water

The first film I ever saw was Bert Haanstra’s “Fanfare“, shown together with his oscar winning short, “Glass“. I was six, so I don’t remember much, but I do remember being seriously freaked out by “Glass”, probably because of its soundtrack. Haanstra (1915 – 1997) very much represented the “dutch documentary style”. In fact, his films helped form that style and there is a direct line from Haanstra’s “Everyman”, a semi-humorous study of Dutch cultural behavior, to Michiel van Erp’s “Pretpark Nederland” or “Hurray for Victory” (and part two). Needless to say Haanstra has been parodied too. “Fanfare” was brilliantly and ruthlessly spoofed by Arjan Ederveen and Tosca Niterink. Haanstra’s work is quintessentially Dutch, because it depicts how we wish to see ourselves as a nation. We behave in somewhat bizarre ways, but are harmless nonetheless and tolerant of differences, yet we’re the measure of all things. Let’s call it the Dutch superiority complex. Much of his work was routinely screened at Dutch embassies abroad, so much of it has probably been seen more outside the Netherlands, as propaganda. This is the case with ”De Stem Van het Water”, and it is this film, indeed, I remember best, because I had to watch it so many times. “Stem” is a documentary about the relationship of the Dutch nation with “water”, and covers dam building, barge sailing, herring fishing and swimming lessons. As always, it is a marvel of editing (“Glass” is a ten minute master class on editing), and it carries maximum emotional impact. The barge sailing sequence (part one and two) is wonderful in its intensity. But the scene most people remember, because it is so painful and touching is the “swimming lesson scene”. Yesterday I was at my son’s swimming lesson, and not much has changed. 

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=voAcoxvM2Vo[/youtube]