Rating: 
Summary: "IN THE REALM OF BASIC RECOLLECTIONS ......"
Review: Miss SHARON STONE - look no further - THIS the definitive sequel to "Basic Instinct"!Of course, Dutch film-maker Paul Verhoven made this movie long before "Basic Instinct", but this is the genesis of that [rather sterile by comparison] movie - who knows - you might even get the fabulous, risk taking, and sadly neglected JEROEN KRABBE to repeat his role! Made in 1983, this movie has is not dated. SYNPOSIS: Bi-sexual writer Gerard/Krabbe fantasizes about "offing" his current, boring lover. He had been invited to speak at a literary gathering - somewhere "up the coast". At the train station while "crusing" the newsstand he sees an appealing young lout - who gives him the brush-off. The rail journey is mundane, interspersed with strange nightmarish visions - Bunuelish eyeballs, etc. feature prominently. Queer, odd......Dali-esque images ...... At the gathering, he meets an intriguing young blonde [cool ala Hitchcock Renee Soutendijk], "chemistry happens" and he is in bed with her, enjoying much deserved release, when, on her night stand, he notices a photograph of the young punk who gave him the brush-off at the station! This young hunk is Soutendijk's clumsy lover: She invites Krabbe to stay with them for a while - to teach the young man a few "pointers" about love-making! Hmmmmmm! Kinky? Uhuh! [Co-incidentally, she's a hairdresser; spiders, webs and glistening, very pointy scissors feature prominently, especially during a graphic castration sequence - fortunately just a fantasy.] Our young man is also quite a contradiction - when alone with Krabbe ...... AND then there is also the question : Who will be her next husband/victim? She's disposed [?] of three already...... A bold movie for that period, confusion between male and female images [the voyuer sequences], full frontal nudity, masturbation, it's all here, tasteful, but for the sophisticated viewer. Highly recommended for your collection! The title sequence is superb [won't spoil that for you]; art direction by Roland De Groot very effective [one expects the "DAUGHTERS OF DARKNESS" hotel to be in the immediate vicinity - an excellent companion piece!] Music by Loek Dikker is aptly bleak, and the cinematography by JAN DE BONT is perfect! Pity that Mr. Verhoven has veered away from this most creative period of his career, he showed such great promise! Companion pieces: "Matador" [Almodovar]; prime! Second choice? "Sea of Love" Barkin/Pacino. Now, call Sharon Stone, and get her to be in this remake - please!
Rating: 
Summary: Verhoeven's exercise in suspense thriller and excess
Review: Paul Verhoeven remains an interesting director who treads between art and commercialism with a European style of excess without alienating the audiences (unlike Godard!) His early Dutch films remain a fascinating watch.
The Fourth Man is a straigh forward suspense thriller that somehow acts as a prelude to his later femme fatale genre piece, Basic Instinct. Full of tongue in cheek metaphors ranging from black widow spiders and its preys, popped out eyeball and even the Virgin Mary and Jesus Christ!
Verhoeven is always a pleasure to listen to when it comes to commentaries in his films. Unpretentious, full of anecdotes and information into the making of his films.
Rating:
Summary: Verhoeven's Crossover Film!
Review: Previously dismissed as a soft porn filmmaker in Europe, Verhoeven decided to make a film so overloaded with symbolism and foreshadowing that the gullible critics would call it "high art". And they did. The plot is simple but fun, including all Verhoeven's specialties - sex, frontal nudity, explicit gore (castration-ouch!), etc. When the main character (a drunken poor writer) is determined to meet a young man he cruised at a magazine shop, he also discovers the woman who helped organize his book readings is dating the youngster. He's off and manages to get both in the sack. One example of symbolic overkill: The writer discovers three black film canisters in her house revealing the "accidental" deaths of her three previous husbands. Later, after he gets the young man to have sex in a mausoleum, he spots three black urn canisters containing the woman's three prior husband's ashes! Now come on! I won't even get into the 'Virgin Mary' sightings! However, despite the overload on ALL levels, it makes for a great art-house film and one you'll watch over and over. (If your eyeball doesn't get poked out - movie hint - more symbolism). This film enabled Verhoeven to proceed to make such classics as "Basic Instinct" and "Showgirls". Trivia: Main actor Jeroen Kraabe was the evil doctor who framed Harrison Ford in "The Fugitive". Best extra is the inclusion of Verhoeven's director's commentary. He is one clever personality!
Rating:
Summary: Verhoeven's Crossover Film!
