Times have changed.
I always liked to watch a film. There was a time you could see one undisturbed on television. No 15-20 minute long commercials every 10 minutes. There was no broadcasting 24/24, television was special. Because of the commercials, I gave up on it over 10 years ago. I do not miss it. If I want to watch a film I want to watch it without interruptions. It is relaxing time for me.
Once it was quiet in the cinema.
It was a luxury place where you could watch a film without people who had to pee every 10 minutes, eat popcorn and spill it on you or could not shut up for 5 minutes.
Behavior like this has to do with culture, raising, norms, and values. In some cultures mouths are closed in the cinema and eating, drinking and smoking are not allowed, no ashtrays all over the house. Eating you do when you sit at a table. Eating = not speaking. We learned not to disturb other people on their day/evening out.
The cinema is no longer special.
People are always in a rush. If two film lovers stay to see the end of the film, until the screen turns black, it is a lot and they will be kicked out by the cleaning staff.
This all means I have a large collection of films on video and DVD (35 years) and so have my children. We still watch them, without interruptions at the time it suits us.
I missed the news Rutger Hauer died.
He died at home on July 19 (07-19-17).
Somehow I felt surprised he lived in the Netherlands.
Many elderly people leave (the kind of weather gets into your joint and bones, kills), so do the ones who get famous.
He did not get that old. If he had to work till the age of 72 like the Dutch government and the EU wants us, he would only have had only 3 years of retirement.
The first film with him I saw was Soldaat van Oranje (1977)
He played Erik Lanshof. The name of the film is the nickname given to Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema after the second World War.
The film is based on the book. Erik wrote about his student life during the war in the city of Leiden. He and Guus escape to the UK and start spying in the Netherlands for the UK. It all turned out to be a British diversionary maneuver.
Erik asked himself as the war was over if his sacrifices were worth giving up his (student) life. Today we do no longer care about these heroes. Those who fought/fight for their country, freedom, are called racists now.
To Paul Verhoeven, the director, this film was his international breakthrough.
Soldaat van Oranje (Soldier of Orange) was the official Dutch entry for the Oscars of 1977.
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