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7 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
This neglected boy is a little treasure. Every family will love him., 5 January 2004
8/10
Author: raymond-15 from Australia

I suspect that the author of this story read a lot of Charles Dickens' works, because the film has a true Dickensian feel about it, and the somewhat sepia-toned colour adds a touch of old world charm like the parchment pages of an antique book.

I liked this film immensely. It was one of those occasions when I felt obliged to watch it right through. I even managed a tear or two towards the end.

The story concerns Kruimeltje a 10 year old illegitimate boy whose mother filled with shame gave him away soon after he was born. The father of the boy fled to America to make his fortune. Kruimeltje became an urchin stealing from the street barrows and the shops to stay alive....sleeping in churches or huddled in doorways. A stray dog became his constant companion. His rebellious nature gave him the courage to continue from day to day hoping that sooner or later his father would come back to claim him.

This great little actor is on the screen most of the time and he carries you along in his series of adventures. These were the days when the school-master's cane shaped the lives of the students who were forced to comply with the school regulations and were beaten into submission. There is a heart-rending scene where Kruimeltje paralyzed with pain from a terrible beating can only think of feeding his faithful dog.

The supporting roles are interesting, played with all stops out. His foster mother is a spiteful wretch who demands payment for his keep. There is one scene which may need some parental guidance. A drunken partner following a bout of drinking forces her down on a table and tries to sexually assault her. Frightened Kruimeltje goes to her rescue. The rest of the film is good family entertainment. There are sad moments and funny moments. A sad moment involves a priest who kicks him out of the church where he sought shelter for the night. No compassion here. A funny moment is when he steals the key to let loose his impounded dog. Excitement plus as they are re-united.

Don't question some of the improbabilities of the story. Sit back and be entertained. The whole family can enjoy it together.

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5 out of 6 people found the following review useful:
Go and see "Kruimeltje", 31 December 1999
8/10
Author: Marion van Hoof from Arnhem

A lovely story about a boy, given away as a baby to a nasty woman, in search for his parents.

Filmed in the tradition of musicals like David Copperfield and Oliver Twist, without the songs and with the sense of reality that's typical for most Dutch movies. I quite liked it and the children too, apparently: a cinema full of little ones, silent as mice.

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4 out of 5 people found the following review useful:
Truly wonderful!, 25 December 2003
9/10
Author: Darkfalz from Australia

This was a very sweet, traditional and refreshingly non-Hollywood Christmas movie and I really fell in love with it.

Admittedly it followed the standard formula, but it didn't feel like just another Hallmark-esque piece of sentimental crap like so many others in the same vein. It passed the tear jerker test, which means I cried a lot throughout the movie, which is not unusual for me being rather maudlin and sensitive but doesn't happen when the cynic in me senses a movie which is too contrived and intentionally emotional exploitative.

The title character was a very likable and charming little rascal of a boy (many in similar films aren't nearly so likable) and the cast of kind hearted characters as well as the obligatory villains was absolutely perfect. My favourite character was of course Wilkes! That's the kind of person I aspire to be some day.

Definitely the best film from Holland I've ever seen, considering most are wacky movies about odd characters and full of all perversions and other dirty things generally associated with the Dutch, but this was a true feel good family movie that everyone can enjoy.

It's disappointing to see so few votes and comments for this movie! It's really on the level of Oliver and The Christmas Carol and other Christmas favourites. In fact, it's only the second "foreign" film I've ever commented on. A beautiful and thoroughly entertaining story which doesn't get inhibited by the language barrier one bit. I liked it so much I'm going to try to get it on video or something so I can watch it again.

It's a time when we are starting to lose our basic humanity in pursuit of greed and power, a loss that has been particularly pronounced in the current generation of women who have so little compassion, tolerance or consideration for others, and we really need more stories like this to remind us of how rewarding just being kind and good to each other can be.

9/10

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1 out of 2 people found the following review useful:
This is a childmovie for every age, 12 December 1999
7/10
Author: Stefan Tetelepta from Holland

Forget Home Alone, dont think about Air Bud: this is the childmovie for every age. It's a story about a homeless kid of ten years old, who had a heart of gold. The storyline is simple, and sometimes a litle dull. Could have used a liltle more humour near the end, but it's very heartwarming. See it with the family.

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2 out of 4 people found the following review useful:
Don't compare it to the book, 26 December 2005
7/10
Author: SpacehamsterDotCom from Netherlands

The story follows a nice pace and many people and places looked a lot liked I pictured them from reading the book. However, having read the book several times in my childhood I felt disappointed about how the movie handles the storyline. Things that were surprises in the book that were kept for the very end were given away halfway the film. In my opinion that spoils a lot of the surprise effect. So my warning to those who read the book is of course not to expect the storyline from the book. And those who want to show people this movie to interest them in the book should be warned that for the best story experience one should read the book first. Otherwise it's a nice family movie that is not a typical Dutch movie at all.

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0 out of 1 people found the following review useful:
Kruimeltje, 23 June 2005
10/10
Author: RedheadR from Netherlands

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

I have something to say about this movie, my name is Raymond Roodbol and i played the role of 'Bartje' in this movie. It's really strange that my name isn't mentioned here. It was a really great experience to do this, when i looked up 'Kruimeltje' here on IMDb, my name wasn't there. So i hope my name would be mentioned in the list, if that's possible.

Something about the movie: The filming was at many places in the Netherlands, i really liked making this movie, also because it was such a success. After the great success of 'Kruimeltje, the movie', 'Kruimeltje, the musical' was played in the Netherlands, I also played in 'Kruimeltje The Musical' and also the role of 'Bartje'.

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0 out of 5 people found the following review useful:
not bad..........for a dutch movie, 29 January 2001
2/10
Author: Chris from Zwolle, Netherlands

It's an old story of a lonely boy who "rascals" around in the city. Maybe it's just me, but I hate the dutch language in movies or series. For this movie they used a crew of famous dutch actors, just a shame of Johnny Kraaikamp's roll, wich is FAR to short ! I thought the part with him was the best scene of the hole movie.

Just as I mentioned: not bad for a dutch movie

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