'Character' is a Dutch film which won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1998. The film begins as a young man, Jacob Katadreuffe, has been arrested on the suspicion of murdering Dreverhaven, a powerful and much feared bailiff in the city of Rotterdam. Katadreuffe is interrogated by the police and the recounting of his story forms a voice-over narration for the rest of the film.
We flashback to the early 1920s as Katadreuffe relates that his mother, Joba, was Dreverhaven's housekeeper. They have a very brief affair but she decides to raise the child on her own since he is a cruel man who she cannot relate to. Nonetheless, Dreverhaven is persistent in trying to get Joba to change her mind. He sends an emissary laden with cash begging her to marry him but each time she rejects his entreaties.
Finally Dreverhaven gives up and Joba is left to raise little Jacob on her own. Oddly, she has no fondness for the boy and throughout his childhood and adolescence she hardly says a word to him.
'Character' has a few powerful scenes in its expository sequences. First we discover just how cruel a man Dreverhaven is. When he comes to evict a family who are behind on their rent, he finds an extremely sick woman inside the apartment and ends up dragging her out of bed and throws her out into the street. In another powerful scene, Katadreuffe is arrested with a group of other boys for stealing some bread and is almost raped by a pederast police officer inside a juvenile detention center.
It should be noted that when Katadreuffe is detained, he tells the police that Dreverhaven is his father. But when questioned, Dreverhaven denies knowing the boy. Hence, at the outset, we wonder why the Dreverhaven rejects his son. Is he trying to get back at the mother who won't marry him? It's never really explained.
Katadreuffe's 'call to adventure' begins when he finally becomes a young man. He's still living with his mother and decides that he must strike out on his own. He takes out a loan from a credit company and impulsively buys a cigar shop without checking the inventory. He soon discovers that the inventory, boxes of cigars, are filled with nothing but straw. One wonders why Katadreuffe didn't bother to inspect the inventory before purchasing the business. After this fiasco, Katadreuffe is forced to go back to live with his mother.
Katadreuffe keeps pushing forward. He manages to land a job as an assistant to an attorney, Stroomkoning, at a law firm utilizing his English skills which he learned as a child studying an old encyclopedia. Soon after, Katadreuffe discovers that the credit company he borrowed the money from belongs to Dreverhaven. Katadreuffe is now in debt to his father who interestingly enough allows him to pay off his debts in installments. During the first go-round, he proves to his father that he's an honorable guy and pays off the debt as money is garnered from his pay check.
Most of 'Act 2" of 'Character' deals with Katadreuffe attempt to better his position within the law firm. He's attracted to Stroomkoning's secretary, Miss Te George, but due to his bitterness over the poor relationship with his father, he never works up the courage to hook up with her. The film's B story doesn't seem to go anywhere when Te George eventually leaves the firm and nothing comes of their relationship.
Katadreuffe is eventually offered the position of office manager within the firm. Inexplicably, he asks Dreverhaven for another loan which he uses for tutoring to become a full-fledged attorney. The loan has one proviso: Dreverhaven can call it in at anytime. He does so just as Katadreuffe is about to take his exams. To Katadreuffe's horror, it's revealed that he failed to pay an earlier debt consisting of his 15 guilder collection of old books (including the encyclopedia). Stroomkoning comes to his rescue, convincing the bankruptcy court that the debt was merely a gift.
Meanwhile, Dreverhaven, the cruel, obsessed bailiff, has never given up hope that Joba will accept his proposition (why he still wants to marry her after all this time is never explained). He visits her again after all these years and she turns him down on cue. This fuels his monstrous rage and he's off evicting as many poor tenants he can find. He's so obsessed that he serves a notice of eviction to a Communist who's in the middle of firefight with the police.
In her old age, Joba becomes a little more talkative and chides Katadreuffe for not going after Lorna Te George. Joba soon dies and Dreverhaven has a soft spot in his heart and attends her funeral.
The climax of 'Character' is unsatisfying. We expect Dreverhaven to do something shattering that leads Katadreuffe to confront him in the final scene. But it's nothing more than his graduation from law school and acceptance into the firm that propels him to the final confrontation with his father (Katadreuffe remarks that he "knew all along" that his father had been "waiting" for him).
Father and son are both bloodied as they duke it out at Dreverhaven's place of employment. Dreverhaven ends up dead but the police conclude that Dreverhaven committed suicide and let Katadreuffe go.
'Character' is fairly absorbing until the Third Act Climax. The film is helped immensely by the brooding, noirish musical score. Although we never really find out what makes Dreverhaven tick, it's suggested that he was merely using 'tough love' as a means of building his son's character (Dreverhaven ends up ceding his entire estate to his son and signs his will "Father" to boot). "Character' is a melodrama with a nice look to it which will keep you engaged for most of its two hours. But the motivations of its 'characters' (especially Dreverhaven) are not always convincingly defined.
