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An Exercise In Nonsense

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

Since I moved to the Netherlands and have been learning Dutch I'm watching every Dutch movie possible and this one is just an annoying time waster.I guess for the boys it's sexy because of all the boobs but the main actress along with all of the Dutch women in this movie are anything but sexy - so in that sense it's quite realistic. On top of that the main character looks about 20 years too old to be throwing hissy fits and punching men in the face for cheating on her, and really, after spending 3 seconds with the character it's no wonder the guys would cheat on her, she's so darn annoying and unbearable!And the whole talking into the camera deal, puh-lease.

At most times books and movies have very different styles and completely different constructed stories. Some of the book stories and styles simply don't translate well to the big screen. The book "Phileine zegt sorry" written by Ronald Giphart is one of those books that doesn't translate well to the big screen. As a movie "Phileine zegt sorry" leaves a pointless impression. It's one of those movies which makes you wonder after you have seen it; Why did I even watched this in the first place?It's pretty obvious throughout the entire movie that it's one based on a novel. It features some typical book elements that I'm sure work well in the book but feel completely pointless in the movie. It also has some characters walking around in the movie that feel absolutely pointless and serve no purpose at all. On top of that it's incredibly irritating that most of the New York characters are played by Dutch actors, almost as if there weren't any available actors in New York. their American-Dutch accents are notable and at points even irritating.The two main actors Kim van Kooten and Michiel Huisman are really great but van Kooten couldn't prevent me from being irritated by her character Phileine at times. Her character is over-the-top and really pushes it at times. I would had dumped her almost immediately! but again, this is not van Kooten's fault, she plays her character with lots of profession and passion., simply blame the story.Appereantly this was supposed to be a comedy but there are no real laughs here. Also as a drama it isn't serious enough. I think this is the main reason why this movie leaves an overall pointless impression. The movie is just mostly about Phileine talking rudely about mainly sex and acting like an uncontrollable young hormone filled-woman.The movie however deserves credit for how it looks. The cinematography by Bart Pot is most excellent, especially for the scene's in New York, where this movie is set for about two-third of the entire movie. The editing by Peter Alderliesten keeps the pace high. Robert Jan Westdijk isn't an horrible director he has just been given horrible material to work with.I can't think of any reason why someone should ever watch this movie.4/10http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

This film is rather absurd and weird at times, having opposite effects. At some moments the absurdness of the film, works in it's favor and at other moments it clearly does not. The introduction sequence, for instance, which at first seems to be an homage to James Bond, quickly becomes strange (maybe unappetizing) for many people and if you ask me, there is no sense in that scene with the ‘oldies' whatsoever. Another perfect example is the scene in which Phileine is in outer space ‘dancing' to some music. This scene does make a bit more sense than the one described before, but is just too lengthy as are other scenes in the film and as a matter of fact, the ending as well. But no feat, not everything is bad in this film. The film is pretty good, until Phileine (Kim van Kooten) meets Joanne (Leona Philippo). From that point on there appear the first signs of weakness, the mentioned lengthy and sometimes unnecessary scenes. From that point on the film manages to go on on a pretty good level, but I found it to be less than the first bit and the film actually hits rock-bottom in it's end, which is way too lengthy. If it wouldn't have been for the ‘screamer' ending, this one would have gotten a 7 out of 10. But the way it is it does not deserve it. Sure the film delivers some laughs, sure there is a lot of female sex talk, but in the end it is only moderately enjoyable, due to the unsatisfying ending that remains in mind. Even females, who are in fact the target audience, should see that. 6,75 out of 10PS: At least it COULD have been better

Sex sells. That is something Dutch author Ronald Giphart is very well aware of. This was evident in the first filmed novel by the author: 'Ik Ook Van Jou' but even more in 'Phileine Zegt Sorry' (Phileine Says Sorry).The original novel is hilarious, quick, witty, from a female perspective, but written by a heterosexual male author. The novel is full of quick one-liners and so is this move ('I believe in sex at first sight' and 'We don't care you have a low self-esteem, just don't bother us with it').The thing is a quite weak story as 'Phileine' demands a quick witty approach, which Robert-Jan Westdijk (the director) seems to be perfectly able at. He seems to have understood what the story is all about: Phileine, a super-bitch, follows her boyfriend Max to New York, where she finds out about the rather exclusive approach he's giving to Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet'.Although the movie is quick it has quite some flaws. Westdijk doesn't take enough time to finish off some crucial scenes. The final scene has been handled off quite fast and almost messy and the movie really lacks emotion at times. Westdijk doesn't seem to wanna fall in the pit called 'false sentiment' but in stead of carefully avoiding it he doesn't seem to use any of it in 'Phileine'. To be perfectly honest one wouldn't care less whether or not Phileine regains the love of Max or how she handles it. She's a bitch, so she'll survive and go on with her live. Kim van Kooten however is perfectly cast and throws in the one-liners one at a time from scratch. Michiel Huisman may be nice to look at (all pumped up) but is rather disappointing as the flat character of Max. This is also due to his rather poor acting qualities. Roeland Fernhout's part as the androgynous Jules is unforgettable and could have used deserved more screen time.The novel already makes use of too many character with their individual story-lines that push away the main story-line: the one between Phileine and Max, but in the movie this gets annoying at points.Fortunately Westdijk's quick approach makes up for a lot but not for everything. 'Sometimes the movie is just better than the movie', says author Giphart in a cameo (please no more cameos in any of his movies!). I am afraid I have to disagree with him. But then again: is the movie ever better than the novel?Still 'Phileine Zegt Sorry' speeds up hope for the Dutch movie industry (especially now that governmental finance has been abolished) and especially for Dutch rom-coms.