Diner' is an originally Dutch novel that has been sold to many countries, so I thought I had some good reasons to expect something of the movie adaptation. Sadly, this is one of those instances where it shows that a good book not necessarily translates into a good movie.

    My biggest problem is that the movie doesn't seem to work one way or another. Although I don't know the book, I can imagine roughly two ways to approach a story like this: a thriller like Loft, or a black comedy like Quiz. The first one would have worked best in my opinion, given the grave subject matter of teenage homicide, but director/screenwriter Menno Meyes seems to have been aiming mostly for the latter. That doesn't have to be an obstacle for a good movie, but he doesn't have a firm handle on the material to make it work like a black comedy with some thriller elements. Maybe also because he only allows himself a meager 88 minutes to tell this story, which leaves little time for background to the characters, or a decent ending.

    The story is partially about the interaction between 4 characters, and partially about the interior monologues of the main character Paul. It is therefore not surprising that the book was adapted into a successful stage play first. You can almost picture how the parts where Paul breaks the fourth wall were done in a theater, with a spotlight turned on him alone, and the other cast members kept in darkness. However, what works in theater doesn't necessarily work as well in cinema, also because it is only done a few times and not consistently. The rest of the times, Paul (Jacob Derwig) just provides voice-overs, which started to annoy me after a while. This is an obvious literary technique that can work in books and on stage, and sometimes in film. However, when constantly abused in a movie, it feels like a lack of creativity in using the visual medium; after all, one of the golden rules for film is "show, don't tell". Other advantages that movies have, such as building tension through photography and editing, are sadly underused as well. Director Meyes' choice not to rely too much on cinematic techniques can be praised, but he puts too much faith in the monologues, dialogues and the actors.

    Which brings me to the final point of criticism: the characterization of the four protagonists falls flat on its face. Character interactions, especially in a black comedy, work best if you have actors who know what makes their characters 'tick'; just look at Roman Polanski's 'Carnage' for a good example. But Jacob Derwig is the only one who gets a bit of backstory, and even so, his character is merely annoying and frustrated instead of interestingly layered. The other three characters range from sad to reprehensible, which could be interesting if they weren't so one-dimensional due to lack of exposure (apart from what Paul tells about them in his endless voice-overs). They often act and respond completely unpredictable, not as a twist, but simply because of poorly written roles that undoubtedly left out too much from the book. The talent of these fine actors feels quite wasted here, because there should have been more time allotted for exposition.

    Every adaptation needs to omit certain parts of the narrative, but here it feels like most of the heart of the story was cut out. The basic premise is still there, but the director did not have the experience to make it visually interesting. After an Italian remake, there has been talk about an American one, but it seems to be stuck in development for some time. Let's hope they use that time to get the script right this time, because with the right basis, this premise could really make for a good movie.
    helpful•15
    2
    • Field78
    • Feb 6, 2017

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • November 7, 2013 (Netherlands)
    • Country of origin
      • Netherlands
    • Official site
      • Official site
    • Language
      • Dutch
    • Also known as
      • Het diner
    • Filming locations
      • Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands
    • Production company
      • Eyeworks Film & TV Drama
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross worldwide
      • $2,003,063
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 28 minutes
    • Color
      • Color

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    The Dinner (2013)
    Top Gap
    By what name was The Dinner (2013) officially released in Canada in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    View list
    List
    The Best Movies Coming This Summer
    See the full list
    Image caption not available
    2:02
    LGBTQIA+ Movies and Shows to Watch This Summer
    Watch the video

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Interest-Based Ads
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2022 by IMDb.com, Inc.