De Vierde man

De vierde man / The fourth man- 1983

The Fourth Man is an excellent example of neo noir that will be enjoyed by fans of the genre and beyond. A semi-famous alcoholic writer with paranoid fantasies meets a rich and very attractive woman, who will soon lure him into her world.

The director very skillfully sets up an ambiguous world, often making us doubt whether what is happening on the screen is reality or a figment of the author's imagination. Full-on sensuality and intense sexuality, extensive use of clear symbolism (even from the opening titles with the spider in action), irony at times towards Catholicism make up an explosive cocktail (cliche alert).

Starring Jeroen Krabbe (who also made a successful transition to Hollywood soon after - Jumping Jack Flash, The Living Daylights, The Prince of Tides, The Fugitive, King of the Hill, Immortal Beloved and others), Renee Soutendjik & Thom Hoffman (years later reunited with Verhoeven in Black Book). In the evocative photo is the later director of Speed & Twister, Jan DeBont.

This combination of thriller, noir and metaphysical element was the director's passport to Hollywood, and it is one of the films that I have seen several times and highly recommend.

for some strange reason the movie is not out on Blu-ray

Dutchman director Paul Verhoeven who switched to Hollywood with great success some of his movies are Flesh & blood, Robocop, Total Recall, Basic Instinct.

I hope most of the movie lovers know who this director are and of course watched some of his movies.