The Admiral (2015) User Reviews

An amazing accomplishment, and not just special effects

[Imaculata · 8/10 · 10 February 2015]

This could easily be one of the best Dutch movies made so far. It is not only an amazing accomplishment because of the spectacular naval battles and special effects, but also because it manages to explain all of the historical context. And on top of that, it not only manages to tell De Ruyter's story, but also that of other important historical characters, such as Charles II, Willem III, Johan De Witt, and several others.

The movie struggles occasionally to fit all of De Ruyter's career in just one movie. And especially the first half of the movie suffers from misplaced patriotism that feels almost un-Dutch, with a lot of slow motion close ups of waving Dutch flags, and long winded speeches about freedom and liberty. It struggles with its dialog, and especially at the start it often indulges too much in spouting exposition, and in trying to remind the audience of the time period.

But those minor issues aside, this is a great film. It even takes some risks by showing Wilhelm III's blatant taste for boys over girls, and by showing the gruesome betrayal of the brothers De Witt. All of this is historically accurate, so that can't really be considered a spoiler to anyone who has bothered to read a bit of history.

The movie has a great soundtrack, and beautiful costumes, while using a lot of real locations (which have been made to look period-accurate with a little help of some CGI). At times the ships clearly look computer generated, but all of that can be forgiven because of the beautiful camera work, and an almost American-style of cinematography. This movie does not look Dutch. It looks like a Hollywood movie. And I think that makes it a lot more accessible to foreign audiences.

I recommend it.

A real surprise. A film with a nice original story-line and style.

[jafarmohammad00 · 8/10 · 16 October 2015]

One of the best dutch movie after "Black Book". Acting was pretty good. Specially Frank Lammers as Michiel de Ruyter. He is mind-blowing. Michiel de Ruyter, has definitely won a place in my heart. But I feel like something was missing.The movie has a great soundtrack, and beautiful costumes, while using a lot of real locations (which have been made to look period-accurate with a little help of some CGI).

There was some loopholes but the other thing was too good to overlook those. At over two hours long, this is quite an in depth film but one you can easily get drawn into and thoroughly enjoy with its well- paced, action-packed scenes, regardless if you're into historical dramas or not. The stunning cinematography, high quality production, engaging script and spectacular performances in ADMIRAL truly make this film a biopic that would do Michiel de Ruyter proud.

I highly recommend this movie. Happy watching.

Been waiting for this historical setting for some time now

[m-darmanin · 7/10 · 3 February 2015]

I've always fantasized about this naval period. This movie gave me the chance to experience this strange deceptive era in theatrical form.

The young republic, striving to establish and maintain strong trading routes, are flawed by who they thought were their allies all along. Physically and mentally provoked and by three nations at once, it goes to show that a country can indeed establish itself through courage, determination and wit.

Long as the film was, I found it a wonderful experience to watch from start to finish. I didn't expect to see scenes in England, let alone ones containing the mad monarchist King James II. What a mentalist.

Many scenes featuring the Dutch King Willem II and admiral Tromp were simply captivating to the point that I felt I was actually living the moment in that era.

Michiel de Ruyter, has definitely won a place in my heart and I will definitely be watching this one again someday.

Good film

[k-thomas · 7/10 · 16 April 2017]

I was interested in to see this movie Admiral, because i come from Chatham in England. In 1967 on the 300th anniversary of the Battle Of Chatham a Dutch band visit Chatham and tour some our schools. We were taught about the battle. The film itself, i thought was very good. I disagree one reviewer, that us English were portrayed as dumb. It showed that we were arrogant. Our politician Samuel Pepys warned England and not underrated the Dutch. It showed that, the Dutch took a gamble. If they had lost, Holland would be open to invasion by England, France and Germany. It is good that two versions have been made, so younger viewers can watch it. Dutch and English. Nice to see some good actors from Holland. Frank Lammers, Dereck Le Lint, Barry Atsma and of course Rutger Hauer in a small role and English Actor, Charles Dance as King Charles 11. I hope at this movie will be shown at least on English television.

