Ciske the Rat Reviews

Since this movie is pretty much a classic in the Netherlands, I was quite eager to check it  out. On top of that, according to my wife, it was a really good flick so I had some rather high expectations about the whole thing.  Eventually, I thought it was not bad but not much more than that, I'm afraid. It was the second adaptation of a classic Dutch book (which I haven't read) and, apparently,  it was a big box-office success in the Netherlands when it was released and the young Danny de Munk who played the title character became a child star overnight thanks to this movie. Eventually,  de Munk would have  a really steady career even as a grown-up, especially in musicals. Coming back to our main feature, personally, sure,  I thought it was a decent drama but I don't think I really cared about the story or the characters involved. For a Dutch production, it was well made but it all felt rather generic and predictable to me. To conclude,  even though I thought it was slightly disappointing,  it was still a decent watch and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you're interested in Dutch movies.

Much more than another coming of age movie – Ciske the rat is a fine example of the Dutch cinema. If you are found of the treble music you will definitely notice the song at the beginning performed by the Danny De Munk (famous singer from Netherlands) who plays the role of the troubled young lad – Ciske.

The childhood of Ciske in not easy – his father is sailing away and his mother does not really care about him. With rebellious spirit the young Ciske spends most of his time on the streets of Amsterdam. No one pays attention to the lonely boy. Trying to cope with the harsh live and attract some love and sympathy he has troubles with the law and even spends some time in prison. I really admired the way he protected himself there – if only all people were as strong as he turned out to be.

Ciske has generous heart and when his teacher notices that he tries to help the young lad to take the right path.

Ciske the Rat is powerful and graphically brutal drama which is sure to leave a long lasting impression to anyone who has a chance to see it. I truly enjoyed watching it and highly recommend it.