Hemel (film)

Last updated
Hemel
Hemel (film) poster.jpg
Film poster
Directed by Sacha Polak
Written by Helena van der Meulen
Produced by
  • Stienette Bosklopper
  • Poto Balbontin
  • Ilse Ronteltap
Starring
CinematographyDaniël Bouquet
Production
company
Circe films
Release dates
  • January 29, 2012 (2012-01-29)(Rotterdam)
  • March 23, 2012 (2012-03-23)(United States)
Running time
80 minutes
CountryNetherlands
LanguageDutch

Hemel is a 2012 Dutch film by director Sacha Polak. The film was Polak's feature film debut and premiered at the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival where it was given the FIPRESCI award for best film in the Forum section. [1]

Contents


Plot

Hemel [lower-alpha 1] (Hannah Hoekstra) is a young Dutch woman, approximately age 25, who frequently has one night stands with strangers. She has a close relationship with her father, Gijs (Hans Dagelet). Joining her father for a dinner party she witnesses him break up with his girlfriend, Emma, just beforehand causing an awkward scene at the party.

Hemel talks to her father's girlfriend in the bathroom afterwards by telling her that relationships last as long as they last. The ex-girlfriend accuses Hemel of taking more than she gives.

On a subsequent night Hemel goes home with a stranger named Jimmy and their sexual encounter turns violent when he strangles and then rapes her. Afterwards Hemel goes to her ex-stepbrother, Teun's birthday party where she interrogates his Christian girlfriend, Annabella, telling her that it is a waste that she's suppressing her lustful desires and waiting for sex until marriage.

Meanwhile, at the auction house where he works, Gijs gives his girlfriend, Sophie, an auctioneer a ring that says "You make me human." He invites her along to meet Hemel on her birthday but beforehand tells her that Hemel was an accident and her mother committed suicide. Hemel is openly hostile towards Sophie and possessive of her father's affection. Hemel is surprised to learn that Sophie knows about many of Gijs's former girlfriends. Hemel and her father attend an opera performance. They hold hands briefly at a particularly moving moment, but then separate. They share a cigarette outside the theater.

Hemel has an affair with a married man named Douwe, the husband of one of her father's colleagues, Brechtje, and is surprised to learn that he has had only a few sexual partners. He tells Hemel that she is the only woman he has ever cheated with because he has never felt that betraying the intimacy with his wife was worth it. Hemel is charmed by him but is upset when he tells her their relationship will never last.

Gijs travels to Sevilla, Spain with Hemel for a holiday. They share a bathroom and are seen to be comfortable naked around each other. Gijs tells Hemel that Sophie will be living in his house and she becomes upset. When she asks her father why he loves Sophie he tells her he has nothing to hide from her. Hemel tells him that her version of love involves knowing the same things as the other person. She later tearfully tells him she saw a man commit suicide by jumping off a building. That night, Hemel is sleeping and Gijs wakes her up, carries her to the toilet to urinate, pulling down her underwear for her. The next morning, she peers over the edge of a building herself before leaving.

Back in the Netherlands, Hemel waits outside Douwe's house in the rain. When she spots him leave she knocks on the door to his home where Brechtje answers and tells her that Douwe isn't home. She then tells Hemel about how for the first three years of her life her father brought her to work every day. When Hemel begins to cry Brechtje dries her tears and the two women hug.

Production

Hannah Hoekstra said she had doubts about accepting the role because of the graphic nude scenes: "Already in the first scene I'm in bed with a man and my pubic hair is shaved off. I really doubted whether I should play this role, whether by doing so I wouldn't be opening the door to a string of nude roles. Guys, we'll ask Hannah Hoekstra, she'll take off her clothes. That I said yes anyway was due to the good script and the fact that both the scriptwriter and the director were women. Hemel is so much about female sexuality, about searching for the limit, about saying no, about intimacy... I would find it almost disgusting for a man to write a script like that." [2]

Reception

The film received positive reviews drawing comparisons to Steve McQueen's film Shame . [3] [4] [5]

Related Research Articles

<i>Mamma Mia!</i> (musical) 1999 musical based on the songs of ABBA

Mamma Mia! is a jukebox musical written by British playwright Catherine Johnson based on songs recorded by Swedish group ABBA and composed by members Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus. The musical's title is taken from the group's 1975 chart-topper "Mamma Mia". Ulvaeus and Andersson were involved in the development of the show from the beginning, while singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad was involved financially in the production and also appeared at many of the premieres around the world.

<i>Lulu on the Bridge</i> 1998 American film

Lulu on the Bridge is a 1998 American romantic-mystery drama film written and directed by author Paul Auster and starring Harvey Keitel, Mira Sorvino, and Willem Dafoe. The film is about a jazz saxophone player whose life is transformed after being shot. After discovering a mysterious stone, he meets and falls in love with a beautiful aspiring actress, but their happiness is cut short by a series of strange, dreamlike events. The film was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival.

"The Quick and the Wed" is the fifteenth episode of the second season of the American mystery television series Veronica Mars, and the thirty-seventh episode overall. Written by John Serge and directed by Rick Rosenthal, the episode premiered on UPN on March 22, 2006.

<i>Cory in the House</i> American television series

Cory in the House is an American television sitcom which aired on the Disney Channel from January 12, 2007, to September 12, 2008, and was a spin-off from the Disney Channel show That's So Raven. The show focuses on Cory Baxter, who moves from San Francisco, California to Washington, D.C., with his father, after Victor Baxter gets a new job as the White House Executive Chef. The series was the first Disney Channel spin-off series, as well as the final Disney Channel series overall, to be both shot and broadcast in standard definition for the entire run of the show. Reruns of the series have aired on Disney Channel and Disney XD, it also aired on the Family Channel in Canada. Raven-Symoné guest-starred in one episode, reprising her role as Raven Baxter.