Good looking movie with storytelling problems

[JaydoDre · 7/10 · 21 August 2016]

This film has a structure problem. It is not that the story is completely incoherent, but there were a number of moments when I and my partner asked ourselves, "Wait, why did that happen?" And we know a little bit of Dutch history. I can imagine that for a person who does not, certain events will be even more confusing. The film keeps switching from one thing to another and starts to lose the viewer. Even when it does try to explain things, like a plan for an upcoming battle, it does not do a very good job.

During the action scenes, the camera work adds to this problem. It seems the makers really wanted to show off the explosions and the pretty ships, so you see a lot of those kinds of shots, but those shots do not explain the details of what is actually happening. War stuff is happening. There you go.

Separate from the storytelling, the visuals and the music are good. There are a few cool high-altitude CG shots mixed with real ships, and if you are a fan old ships, this is movie is a must-see. The soundtrack has that epic over-the-top Hans Zimmer feel to it, and during a number of prolonged scenes that have no dialogue, the film starts looking more like a music video. Unfortunately, the good music and visuals just underline the mediocrity of the storytelling. It often doesn't feel like the scene in question has earned to give itself an epic soundtrack.

There is a similar problem with the acting. The acting itself is good but sometimes does not fit with the story. A character will start crying about the death of another character, but the movie had not sufficiently established the close friendship between those two characters and so the reaction feels strange. Again, a structure problem.

It is commendable that the movie's budget is a mere 8 million. The same movie done in the US would have cost at least 100 mil, with 20 paid to Russell Crowe alone (that's a Master and Commander reference, everyone). It is unfortunate that the film will probably not earn a sufficient profit. Michiel De Ruyter is a patriotic Dutch film that portrays the English as dumb**ses. It is centered on Dutch characters, as the name of the movie suggests, and seems to not have much of an international appeal.

This is one of those movies that makes me wish that IMDb had a 6.5 option for scoring. It is alright, but needed to have a more ironed story structure.

A good dutch film

[wesly_ester110 · 7/10 · 29 January 2015]

After an impressive trailer of the movie I was very excited to see that this movie isn't one of those low-class comedy movies with dutch films usually are.

Michiel de Ruyter is a film in which we dive into history. we are in the 17th century and see The Netherlands in a totally different way compared to modern times which leads to beautiful scenes. The acting was pretty good and Frank Lammers was very strong in this film. The special FX were of a high standard and therefore, all sea battles were incredibly spectacular to See. Although I had something a feeling that after a while some of it gets boring. The film is long but it keeps being interesting because of the storyline. The plot could have been more powerful.

Michiel de Ruyter is a Dutch film that will not disappoint but should not be reclassified as "a masterpiece." It is a film with a nice original storyline and style. 7 as a final grade.

Inspiring Film!

[breckswordz · 9/10 · 21 May 2016]

As an American, I'm not intimately familiar with Dutch history. And that's a shame, because our concept of individual freedom is a direct descendant of the Republic's.

I had heard of De Ruyter, but this film really opened my eyes. I know it's not strictly historically accurate (no film ever is), but it inspired me to read more on Dutch history, and more about this brilliant tactician in particular.

On a different tack, I appreciated this film's superior accuracy in depicting war in the Age of Sail. I've seen too many Hollywood movies with mysterious "exploding solid iron cannonballs." "Admiral" accurately shows that the greatest danger to life & limb came from the huge oak splinters that flew in every direction when a cannonball crashed through a wooden wall.

