Ciske de Rat (1984) Reviews

• Powerful drama about a lonely boy

  ninoguapo2007-04-10

  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 had a chance to see it. I truly enjoyed watching it and highly recommend it.

• A Charming Scamp

  movilover2003-05-23

  A lonely outcast boy, mistreated by his slutty mother and her boyfriends and missing his adored but often absent seaman father, gets into a series of scrapes with the law including a short prison term. Curiously for a film of this sort, one of Ciske's most sympathetic observers is the local police commissioner (he's one of those who calls Ciske "Rat") who knows him well and is aware of his home life--after all, he's escorted him there often enough. Another supporter is a teacher at school who sees Ciske befriending weaker boys and decides to become his guardian. Ciske is a tough nut, but he has an appealing personality and Danny de Munk makes him seem real. Despite his troubles Ciske remains upbeat and is a charming scamp. Danny was a well-known boy singer at the time, and is heard singing over the opening credits as well as during a scene in class. Nevertheless, he was willing to film a scene in the nude. He was 13 when the film was made, and grew up to become a singing star, appearing in many stage musicals. The film is based on a Dutch classic book and is a remake of a 1955 black-and-white version.

• Beautifully-made and touching story. A must see.

  pyotr-32000-01-30

  What a horrible life eleven year old Ciske has had! This story is for all people who had horrible childhoods. It shows how difficult every day can be for some children, and how callous many adults are to the needs of these love-starved children. This film will break your heart, but it also speaks volumes about the resilience of the human spirit. Beautifully made. To me the only weakness was the music: The film takes place in 1934 yet there is modern music at the beginning and end. This seems out of place. It does not ruin an otherwise marvelous film, however.

• A GREAT movie but I sure wish it had an English version

  Nola60152008-07-12

  Ciske is expelled from his school after pouring ink over his teacher's head (looks like he was punished in a corner when he did it--not enough to know what the motivation was)... he returns to a tavern where his mother works, and he helps. What an awful existence for a child his age. He worshiped his father, who, as a seaman is often away, and his mother clearly has very little use for him. His mistreatment continues by his mom (who is constantly entertaining male guests much to Ciske's (short for Franciskus) chagrin. Her "boyfriends" join in the mistreatment of the lad, including beating him. His dad on a rare visit tells Ciske he is leaving his mother and introduces him to his new girlfriend/fiancée, who takes to him immediately--she becomes his one ray of light in a very bleak world. At his new school he befriends a lad (Dorus) stricken with polio, and is relentlessly harassed by the other boys. One can't help but like this feisty kid, who clearly has a good heart. Dorus eventually dies, but leaves Ciske his favorite book (I think Gulliver's travels), and the boy in tears brings it home and gingerly wishes to make a book cover for it. While thus engaged, his mother (for lack of a better word) snatches the book, and begins to tear pages out of it throwing them on the floor. In a rage the boy blindly grabs a knife and swipes at her, striking her in the neck, where she apparently bleeds to death. He is sent to a juvenile prison and is once again fending for himself in a rough world. Enough of the spoiler stuff, the child eventually reunites with his much beloved father, and reunites HIM with his estranged fiancée (he divorced Ciske's mom--big surprise!)... He performs an act of great heroism, courage and selflessness after being mistreated, becomes a hero, and we have a happy ending to a truly moving story. If one can get the words to the theme Danny de Munk (Ciske) sings: "Ik Voel Me Zo Verdomd Alleen".. (I just feel so damned alone)... the song truly says it all in as touching a manner as the movie relates his story. I would recommend this to anyone; but would highly recommend some familiarity with this plot, or at the very least a captioned one in their native language.

• I really enjoyed this

  mistermorne2015-01-17

  There is just something about European movies that makes me watch more of them. My sympathies lies with the main character from the onset of the movie, even though he had a rough start. As the movie unveils you learn to know his character more and more and you realise that there is a whole different side to this poor boy's life, different from the image you get of him in the first few moments of the story. Most of the acting was good, bearing in mind that there are lots of children in this movie. Most of the acting was moderately convincing too. And a few moments surprised me, as I read the book too long ago that this story is based on and I'm not sure everything happened as it did in the book. It is a relatively long movie and as soon as a movie succeeds in keeping your attention for so long I think it deserves a thumbs up. People who like dramatic stories with children as main characters should love this. The combination of protagonist and quite a number of antagonist roles makes the story-line interesting and if the first few minutes do not bore you (well, not all people are into dramas and older movies), I am sure you will love the movie as much as I did.