Instinct (2019)

In spite of her expertise and experience, a seasoned psychologist is completely infatuated by the sex offender she is treating in a penal institution.

Director:

Halina Reijn

Writers:

Esther Gerritsen (screenplay by), Halina Reijn (story)

Stars:

Carice van Houten, Marwan Kenzari, Marie-Mae van Zuilen

2 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Carice van Houten	...	Nicoline
Marwan Kenzari	...	Idris
Marie-Mae van Zuilen	...	Marieke
Pieter Embrechts	...	Alex
Ariane Schluter	...	Directrice
Betty Schuurman	...	Mother Nicoline
Abdelkarim El Baz	...	Tarik
Tamar van den Dop	...	Milly
Robert de Hoog	...	Jos
Kuno Bakker	...	John
Juda Goslinga	...	Kees
Barry Emond	...	Kenny
Akwasi Owusu-Ansah	...	Wilfred
Maria Kraakman	...	Paula
Matijs Jansen	...	Dave

Storyline

Nicoline, an experienced psychologist, starts a new job at a penal institution, despite the fact that she resolved to never return to psychiatry. She meets Idris, an intelligent man with an anti-social, narcissistic personality disorder, who committed a series of grave sexual offenses. After five years of treatment, he is about to go on his first unaccompanied probation. His team of practitioners are enthusiastic about his development and behavior, but newcomer Nicoline does not trust him an inch. She tries to push his probation to the astonishment of her coworkers. Idris tries his hardest to convince Nicoline of his good intentions, but as she remains skeptical, he slowly but surely grows violent. He transforms into the manipulative man Nicoline saw in him from the beginning. A power play emerges between the two and Nicoline, in spite of her knowledge and experience, lets herself be trapped completely.

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Details

Country:

Netherlands

Language:

Dutch

Release Date:

3 October 2019 (Netherlands)

Also Known As:

Locus of Control

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$223,712

Company Credits

Production Co:

Topkapi Films, Man Up Productions, BNN-VARA

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Instinct was the 2019 Dutch submission for the Oscar for Best International Feature Film.

User Reviews

A bit weird

I think it was a pretty good movie. The acting was so nice to watch and Carice is very beautiful. The ending was very unsetisfying and leaves a lot of questions open. Some parts of the story line are also quite vague. Overall the story line was good and the movie in itself wasn't bad either.