If you enjoy historical films, and nautical adventure in particular, see this one!

impressive

[Kirpianuscus · 18 August 2017]

a story of courage. or a lesson about politics. portrait of a great hero . or introduction to the essence of Holland national pride. a film who could remind many classic historical frescoes.and who remains seductive for the great beauty of message. because IT has the admirable gift to be the right choice for a large public. not real surprising . only good way for an inspired form of propaganda, adventure and beautiful show.

visually astounding, but flawed

[myriamlenys · 7/10 · 6 August 2017]

Movie dedicated to the life and times of Michiel de Ruyter, an admiral who is to the Dutch what Nelson is to the English. The Dutch see him as one of the architects of their survival, independence and prosperity - try and get more heroic than that.

First the good : the movie is a feast for the eyes. The very best visual and special effects are used to recreate seventeenth-century vessels and naval battles. These splendid ships, multiplied beyond counting, are so achingly beautiful that they seem to belong in a painter's dream of heaven. The locations, the props, the costumes : they're all superbly convincing and delightful to look at. Watching the movie means traveling back to the seventeenth century, as in a time machine.

So the movie works, as a window on another time. It also works as a history lesson : even people unfamiliar with the birth pangs of the modern Netherlands will grasp the stakes of the various wars and civic disorders going on.

But that's about it. There are failures of the imagination, probably at the level of directing and writing. The movie describes ferociously exciting events, but it isn't all that exciting itself ; it gives us an engaging portrayal of an important man, but it fails to dig deep into his soul ; it deals with subjects such as conspiracy, torture and political assassination, but it struggles to grasp or convey the nature of human evil. The movie also makes some inexplicable choices : for instance, Rutger Hauer (a fine artist and a member of Dutch acting royalty) shows up at the beginning, only in order to die nobly a few minutes later. Spellbinding it is not.

Last but not least there is the music. I really really did not like it - it was bombastic and it ruined pretty much every moment which could or should have been heartrending, such as the lynching of the de Witt brothers or the funeral of the great admiral himself.

Shocking piece of history

[gnix1979 · 9/10 · 31 January 2016]

There is very little to fault in this movie, I love foreign subtitled movies and this is now in my top 5.

This is an abridged version of the Anglo/Dutch wars in the 1700s, a period I know little about. It shows the obvious bully tactics of the Royal Navy being superior, but it shows that means nothing with a good commander in charge. It also shows the political ramblings that went on behind the scenes, and although the movie tries its best to not go on an all gore quest, when it needs to the film is shocking. Specifically the assassinations of the Witt brothers, the scenes are extremely gruesome and it horrifies even more that this happened in real life.

A majority of the movie in in Dutch, but the few British scenes are in English, simply to set the tone of the movie.

The acting was flawless especially Frank Lammers who plays the title role. I would highly recommend this movie to anyone.

The only reason it looses one star is because at times the flow of the film seemed a little uneven, but for the most part extremely entertaining and insightful.

Underwhelming

[kiamolav · 6/10 · 9 August 2015]

In the Netherlands, the pool of actors that can make people go to the theater is quite small. So again, we have to look at faces that got some fame from television shows, without being able to act.

I was hoping to see part of the stories my history teacher told me when I was 10 years old would come to life, and maybe even make a little more sense, i.e. give some more context to cruel happenings like the killings of the De Wit bothers. I'm sad to say that this movie has some nice naval visuals, although they do not add to the story whatsoever. This movie also has the actors speak with a severe 21st century style Dutch, as opposed to something more old fashioned (compare for example the show Mr. Selfridge on how to get a more old-fashioned feel by using modern-day language).

The story was a mess. I am a Dutch guy, and history to me just became more confusing: does this Willem van Orange Prins guy have good or bad intentions? What is this rivalry between 'prinsgezinden' and whatever the others where? Also, from Vlissingen to Den Haag (check Google maps), is not a short ride on a horse. Yet, Michiel de Ruyter was able to get to Den Haag in time to see the Johan de Witt die, come on!

The end just has Michiel de Ruyter killed of for no obvious reason other then to get the story to a closing. This whole movie was pretty much underwhelming, bordering on disappointing.

Watch 'Lek' or van 'Van God Los' (in that order) for Dutch movies that have some more quality to them. This movie is worth no more then renting or viewing on Netflix, but not the theater.

