Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Portrayal
Review: This movie is deep and sometimes it seems to have a bit of trouble capturing it all in such a short time. Perhaps this was intended as it seems to favor letting the viewer make their own judgements about the story. Controversial with many, each viewer will see a different side of the coin, but all viewers will see the genuine and well integrated emotional rollercoaster that each of the characters must enture. Overall, one of my favorite foriegn films for it's honesty and fearless willingess to portray reality without inserting extrenal judgements and cues for the viewer.
Rating:
Summary: Clearly, deserving of a Full FIVE STAR rating!
Review: For A Lost Soldier is my Gold Standard for Coming-of-Age films. The enduring theme here is one of love, and there is a lot of it.
Wartime Amsterdam is no place for children and Jeroen's mother cries as she puts her beautiful 12 year-old son on the lorry taking children to the farmlands of northern Holland, where there is food and safety. On arrival, a farmer comes to the church and take Jeroen to his new home and family. Quickly, there is a wonderful loving relationship between Jeroen and his stepfather. There are times Jeroen needs guidance and his stepfather is always there for him. Later in the film, the day Jeroen's mother comes to pick him up, the farmer cannot keep from sobbing as he tells Jeroen's mother of the love he has for the boy and how Jeroen had been cared for as if he had been his own son. Jeroen is coming of age during this time in the country. As his friends become interested in girls, Jeroen finds himself drawn to males. And, sadly, Jeroen is without anyone to explain his sexual feelings. Soon, the Germans flee and the Canadian forces liberate all of Holland.
A... Canadian soldier, Walt, spots Jeroen as "special" and befrends the boy. Jeroen blooms like a flower in the sun!
The two develope a comfortable friendship... . A few things start falling into place for Jeroen as he gets the whole package---friendship, companionship, acceptance, a little time at the wheel of Walt's jeep, resting in Walt's strong arms waiting for clothes to dry, the electricity of a man's touch, sensual kissing as an expression of love, and ultimately Jeroen's first sexual expierience. Jeroen is the happiest boy in the world, and rightly so. None of this escapes the watchful eye of Jeroen's stepfather.The Canadian soldier, although10 years older than Jeroen, is recognized as a positive influence. Jeroen's coming of age is happening and his stepfather is wise enough to let the boy learn. Then Walt's army unit is ordered to pull out. Late at night, Walt goes to Jeroen's stepfather with the news and asks that Jeroen be told the next day. The men shake hands good-bye and the farmer yells out, "God Bless" as Walt walks away. We see Jeroen as an adult, still as madly in love with Walt as decades before and still missing him. Special Hints: The real hero of this film is the stepfather.
Avoid the Tiwanese DVD.
Rating:
Summary: Boy meets Man
Review: Being American, it's hard to believe that this movie was ever made. It's even more difficult to believe that it wasn't banned from America all together. I wish this DVD included the making of the film. I would love to have gotten the solider, Walt's, feelings about his love scenes with a young boy. I'd also like to know how the boy's parents felt about letting their son be kissed, stroked, and seemingly made love to by an adult man. While it is uncomfortable to watch, it is, at the same time, a terrific film. The young boy, Jeroen, goes through an awful lot in this movie. His whole life is torn apart. It's no wonder he would find comfort in the arms of a kind solider. Many people probably think of Walt as the villain. Did he really fall in love with Jeroen or is he just some sick pervert? Probably neither. At the time Walt meets Jeroen he is also going through his own emotional problems. The two souls meet each other and offer comfort. It is NOT ok for adults to have sex with children. But, for this time and place, it is understandable to how this could happen.
Rating:
Summary: Touchy Subject matter that is well handled....
Review: "Voor Een Verloren Soldaat" (For a Lost Soldier) is about a refugee boy sent from Amsterdam by his mom for safekeeping to a farm family in northern Netherlands. This is the story of Jeroen who is a dancer. The area is liberated by Canadian troops, and a Canadian soldier and the boy develop a friendship. It's an auto-biographical work by the Dutch director, Jeroen Krabbe. Film critics from major daily newspapers reviewed it, and the film had only a limited American release, perhaps because of the controversial nature of the film. He recalls his first homoerotic friendship in a series of flash backs. The flashbacks take place in the Netherlands at almost the end of W.W.II. The Allies arrive and Jeroen and Walt meet and enter into a relationship between a man and a boy. The subject is handled with a openness and truth which could never be handled as subject matter in most countries Part of this film is in Dutch, with English subtitles, however, a good part of this movie is in English with no subtitles. Again, this is a touchy subject matter that is handled very well.
