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IMDb > Karakter (1997)
Karakter
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Karakter (1997) -- Jacob Katadreuffe lives mute with his mother, has no contact with his father who only works against him and wants to become a lawyer, at all costs.
Karakter (1997) -- Sinematurk - Trailer (Flash)

Overview

User Rating:
7.9/10   5,163 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 1% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Ferdinand Bordewijk (short story "Dreverhaven en Katadreuffe" and novel "Karakter")
Mike van Diem (screenplay)
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Contact:
View company contact information for Karakter on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
27 March 1998 (USA) more
Genre:
Plot:
Jacob Katadreuffe lives mute with his mother, has no contact with his father who only works against him and wants to become a lawyer, at all costs. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Won Oscar. Another 11 wins & 5 nominations more
User Reviews:
Stunning Dutch psycho drama more (60 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
Jan Decleir ... Dreverhaven

Fedja van Huêt ... Katadreuffe
Betty Schuurman ... Joba
Tamar van den Dop ... Lorna Te George
Victor Löw ... De Gankelaar
Hans Kesting ... Jan Maan
Lou Landré ... Rentenstein
Bernard Droog ... Stroomkoning
Frans Vorstman ... Inspecteur de Bree
Fred Goessens ... Schuwagt
Jasper Gottlieb ... Jacob 6 jaar
Marius Gottlieb ... Jacob 6 jaar
Pavlik Jansen op de Haar ... Jacob 12 jaar
Marisa Van Eyle ... Jiffrouw Sibculo
Wim Van Der Grijn ... 2e Inspecteur
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
Character
Carácter (Argentina) (Spain) [es]
Caráter (Brazil) [pt]
Character - miehen kuva (Finland) [fi]
Character bastardo eccellente (Italy) [it]
Charakter (Poland) [pl]
Karaktären (Sweden) [sv]
Karakter (France) [fr]
Karakter (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Moiraios haraktiras (Greece) [el]
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MPAA:
Rated R for violence.
Runtime:
122 min
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Although the story takes place in the Dutch city of Rotterdam, many scenes were filmed in the Belgian city of Antwerp. This was because Rotterdam has very little buildings left following heavy bombing during the Second World War. more
Quotes:
Jacob Katadreuffe: Today I have been made a lawyer. You no longer exist for me! You have worked against me all my life!
Dreverhaven: Or for you.
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Movie Connections:
Referenced in De boekverfilming (1999) more

FAQ

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7 out of 8 people found the following review useful.
Stunning Dutch psycho drama, 28 January 2003
9/10
Author: Mikew3001 (mikew4001@yahoo.de) from Hamburg, Germany

It's no wonder that this Dutch drama got the 1997 Academy Award for the best foreign country movie in the year of "Titanic". It tells the rise-and-fall-story of a young man in the Netherlands of the 1920's who's working hard to escape from the ghetto and to become an idealistic lawyer. Unfortunately his brutal an tyrannic father fights against him in any possible way, and at the end father and son are facing in a hard fight for life and death.

The story is great, the characters (sic!) of the plot even more, and the acting is pure adrenaline-driven. The whole atmosphere, supported by the dark filming locations of Amsterdam, Belgium, Germany (the Speicherstadt in Hamburg) and Poland, is disturbing and depressing. A great psycho drama and insight into the human psyche with a powerful performance by Jan Decleir as villain Dreverhaven that can easily compete with Anthony Hopkins' Hannibal Lecter movies!

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Karakter (1997)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
'Karakter' means 'I love you' in Thai spelling!!! bscale
What's up with Lorna? animalangels
It's a strange way for a father to love his son... mpsgs710
Ending ozpa
Like 'The Simpsons' ' Frank Grimes? JaneLane-2
Review mob61uk
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