Good historic drama

[calastir · 9/10 · 3 February 2015]

I saw this movie last night in cinema Buitenhof, next to the Gevangenpoort prison where the actual brothers de Witt were lynched at the time.

It broadly shows the military career of Admiral Michiel de Ruyter between 1653 and 1677, during the Anglo-Dutch wars.

An heroic spectacle which paints de Ruyter as a common family man. Similar in tone to movies like 'The Patriot' (2000) by Mel Gibson and 'Pearl Harbor' (2001) by Michael Bay, only on a budget of 8 million dollars instead of over a 100.

4 replica's of actual historical sailing ships were used; 'De Batavia' from 1995, the 'Shtandart' from 1999, the 'Étoile du Roi' from 1996, and 'Het Utrechts Statenjacht' from 2003. 'De Batavia' with the red lion figurehead on the prow, and the 'Shtandart' with its bright yellow sides and wreath shaped cannon portholes were very recognizable. Even though there are many explosions, it appears that the use of stage blood wasn't allowed on these replica's. The horrible murder of the brothers de Witt in the disaster year 1672 is shown here for the first time in detail. Very topical in this era of political murders and terrorism in which the discussion between Republicans and monarchists is breaking out again, this is definitely not a movie which Orange fans would want to see...but perhaps they should. ;)

Released in two versions for both ages 16 and 12, the latter presumably without nudity and less violence. I've only seen the 16+ version, and recommend it to anybody with a even a slight interest in dramatic history.

A step in the right direction...

[Evil_Fred · 7/10 · 26 February 2015]

Firstly , let me start of by saying i am dutch and therefore my opinion mite be slightly biased.Secondly , although the story is of grand importance to our history and epic of scope, i was worried (mainly by the choice of director, who's previous track record includes a whole lot of terrible sequels to B movies), and the choice of dutch movie producers to almost always (like 95% of the time) go for the safe picture, that being a not too artsy or original film (mostly being comedies, romantic comedies or family films). This film looked like it was going to be another Nova Zembla, the first big scale dutch epic (not counting of course Paul verhoeven en black book, but thats different, cos its verhoeven who is more known as a Hollywood director than of dutch films) that resulted in a total yawn fest. What a terrible waste

But this one turned out to be better than expected. Tho at times the over use of Bay-isms (such as over extended slo mo shots or using the story to support the visuals and action scenes rather than the other way around ,which did make it feel like a second rate pirates of the Caribbean at times) the flow and tone of the movie worked and it was never really boring at over 2 hours. Tho from time to time the story was obviously embellished for dramatic purposes, which resulted in it again looking more like a Disney adventure movie than a true historic epic. But , with overall good performances by the entire cast( and a gorgeous soundtrack) , the movie was quite good/worked well. A pleasant surprise.

Enjoy! Evil fred

Visually attractive but lacking historical context

[vampierusboy · 5/10 · 10 February 2015]

(I wrote this review in Dutch for a college assignment, the assignment was for the course on the correct use of the past in movies)

At the end of January 2015 the big Dutch production Michiel de Ruyter premiered. A production which shows the life of Michiel de Ruyter as a admiral of the Dutch fleet in the seventeenth century. The movie also depicts some major political happenings in that era. Therefore the movie is filled with important characters from that time, like the brother de Witt, William III, Charles II and Cornelis and Maarten Tromp. Names which sound familiar to most of the Dutch audiences. Visually this movie succeeds to translate some of the famous paintings of the era to the white screen, the painting of the brutal lynching of the brothers de Witt is literally shown on screen and has a 'realistic' counterpart as of this movie. The movie only lacks a lot in historical context, which I will illustrate below.