We flashback to the early 1920s as Katadreuffe relates that his mother, Joba, was Dreverhaven's housekeeper. They have a very brief affair but she decides to raise the child on her own since he is a cruel man who she cannot relate to. Nonetheless, Dreverhaven is persistent in trying to get Joba to change her mind. He sends an emissary laden with cash begging her to marry him but each time she rejects his entreaties.
Finally Dreverhaven gives up and Joba is left to raise little Jacob on her own. Oddly, she has no fondness for the boy and throughout his childhood and adolescence she hardly says a word to him.
'Character' has a few powerful scenes in its expository sequences. First we discover just how cruel a man Dreverhaven is. When he comes to evict a family who are behind on their rent, he finds an extremely sick woman inside the apartment and ends up dragging her out of bed and throws her out into the street. In another powerful scene, Katadreuffe is arrested with a group of other boys for stealing some bread and is almost raped by a pederast police officer inside a juvenile detention center.
It should be noted that when Katadreuffe is detained, he tells the police that Dreverhaven is his father. But when questioned, Dreverhaven denies knowing the boy. Hence, at the outset, we wonder why the Dreverhaven rejects his son. Is he trying to get back at the mother who won't marry him? It's never really explained.
Katadreuffe's 'call to adventure' begins when he finally becomes a young man. He's still living with his mother and decides that he must strike out on his own. He takes out a loan from a credit company and impulsively buys a cigar shop without checking the inventory. He soon discovers that the inventory, boxes of cigars, are filled with nothing but straw. One wonders why Katadreuffe didn't bother to inspect the inventory before purchasing the business. After this fiasco, Katadreuffe is forced to go back to live with his mother.
Katadreuffe keeps pushing forward. He manages to land a job as an assistant to an attorney, Stroomkoning, at a law firm utilizing his English skills which he learned as a child studying an old encyclopedia. Soon after, Katadreuffe discovers that the credit company he borrowed the money from belongs to Dreverhaven. Katadreuffe is now in debt to his father who interestingly enough allows him to pay off his debts in installments. During the first go-round, he proves to his father that he's an honorable guy and pays off the debt as money is garnered from his pay check.
Most of 'Act 2" of 'Character' deals with Katadreuffe attempt to better his position within the law firm. He's attracted to Stroomkoning's secretary, Miss Te George, but due to his bitterness over the poor relationship with his father, he never works up the courage to hook up with her. The film's B story doesn't seem to go anywhere when Te George eventually leaves the firm and nothing comes of their relationship.
Katadreuffe is eventually offered the position of office manager within the firm. Inexplicably, he asks Dreverhaven for another loan which he uses for tutoring to become a full-fledged attorney. The loan has one proviso: Dreverhaven can call it in at anytime. He does so just as Katadreuffe is about to take his exams. To Katadreuffe's horror, it's revealed that he failed to pay an earlier debt consisting of his 15 guilder collection of old books (including the encyclopedia). Stroomkoning comes to his rescue, convincing the bankruptcy court that the debt was merely a gift.
Meanwhile, Dreverhaven, the cruel, obsessed bailiff, has never given up hope that Joba will accept his proposition (why he still wants to marry her after all this time is never explained). He visits her again after all these years and she turns him down on cue. This fuels his monstrous rage and he's off evicting as many poor tenants he can find. He's so obsessed that he serves a notice of eviction to a Communist who's in the middle of firefight with the police.
In her old age, Joba becomes a little more talkative and chides Katadreuffe for not going after Lorna Te George. Joba soon dies and Dreverhaven has a soft spot in his heart and attends her funeral.
The climax of 'Character' is unsatisfying. We expect Dreverhaven to do something shattering that leads Katadreuffe to confront him in the final scene. But it's nothing more than his graduation from law school and acceptance into the firm that propels him to the final confrontation with his father (Katadreuffe remarks that he "knew all along" that his father had been "waiting" for him).
Father and son are both bloodied as they duke it out at Dreverhaven's place of employment. Dreverhaven ends up dead but the police conclude that Dreverhaven committed suicide and let Katadreuffe go.
'Character' is fairly absorbing until the Third Act Climax. The film is helped immensely by the brooding, noirish musical score. Although we never really find out what makes Dreverhaven tick, it's suggested that he was merely using 'tough love' as a means of building his son's character (Dreverhaven ends up ceding his entire estate to his son and signs his will "Father" to boot). "Character' is a melodrama with a nice look to it which will keep you engaged for most of its two hours. But the motivations of its 'characters' (especially Dreverhaven) are not always convincingly defined.