The Marriage Escape

The Marriage Escape
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJohan Nijenhuis
Written byHerman Finkers
Produced by
  • Johan Nijenhuis
  • Ingmar Menning
Starring
CinematographyMaarten van Keller
Edited byBas Icke
Music byMartijn Schimmer
Production
companies
Distributed bySeptember Film Distribution
Release date
  • 13 February 2020 (2020-02-13)
Running time
103 minutes
CountryNetherlands
Languages
Box office$7,7 million[1][2]

The Marriage Escape (Dutch: De Beentjes van Sint-Hildegard is a 2020 Dutch comedy-drama film directed by Johan Nijenhuis. The film is an adaptation of the 2016 Czech film Tiger Theory, and it is the first cinema film predominantly spoken in the Tweants variety of Low Saxon, although the title is in Dutch.[3][4]

The film won the Golden Film award after having sold 100,000 tickets and the film also won the Platinum Film award after having sold 400,000 tickets.[5][6] In total, more than 710,000 tickets were sold and the film became the best visited Dutch film and highest-grossing Dutch film of 2020.[7][8] It was also the third best visited film in the Netherlands in 2020, with 1917 and Tenet in first and second place respectively.[7]

In December 2020, it was announced that The Marriage Escape was the best Dutch film of 2020 according to the 'Kring van Nederlandse Filmjournalisten', the Dutch organisation for professional film journalists and film critics.[9] In September 2021, Herman Finkers received the Zilveren Krulstaart award for best screenplay of a 2020 Dutch film.[4]

On Koningsdag 2021, the film premiered on television with 2,500,000 viewers, making it the best viewed film on Dutch television since 2002.[10]

Herman Finkers and Leonie ter Braak made their film debut in this film.[11][12] Principal photography began in September 2018 and filming took place in Twente, Belgium and Germany.[12][13]

Plot

Arend, the 89-year-old father-in-law of the main character, Jan, decides to make his greatest wish come true. For years, he has been planning to make a pilgrimage on foot to Rüdesheim am Rhein, where the remains of Saint Hildegard of Bingen are kept. However, his wife has never let him go. One morning, when he finally gathers the courage and sets out on the journey with his donkey, he collapses in Bad Bentheim and dies.

Jan has been married to Gedda for 35 years and has two children with her. He is a veterinarian, and Gedda works at the University of Twente, where she has earned her Ph.D. (magna cum laude) conducting research on the increased life expectancy of men who are supported by women in everything they do. In the run-up to Arend’s funeral, despite Arend himself preferring to be cremated and to have his ashes scattered at the Lorelei, Jan realizes how little say Arend had at home and how much his wife Gedda resembles her mother in that regard.

When a couple they are friends with announces their separation, Jan cautiously asks Gedda how she would react if he wanted a divorce. Gedda doesn’t pick up on the serious undertone in his question and jokes that they’ll never be able to get rid of each other. To avoid talking back to her, and because he feels indebted to Gedda for helping him through a difficult period 35 years ago, he dismisses divorce as a solution. After visiting a sick goat, however, Jan gets a peculiar idea: he decides to pretend he has Alzheimer’s disease so he can be admitted to a nursing home and finally be freed from his wife’s control.

The nursing home director, however, quickly realizes that there is nothing wrong with Jan. After a week of settling in among the people with dementia, the director gives Jan another week to think about the situation and make decisions before sending him back to his wife. He sends Jan on his way, and Jan takes the train to Bad Bentheim to complete the pilgrimage to Saint Hildegard that his father-in-law had begun. He confides in his two children and has them come to Germany to explain the whole situation to them and accompany him on his journey. However, the pathologically jealous boyfriend of Jan's daughter manages to track down the trio’s whereabouts, and so Jan's plans are ultimately exposed to Gedda.

Jan makes it clear to Gedda that he loves her very much, but that he wants to take back control of his own life. After a brief moment of reflection on the new situation, however, Gedda falls back into her old controlling ways. She tells him she can’t change. Jan then immediately grabs his bag so he can finish his father-in-law’s pilgrimage. While Gedda is at work lecturing on the pitiful life of a single man, Jan, this time accompanied by Arend’s donkey, cheerfully enjoys his journey along the Rhine, during which he eventually scatters his father-in-law’s ashes, and then lights a candle when he visits St. Hildegard.

Cast

  • Herman Finkers as Jan
  • Johanna ter Steege as Gedda
  • Leonie ter Braak as Liesbeth
  • Jan Roerink as Opa Arend
  • Annie Beumers as Oma Sinie
  • Ferdi Stofmeel as Erik
  • Erik Dijkstra as Mark
  • Mick Idzes as Driekus
  • Stef Assen as Peter
  • Aniek Stokkers as Ilse
  • Daphne Bunskoek as Julia
  • Reinier Bulder as Antoon
  • Jos Brummelhuis as Bert Dammink
  • Jeffrey Spalburg as Agent
  • Karlijn Lansink as Neuroloog
  • Belinda van der Stoep as Uroloog

References

  1. ↑ "The Marriage Escape". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved 12 November 2024.
  2. ↑ "The Marriage Escape". The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC. Retrieved 12 November 2024.
  3. ↑ "Succes-regisseur Johan Nijenhuis toont durf met film in 't Twents". destentor.nl (in Dutch). 9 February 2020. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
  4. 1 2 "Herman Finkers krijgt prijs voor scenario van hitfilm De Beentjes". Algemeen Dagblad (in Dutch). 25 September 2021. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
  5. ↑ "Platina Film voor DE BEENTJES VAN SINT-HILDEGARD". Nederlands Film Festival (in Dutch). 9 March 2020. Archived from the original on 19 January 2021. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  6. ↑ "Herman Finkers en Carice van Houten genomineerd voor Gouden Kalf". NU.nl (in Dutch). 28 September 2020. Archived from the original on 29 October 2020. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  7. 1 2 "Film Facts & Figures of the Netherlands, Summer 2021" (PDF). Nederlands Filmfonds. Archived (PDF) from the original on 23 November 2021. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
  8. ↑ Pedd, Jim (30 December 2020). "Dit zijn de tien best verdienende Nederlandse films van 2020". FilmTotaal (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 30 December 2020. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  9. ↑ "Babyteeth en Sint-Hildegard beste bioscoopfilms volgens recensenten". NOS (in Dutch). 28 December 2020. Archived from the original on 28 December 2020. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
  10. ↑ "Herman Finkers-film verslaat alle concurrentie op Koningsdag". Algemeen Dagblad (in Dutch). 28 April 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021.
  11. ↑ "Leonie ter Braak maakt speelfilmdebuut als dochter Herman Finkers" [Leonie ter Braak makes film debut as daughter Herman Finkers]. NU.nl (in Dutch). 7 September 2018. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
  12. 1 2 "Leonie ter Braak op het witte doek". RTL Boulevard (in Dutch). 7 September 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  13. ↑ "Opnames speelfilm DE BEENTJES VAN SINT-HILDEGARD met cabaretier Herman Finkers van start". September Film (in Dutch). 13 September 2018. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
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