First on the character of Michiel de Ruyter. He is depicted as a total hero: in his politics, his military leadership and as a family man. This is mostly true for the former two. De Ruyter had a relatively neutral political view and was known to be a friend of Johan de Witt. The battles depicted in the movie were de Ruyter is successful are based on real battles, which de Ruyter won. Nautical you can put question marks at some maneuvers, but the outcome is historical correct. The family de Ruyter is depicted as very modern, jumping on the bed of your parents is something I recognize from my own childhood. In the seventeenth century this was likely to be different. The raising of children was different four hundred years ago.

The historical context is mostly absent on two major point: the politics and the chronology. The political context is modern and absent of the movie. The movie starts with a flaming speech about protecting the freedom of the Netherlands. The Netherlands was not a term used in those times for the country. There was a council of war (depicted in the movie) but most politics were done on a regional level. The mentioned conflict between the republicans and the supporters of the House of Orange is stated but the movie never explains why they are in a conflict. Also the portrayal of William the Third as a closeted homosexual is weird. There are no hints that he was a closeted homosexual, same goes for the mannerisms the actor portrays which strongly remind of Louis XIV. The biggest historical let-down for this movie is the absence of dates. Certain events are mentioned in text on the screen, like the 'disaster year'/rampjaar and some of the sea battles. Most of the Dutch audience will know that the aforementioned year is 1672, but for foreign audiences and Dutch audience without historic knowledge are never told which chronology is used. Also the movie suggests that the depicted events are taking place in several months. The movie suggests that this was mostly done to not hire older actors for the children in the movie. It is irritating, there is a four-year gap between the aforementioned rampjaar and the death of de Ruyter, the movie depicts it as closely together, which is not true.

Visually this movie is very watchable and could serve as a start-up to a understanding of Dutch national history. By omitting much of the context (which could easily be added) this latter object fails in my opinion. By even mentioning dates the movie could create a bigger context and also teach audiences a thing or two.

Worth Watching

[hidanovic · 23 August 2018]

A nice attempt at telling the story of the origins of a small nation that punched well above its weight and left an indelible mark on the course of European and world history.

There is plenty of room for improvement though and especially the accents. I didn't enjoy using modern variations of the Dutch language in what was supposed to have taken place in the 17th century.

Still, worth watching.

A good directing, mastered, at the service of a fictionalized historical story.

[kytetiger · 7/10 · 23 October 2015]

Michiel de Ruyter (2015) (The Admiral)

Having shown his qualities during the First Anglo-Dutch War, Michiel de Ruyter will be entrusted with the duty to protect the nation.

Inspired by the historical facts, the story focuses and adjusts certain historical elements and characters, but in order to offer us a coherent plot. The machinations and conflicts between Orange and Republican parties are the cause of low-coup, betrayals or shenanigans. William II must juggle its politicians but he also seeks the power of the other side, while the King Charles II keeps its position.

The most interesting stories for me are always the political intrigue. The blow-downs, reversals and betrayals plots. The surprises keep coming and unpredictable elements are built on fear, conspiracies and manipulations. In the middle is the family de Ruyter, seeking peace, serenity, love and well-being. The candor and good values, such as family and justice will be undermined, and many times violent and unjust take the viewer to his side (eg "lijken van gebroeders De Witt" by Jan de Baen) . Many element are exposed and implied, but the story does not deepens.

Perhaps too easily, I felt manipulated by the narrative, i could only feel a single point of view, whether facing the negotiations, maritime or duels between the characters. Each had a defined role, framed and did not move one iota. But the actors are very good. Frank Lammers gives humanity and compassion to Michiel de Ruyter. Sanne Langelaar adds character and heart to Anna de Ruyter, and it's nice to see Rutger Hauer (Blade Runner) or Charles Dance (Tywin Lannister in Game of Thrones) offer a solemn and supported presence.

The naval battles are conveniently illustrated with alternations between shots from the bridge and an aerial view to help us understand the strategies, while villages and boardrooms are recreated with attention to detail.

The film is also accompanied by sensational, romantic music and, with the help of a melodious chorus and orchestra, carriers feelings recalling the compositions of Steve Jablonsky or Hans Zimmer(especially "King Arthur"). But curiously, it also gives a very generic feel to it.

