Waiter | |
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Directed by | Alex van Warmerdam |
Written by | Alex van Warmerdam |
Produced by | Marc van Warmerdam |
Starring | Alex van Warmerdam Ariane Schluter Mark Rietman Thekla Reuten Line Van Wambeke |
Cinematography | Tom Erisman |
Edited by | Ewin Ryckaert |
Music by | Vincent van Warmerdam |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | A-Film Distribution |
Release dates | |
Running time | 97 minutes |
Countries | Netherlands Belgium |
Languages | Dutch English |
Waiter (Dutch : Ober) is a 2006 Dutch-Belgian absurdist black comedy film by Alex van Warmerdam. It tells the story of Edgar, a discontented waiter. The film had its world premiere on the Toronto Film Festival on 10 September 2006. It was the opening film of the Netherlands Film Festival, where Waiter received two Golden Calves, for Best Scenario and Best Production Design. In January 2007 the film received a Golden Film. The film is about stagnation of creativity and a take on overbearing of elements in life, it also takes wryly a puck-shot at god and his relation with humans.
Waiter tells the story of Edgar (Alex van Warmerdam), a waiter with a flair for the unfortunate. His sick wife, Ilse (Sylvia Poorta), is overly rude to him. Customers at work constantly bully him and his neighbors make his life impossible. Fed up with the way his life is going, Edgar goes to the house of Herman (Mark Rietman), the scriptwriter who invented Edgar and is currently writing his story. Edgar complains about the events in his life that keep getting worse and begs for some positive events in his life, including a decent girlfriend. Herman decides to create Stella (Line Van Wambeke), but soon Edgar realizes that Stella will only complicate his life more. Meanwhile, Edgar is pestered by his pushy girlfriend Victoria (Ariane Schluter), who constantly tries to be with him. Driven to insanity by Herman and his obnoxious girlfriend Suzie (Thekla Reuten), Edgar constantly tries to interfere with his story. Herman decides to make the story more extreme and violent and finally ends the story out of desperation with Edgar's death.
Alex van Warmerdam is a Dutch screenwriter, film director, and actor. He is also a painter.
The Golden Calf is the award of the Netherlands Film Festival, which is held annually in Utrecht. The award has been presented since 1981, originally in six categories: Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Feature Film, Best Short Film, Culture Prize and Honourable mention. In 2004, there were 16 award categories, mainly because in 2003 the categories Best Photography, Best Montage, Best Music, Best Production Design, Best Sound Design were added.
Jack Wouterse is a Dutch actor. His career as a movie actor took off with his role in the 1992 film The Northerners, directed by Alex van Warmerdam. Wouterse made his international debut in an episode of the TV series Band of Brothers. He frequently worked with murdered Dutch director Theo van Gogh.
Carice Anouk van Houten is a Dutch actress. Her first leading role in the television film Suzy Q (1999) won her the Golden Calf for Best Acting in a Television Drama; two years later, she won the Golden Calf for Best Actress for Miss Minoes (2001).
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The Netherlands Film Festival is an annual film festival, held in September and October of each year in the city of Utrecht.
Thekla Simona Gelsomina Reuten is a Dutch actress.
Job ter Burg is a Dutch film editor, best known for his long-term collaborations with directors Martin Koolhoven, Paul Verhoeven and Alex van Warmerdam. He was invited to join the Film Editors Branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 2015 and elected active member of American Cinema Editors in 2016.
Ariane Schluter is a Dutch actress. She is best known for playing in films by such Dutch filmmakers as Alex van Warmerdam and Theo van Gogh.
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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.
The following is a list of winners of the Golden Calf for best script at the NFF. This category was awarded since 1999.
The following is a list of winners of the Golden Calf for best long feature film at the NFF.
The following is a list of winners of the Golden Calf Special Jury Prize at the Nederlands Film Festival.
The Dress is a 1996 Dutch black comedy drama film written and directed by Alex van Warmerdam.
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Little Tony is a 1998 Dutch comedy drama film written and directed by Alex van Warmerdam. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival.
De Rode Zwaan is a 1999 Dutch fantasy film directed by Martin Lagestee and written by Sjoerd Kuyper, based on his 1996 book of the same name.
The Dinner is a 2013 Dutch drama film written and directed by Menno Meyjes. It was screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival. The film is based on Herman Koch's novel Het diner.
Black Out is a 2012 Dutch crime action comedy film.