It’s time for a Quiz on Dutch screens

by Boyd van Hoeij

23/03/2012 - Being released on a confident 77 screens courtesy of Benelux Film Distributors Netherlands (BFD), the thriller-drama hybrid Quiz [trailer] is the latest concoction by director Dick Maas (pictured), who has made many popular movies including such hits as the Flodder films and, more recently, the comedy Killer Babes and the holiday horror film Saint, which screened at Tribeca last year.

The film, also written by Maas, stars Barry Atsma (Love Life [trailer], Storm [trailer, film focus], Loft [trailer]) as Leo Vandermolen, a game show host who meets a strange man (Pierre Bokma, Sleeping Sickness [trailer, film focus],The Gang of Oss) in a fancy Italian restaurant after he’s presented his last-ever show.

The unknown claims that he has kidnapped the gameshow host’s wife (Kim van Kooten) and daughter, who should have joined the host at the restaurant but who, somewhat oddly, haven’t turned up yet. And before Vandermolen knows it, he finds himself in the candidate’s chair of a different kind of game, with the stranger asking him questions.

Quiz co-stars Hanna Verboom, Stephan Evenblij and Marck Oostra. As with all his films, Maas also wrote the score.

The film is produced by Tom de Mol and Dick Maas for Tom De Mol Productions, in association with Dutch Broadcaster VARA. Financial backing came from the Netherlands Film Fund, CoBO Fund and the Suppletieregeling.

Other films released in the Netherlands this week include Madonna’s UK production W.E. [trailer] (ten screens via Dutch FilmWorks); The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel [trailer] (45 screens via 20th Century Fox) and local documentary Anton Corbijn: Inside Out, which premiered in Berlin and which A-Film is releasing on seven screens.