Review: Previously dismissed as a soft porn filmmaker in Europe, Verhoeven decided to make a film so overloaded with symbolism and foreshadowing that the gullible critics would call it "high art". And they did. The plot is simple but fun, including all Verhoeven's specialties - sex, frontal nudity, explicit gore (castration-ouch!), etc. When the main character (a drunken poor writer) is determined to meet a young man he cruised at a magazine shop, he also discovers the woman who helped organize his book readings is dating the youngster. He's off and manages to get both in the sack. One example of symbolic overkill: The writer discovers three black film canisters in her house revealing the "accidental" deaths of her three previous husbands. Later, after he gets the young man to have sex in a mausoleum, he spots three black urn canisters containing the woman's three prior husband's ashes! Now come on! I won't even get into the 'Virgin Mary' sightings! However, despite the overload on ALL levels, it makes for a great art-house film and one you'll watch over and over. (If your eyeball doesn't get poked out - movie hint - more symbolism). This film enabled Verhoeven to proceed to make such classics as "Basic Instinct" and "Showgirls". Trivia: Main actor Jeroen Kraabe was the evil doctor who framed Harrison Ford in "The Fugitive". Best extra is the inclusion of Verhoeven's director's commentary. He is one clever personality!
Rating:
Summary: Genius! Absolute Genius!
Review: The more films I see by Verhoeven the quicker he becomes one of my all time favorite filmmakers ever. Just watched this several days ago and it is a real cinematic treat full of brilliant performances, dizzying camera work and comical, radical, shocking and thought provoking dialogue and imagery. This is a real master at work. Verhoeven is one of the best directors ever and this is one of his finest achievements.
Rating:
Summary: Genius! Absolute Genius!
Review: The more films I see by Verhoeven the quicker he becomes one of my all time favorite filmmakers ever. Just watched this several days ago and it is a real cinematic treat full of brilliant performances, dizzying camera work and comical, radical, shocking and thought provoking dialogue and imagery. This is a real master at work. Verhoeven is one of the best directors ever and this is one of his finest achievements.
Rating:
Summary: Confrontive,enjoyable movie
Review: This is another classic dutch movie,this time director verhoeven took the dutch writer gerard reve as his inspiration. the movie is full of pure ,raw and confrontive scenes with again a amazing performance of jeroen krabbe as the confused alcoholic writer. This was also one of the first big screenappearances of tom hoffman ,who goes up to the star level of krabbe. Shoot in typical dutch locations,and still coming over as if it is a hollywood blockbuster.
Rating:
Summary: An indulgence for both the eyes and the mind.
Review: This was Paul Verhoeven's last, most thematically dense and visually stunning Dutch film before he immigrated to America and started making lackluster Hollywood nonsense. Without giving too much away, just know that this film is a cinematic masterwork, lovingly crafted by an artist at the height of his powers...before he allowed himself to be seduced by the dark side of commerce and greed. This film is a profoundly puzzling mystery wrapped in a refreshingly immoderate eroticism and a breathtaking, lyrical symbolism. THE 4TH MAN is as close to how I would choose to define "pure cinema" as any other film I have ever seen in my entire life. One caveat, however...do not view this film if you are at all easily offended by religious imagery, especially religious imagery that some may interpret as potentially blasphemous.
Rating: 
Summary: why? and how?
Review: when i first saw this film i was very confused about what 'the Fourth Man', the film, was supposed to be doing. Now after reasearching the film, mostly through reviews, i guess it was supposed to be a black comedy. I didn't get that at all...i love black comedies....favorite genre. This wasn't funny.... and by a near universal standard. Wasn't all that 'Black' either. The alleged 'Blaspemous' element came off as very corny.....the subject matter may have been blaspemous 200 years ago. It's mostly geared towards christianity. It's a sort of 'blasphemy' that operates from the presupposition that the fundamental principles of christianity are serious....so maybe if you are really into jesus this might be funny. It's on say the same level as Sinead O' Conner tearing up a photo of the pope as a statement...very "controversial"!! so i guess if you are a big fan of black comedies stay away from this as the characters and story will just come off as very annoying. though if you have decidedly bourgeois sensibilities and take christianaity semi seriously this might be interesting. I would highly reccomend seeing any Luis Bunuel films first....he was the black comedy master. If you see a Bunuel film (the Phantom of Liberty?) and then watch the Fourth Man you will know exactly why the Fourth Man is really bad. alot of it is on a visceral level so addmittedly it's hard for me to describe.
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