A good directing, mastered, at the service of a fictionalized historical story.

7,5/10

Impressive Dutch historic movie

[pietclausen · 7/10 · 27 February 2021]

For a little country, The Netherlands, had a mighty sea faring punch in the middle ages, mainly because they could build ships faster than any other country. Holland has endured many attempted invasions and this movie is about Michiel de Ruyter, a sailor, who became the admiral of the fleet, when three surrounding countries, England, France and Germany planned to invade and carve up the country and divide the spoils between themselves.

A piece of history that is little known and this enactment is brilliantly done. Worth a watch!

Swashbuckler film

[kosmasp · 7/10 · 23 June 2016]

It's not the three musketeers and I'm not even sure what this is based on. Though I reckon a bit of research here, will bring up a lot of that stuff, so I won't have to bore you with that. I was a bit surprised to see this coming from Holland. On the other hand, they are a bit more free when it comes to nudity (just in case you are prude or have a general issue with that, a heads up).

The general swords play and the effects are pretty good. Unfortunately the German disc only had the dubbed version on it, so I couldn't enjoy the real actors voice and environment noise of the production. But it's still made an impression on me and the movie is really rock solid (for some maybe even more than that). The set design, the ships, everything screams a bigger budget than they actually had. Not to mention some very serious acting talent at hand ...

Brilliant movie

[trewsx81 · 9/10 · 10 June 2015]

I just finished watching this movie and I was truly amazed how good and powerful this is. It made me to go to Wikipedia and do some reading about Michiel de Ruyter, because the things this man was able to achieve is simply nothing short of spectacular.

It really feels like those big budget Hollywood movies it has huge sea battles, great and really believable acting also the CGI is pretty good. For those who liked the character of Tywin Lannister played by Charles Dance, well you'll find him here as a King Charles II of England.

I can't recommend this movie enough, just go and watch it and you'll be amazed as well. I never give anything 10 out of 10, but this one came very close to it. Let's say 9.7.

Typical "Hollywood" style movie.

[dcm767 · 7/10 · 30 May 2016]

I'll be brief.

Pros 1.) Great time period costumes,social accords , buildings, etc. Well done. 2.) Some good camera angles, but the CGI was poor. The mass of ship shown for high above all looked neat and orderly. Way Fake (sorry, that was a con. 3.) Interesting look into 1639 politics of the Dutch and how fortunate they were to survive as a nation.

CONS; 1. Read Wikipedia and see the ending is absolutely absurd, and never happened that way. Give this great Admiral his due, but a true Hollywood cop-out. 2. The music was way over the top. I mean that the big crescendos, and violins to tell me this is where I should shed a tear, really took away from the movie. It's an OK movie but WAY better ones to waste two hours of your time. David M.

Magnificent. Best Dutch film ever. The two versions differ very little.

[dutchbartolifan · 10/10 · 12 February 2015]

I saw both versions (12+ and 16+) back to back in the cinema very close (just a few hundred meters) from where a lot of the history really happened (which made me go and see the parts of buildings shown in the film). I don't like Dutch movies anymore these days but this one was very moving for me and watching it twice for a total of 5 hours did not bore me for a second. It's quite moving, with great acting, powerful music and great story. There are some historical inaccuracies but it is a film so I didn't care. It makes one curious to read up on what really happened. Strange is that never was there any mention of the year in which something happened. One just had to know by heart when the "rampjaar" was and the 2-day and 4-day war with the Bitish (a trade war, not territorial). Comparing the 2 versions, it has to be said there is very little difference, just about 5 or 6 seconds cut from the 16+ version, so that there is not the one second of nudity and the final end not so bloody. That's all. I think both versions can be watched by everybody (on TV) but in cinema there are strict age limits. Go and see this for a wonderful, thrilling 2 1/2 hours! All actors are great, especially Charles Dance.