Jim McDonald (<i>Coronation Street</i>) Character in Coronation Street

Jim McDonald is a fictional character from the British soap opera Coronation Street, played by Charles Lawson. He made his first appearance during the episode broadcast on 27 October 1989. He appeared as a regular character from 1989 to 2000, and has made brief comebacks between 2003 and 2018.

<i>Lie with Me</i> (2005 film) 2005 film by Clement Virgo

Lie with Me is a 2005 Canadian erotic drama film directed by Clement Virgo, based on the 2001 novel of the same name by Tamara Faith Berger. The film stars Lauren Lee Smith and Eric Balfour. Its plot concerns an outgoing, sexually aggressive young woman who meets and begins a torrid affair with an equally aggressive young man, which brings a strain on their personal lives. The film contains graphic, unsimulated sexual content.

The following is a list of winners of the Golden Calf for best actor/actress at the Nederlands Film Festival. From 2021 onwards the award became a gender-neutral award.

<i>The Bargee</i> 1964 British comedy film by Duncan Wood

The Bargee is a 1964 British comedy film shot in Techniscope directed by Duncan Wood, and starring Harry H. Corbett, Hugh Griffith, Eric Sykes and Ronnie Barker. The screenplay was written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson.

<i>V/H/S/2</i> 2013 found footage horror anthology film

V/H/S/2 is a 2013 found footage horror anthology film produced by Bloody Disgusting and Roxanne Benjamin. The second installment in the V/H/S franchise, it comprises four found footage segments linked together by a fifth frame narrative. V/H/S/2 features a largely different group of directors: Jason Eisener, Gareth Evans, Timo Tjahjanto, Eduardo Sánchez, and Gregg Hale, and franchise returnees Simon Barrett and Adam Wingard.

<i>Spasmo</i> 1974 Italian film

Spasmo is a 1974 Italian giallo film directed by Umberto Lenzi and starring Robert Hoffmann and Suzy Kendall.

Hannah Hoekstra is a Dutch actress.

Hannah Wilson (<i>Home and Away</i>) Soap opera character

Hannah Wilson is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera, Home and Away, played by Cassie Howarth. The character made her first screen appearance on 29 August 2013. She was introduced as part of established character Zac MacGuire's extended family. Hannah is characterised as a "strong and determined" and very family orientated. She arrives in Summer Bay with newfound responsibility of looking after her dead sister's children Oscar and Evelyn MacGuire. She takes a job at the local hospital as a nurse. Her early storylines focused mainly on the MacGuire family and Hannah shared a brief relationship with brother-in-law Zac. Producers created a new partnership between Hannah and Andy Barrett. The latter being a self-destructive character, their relationship is short-lived following the revelation that he is a drug dealer.

Chris Harrington (<i>Home and Away</i>) Soap opera character

Christopher Eugene "Chris" Harrington is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Home and Away, played by Johnny Ruffo. The character made his first screen appearance on 1 April 2013. He was introduced as the brother of Spencer Harrington. Ruffo was a well-known professional singer and had previously auditioned for two other roles in the show. He was initially a guest character, but Ruffo was later promoted to the regular cast. With some personality traits resembling his own, Ruffo believed the character was especially written for him. Chris is characterised as a "cheeky" traveler who comes from a wealthy family. He is not academically gifted and prefers to spend his time trying to impress the show's female characters. Ruffo requested that writers make his character "more in-depth" so he could show his emotional range. Producers also introduced a comedic pairing with long-running character Irene Roberts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nate Cooper</span> Soap opera character

Nate Cooper is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Home and Away, played by Kyle Pryor. The character made his first screen appearance on 26 September 2013. Pryor originally auditioned for another character before he was offered the role of Nate. He had to keep his involvement with the show a secret prior to arriving on-screen. The actor had moved from another country for work which made him similar to his character. Nate is characterised as a career driven and respected doctor. He comes to work Northern Districts Hospital because he had longed to work in a busy emergency department. Personally he is calm and collected with a love of kayaking.

<i>The Transfiguration</i> (film) 2016 American film

The Transfiguration is a 2016 American horror drama film written and directed by Michael O'Shea. It was selected to be screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival. The film was released in the United Kingdom on April 21, 2017.

<i>The Fury</i> (2016 film) 2016 film

The Fury is a 2016 Dutch drama film directed by André van Duren. It was based on the novel De Helleveeg by A.F. Th. van der Heijden.

<i>Good Luck to You, Leo Grande</i> 2022 film by Sophie Hyde

Good Luck to You, Leo Grande is a 2022 sex comedy-drama film directed by Sophie Hyde and written by Katy Brand. The film stars Emma Thompson and Daryl McCormack. The story revolves around a woman who seeks a young sex worker to help her experience pleasurable sex.

References

  1. FIPRESCI Award for HEMEL at Berlinale
  2. "Hannah Hoekstra gaat 'niet zomaar' uit de kleren in films". www.nu.nl. 30 July 2016. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  3. van Hoeij, Boyd (13 February 2012). "Review: 'Hemel'" . Retrieved 15 June 2015.
  4. SCHAGER, NICK (17 March 2012). "Hemel". Slant Magazine . Retrieved 15 June 2015.
  5. Tobias, Scott (17 April 2013). "Hemel". The A.V. Club . Retrieved 15 June 2015.

Notes

  1. "Hemel" means "Heaven" in Dutch.