The Crosspatch

To say Dutch audiences in the 30s loved **_De Kribbebijter_** would be an understatement: the movie stayed in theaters from july 1935 to december 1942, packing full houses until the very end of its run. International critics seemed not to understand what exactly made this Dutch comedy so special, but when one takes a closer look at the cinematic climate in the Netherlands in those days, they will find that the Kribbebijter-madness made perfect sense. In the mid-thirties, the most popular movie genre in the Netherlands was that of the so-called _'Jordaan-film'_; jolly musicals with a simple, predictable plot and catchy songs, always set in the Amsterdam 'Jordaan' area and often starring Dutch variety icons like Louis Davids, Fien de la Mar and Sylvain Poons. But even though films like _De Jantjes_, _Bleeke Bet_ and _Het Leven is Niet Zoo Kwaad_ were enjoyable and full of talented performers, the Jordaan-films were also very much seen as a crowd-pleasing, often clumsily made cinematic equivalent of junkfood. Hollywood movies on the other hand were often too melodramatic and self-important to please the phlegmatic Dutch (_Doe maar gewoon, dan doe je al gek genoeg..._). By 1935, Jordaan-film-fatigue was setting in — the last true Jordaan film, _Oranje Hein_, would be released in 1936 — and Dutch audiences were longing for something closer to the coherent plot structures of Holly…

Browse discussions about “The Crosspatch”

Jump to Reddit for live threads on this title.