Nonureva
Really Surprised!
Dorathen
Better Late Then Never
Plustown
A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.
Anoushka Slater
While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.
IanRusk
A gay film from 1990 made in the Netherlands that was one of the first gay films I have seen. I don't see it on many watchlists or talked about much so I consider it obscure. Fairly short film but very intense and very well made. Illustrates the loneliness and victimization of gay teen, especially prior to the 2000s. Story involves Kees who attends an all-boys school where bullying is the norm. Kees has a secret crush on Charel, one of the bullies. The bullies torment Kees in the lockerroom at school one afternoon, forcibly stripping him of his underwear as they mock him. Kees later devises a plan of revenge (or is it?) in which he invites Charel over. A fairly intense ending to a glimpse into the life of an introverted gay teen male. Parental advisory: full frontal of Kees in the locker room scene where he is stripped by bullies. Geert Hunaerts does an outstanding job as the tormented youth Kees. Worth a watch.
stef-decloe
A very beautiful movie, very intense. The two boys were 18 at the time of filming (1990, both born in 1972). They both did a very excelling performance.The colors are beautiful, the filming is excellent. The "light" is superb…Some situations are so recognizable, and so understandable.The issue of the situation is shocking, but that is what movies are made for…This 45 minutes short is like watching a "full" movie", and raises many questions. I enjoyed it very much. PS, If ever there was a question of "revenge": do a "google pictures" for both actors… :-)
mad-69
On the VHS version I saw, only the Dutch words spoken during the French class were translated into the English subtitles. And if even if other versions do translate the French, it would be really hard to do it justice.The French class scene would have been really hard to follow if I were relying on the subtitles. Early on, Charel copies or borrows Kees's homework. The sentence the teacher asks Charel to read aloud (and praises because another boy has mispronounced it) translates as "It is worth it for me to do my own work." The teacher clearly has it in for Kees. She purposefully makes him translate aloud the sentence "I follow a blind ass." Kees is a dutiful good student and doesn't realize (the way the teacher must) that he will be making an ambiguous statement in French sort of like "I see Uranus" in English is also "I see your anus". "I follow" in French sounds the same as "I am". So all the other kids laugh at him because the teacher has just made Kees say, "I am a blind ass."
harry-76
To fully appreciate this short film (40 minutes) one has to closely identify or empathize with its young hero. This lad is quiet, intense, and emotionally not the most stable of personalities. He focuses his attention on a significant other -- a student in his class with a contrasting personality. This results in a conflicting relationship, leaving the young hero distraught to the point of being suicidal.It's not a very optimistic short story told here, yet one which creates a definite mood and sustains interest throughout its brief running time. Very well acted, "To Play or Die" is a minor effort, noteworthy for its unusually short duration. There are not many short stories filmed with running times of under 45 minutes, that are independent and not part of any kind of series.