A missed opportunity for perfect Dutch cinematography.

[meningenmojito · 6/10 · 10 April 2021]

I won't address the acting value of this movie for it had the potential to just be an highly-educative historical film.

That is the biggest problem I have with this movie; the set dressing and uniforms have an incredibly high production value.

Beautiful. However, either the camerawork and screenplay or the post-production are terribly disappointing.

Continuous camera shaking. Characters with dialogue, points of interests and beautiful backgrounds have been weirdly cropped in almost every scene. Cutted-off heads, little set details are given a 0.5 second screen time and too many close-ups have been used for beautiful large sets. I felt the high production value of everything else in this movie (especially for Dutch productions' standards) has been handled disrespectfully because of this.

A missed opportunity for perfect Dutch cinematography.

Pleasing both nautical and history enthusiasts

[FeedingDream · 9/10 · 20 May 2016]

As for the technical side, this film is spectacular. The editing, the story, the production value as a whole is worth the time. This is one of the "epic" films that did not get it's due. So well done and a fantastic soundtrack - this is where the we lose Academy worthy people in the mix. This production was phenomenal.

As for the story, I found it a very worthy tale to tell (and surprised nobody attempted it at this level before). Due to the scope of de Ruyter's impact on this time period, the movie did move a bit quickly and (as expected) did not have time to encompass the importance and the intricate detail of the lives involved. So my only ding here is that it felt rushed in the aspects of the personal lives of Michiel and Anna. To give their emotional and political struggles justice, perhaps a mini-series would have been a more appropriate venue. You feel unsatisfied with the depth of their development. You are simply left wanting more from them.

While based on historical "fact", there are many aspects that needed further development. I wanted so much more background and detail on the characters and the political struggle that, again, a sense of rush was left and it left me sad about that.

When such an incredible production crew and and an insanely under- respected director (Roel Reiné) is given this type of budget and consulting, I feel like they were all let down by not being able to explore this topic and these characters further.

Overall, this film was absolutely spectacular! The brutal moments (for those who know) were almost too brutal to fit into the context of the rest of the story's examination. But HOLY MONKEY this film was a great breath of fresh air and and a great view inside the filmmaking from this part of the world.

A+ and huge kudos to all involved. You needed a better platform, but you made incredible value bleed from these limitations.

An emotional and thoughtful ride on a side of history that needs more exploration. Cheers to you all!

If you are a history buff, you'll get a lot out of this. If you are a film buff, you'll get even more. And if you're looking for some of the most under-appreciated talent in both screen and bts, then you've stumbled on a treasure-trove that all filmmakers should seek out.

Disturbingly well done.

Enjoyable, well-acted, and a nice if not particularly accurate synopsis

[jljacobi · 7/10 · 13 August 2022]

I quite enjoyed this film. Especially as it tackles a little discussed but fascinating period of history, and a segment of the age of fighting sail that's rarely discussed.

De Ruyter was a fascinating character and this film seems to get most of the stuff right, though they ignore the fact that he had two wives over the period on question. Dramatic license. This is evident in other areas as well.

What it also brings to life is just how brutal and bloody the struggle for power can become, even in "civilized" countries. Something we should all keep in mind these days with political polarization blossoming.

A wasted opportunity

[marc-van-duijn · 3/10 · 29 August 2019]

After watching this movie I was surprised to find out most reviews are positive. I guess that, if you are not a native speaker (this is a Dutch movie), it is a bit more difficult to spot the terrible acting. As a native speaker, I could hardly watch this movie without cringing. It is not for a lack of budget, every shot looks very slick at first sight. However, the delivery is awful, the acting is mostly amateurish (with the exception of Charles Dance), and the way this movie is shot (camera positing) is rather distracting (often you can't tell who is talking in a scene, because the camera angle is off). I watched this movie as a comedy: a showcase for completely impotent filmmakers and the worst set of Dutch actors The Netherlands has to offer. On behalf of the Dutch, I apologize for this movie.