Rating:
Summary: Male bonding withour labels
Review: A friend gave me the vhs of this film and I had no idea what to expect. I loved the film. It is about the love that dare not speak its name. After viewing the vhs I wanted the dvd, but based on customer reviews, I will be satisfied the the vhs. This is not a 'gay film' but a 'homosexual themed film'. Those of you who have read my reviews before know that I do not like 'gay' films. I prefer homosexual male bonding films. This is one of them. In the same genre, are 'Red Dirt', 'Big Eden', and 'Maurice'. I enjoyed other foreign films as well, eg. 'Come Undone', 'Sum of Us', and 'Priest'. Please, give to the straight audience for once a film in mass release about male bonding and nothing as inane as 'Priscilla, queen of the Desert.
Rating:
Summary: Top of my list
Review: After viewing the VHS, had to have the DVD. Wish the quality had been better. I agree with another viewer...picture quality and sound were lacking, and I hope there will be another attempt at immortalizing this movie to DVD. As far as the movie goes: Must see! Would be surprised if this movie doesn't become a top 10 to anyone who watches.
Rating: 
Summary: Great Movie - Poor DVD
Review: The film is a very tastefully realised depiction of a difficult and controversial subject and deserved 5 Stars alone, but the DVD is most disappointing. The picture, to me, seems worse than VHS - very indistict and grainy. Sound is no more than OK. When the letterbox widescreen picture is enlarged to view on a widescreen set the subtitles are cut off at the bottom of the screen!
Rating:
Summary: Tastefully done, powerful thought provoking, good acting
Review: Not many movies out there on this subject. Tastefully done not turning it into some kind of porn but instead to challege believe systems. Good acting. Stirs your emotions and leaves you wondering. Are you born gay? Was the boy gay to begin with? Did the man influence the boy and resulted in the boy being gay? Very powerful questions. Choices, morality, right and wrong, who decides - the viewer.
Rating:
Summary: THE BEAUTIFUL STORY OF LOVE AND LOSS!
Review: The movie is based on the book "For A Lost Soldier". It is a story of a young boy in the war-time Netherlands, who falls in love with an American soldier.
The director and actors are at their best showing the depths of the characters' feelings. The boy's feelings are beautifully and sharply depicted. This movie is so moving, that I think it is targeted for much broader audience than just the gay community.
I am sure that it is really hard to depict all the psychological moments and to show the personality and inner world of a young boy, who is just growing up but the director succeeded with that.
It is not one of those big budget movies with lots of special visual effects...It is a simple story of first love, exploration of the outside world and building one's own personality...
I would really recomend this movie for anyone who is into good European movies...
Rating: 
Summary: Beautiful But Disquieting
Review: FOR A LOST SOLDIER tells the story of a Dutch boy's emotional and sexual relationship with a young adult American soldier during World War II. The film presents the relationship as a loving and somewhat magical one--and asks the viewer to consider if such relationships are intrinsically abusive or if some such relationships might actually have a certain validity. Both the subject and the questions raised are likely to provoke a knee-jerk reaction in most people--but FOR A LOST SOLDIER has considerable delicacy; the film is not in any way exploitational in content or tone, it is beautifully acted and filmed, and the difficult subject is handled with considerable grace. Ultimately, the film does not consider the particular relationship it portrays to be deliberately abusive; still, the film begs but does not actually address the question of whether or not such relationships are intrinsically abusive, leaving the viewer to do battle with that particular question on his own. Given the subject matter, I do not recommend FOR A LOST SOLDIER as casual viewing--but those who watch it thoughtfully will find it forces them to define their own ideas about what is and is not abusive... which is, perhaps, the ultimate purpose of the film as a whole.
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