SoccerMovieMom

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In Oranje (2004) - In Orange

‘In Oranje’ (2004) is a fine family film if you ignore the poisonings

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by

MJ-A
in

In Oranje is a fantasy ghost film that, at over 20 years old, is both timeless and refreshing. It deftly combines tragedy, grief, resilience, fantasy, family, and passion for the game. If I were going to host a football film festival, I would choose this as an inspirational example of storytelling — except for the poisonings.

Story synopsis

Normally I do not write a synopsis, but this film seems to be impossible to watch in the USA. Perhaps if I write a good synopsis, Netflix will make this available to worldwide viewers; it deserves a bigger audience.

Dad Erik (Thomas Acda) is a former footballer with a small corner grocery store. He’s one of those obnoxious soccer dads who yells coaching instructions from the touchline and lives vicariously through his son Remco’s football success. Their mutual goal is for Rem (Yannick van de Velde) to someday play for Holland, and that starts by making the regional team.

Sadly, when a scout shows up to watch Rem and his teammate Winston, Rem injures his ankle and Dad has a heart attack. Even in his hospital bed, Dad nags Rem to use his left foot and to play with both feet like the greatest Dutchmen. But Dad doesn’t make it home, and the loving family of 4 is unprepared for such a tragedy.

Rem is at Winston’s house when he notices the Surinamese grandmother talking to her husband’s photo. She is using Winti to summon the spirits. Rem has her try to reach Dad, but she says it did not work.

Rem is still nursing his ankle when he gets invited to the regional team. However, he misses Dad so terribly that he doesn’t even want to play football anymore. But while walking past boys playing in the neighborhood patio, he hears Dad’s voice telling him to get off his arse. Then, Dad appears to him as real as flesh. It’s as if Dad has never left, and in fact, he now has more time to train Rem. With Dad’s help and presence, Rem makes it through regionals despite the bad ankle.

Mom has been left with a struggling grocery store. Dad’s former accountant, Arend (Peter Blok), advises her and then helps her modernize and renovate the store. At the same time, he invites her to join his musical production group (and she loves music more than football).

Mom (Wendy van Dijk) and the family doctor find out that Rem is communicating with dead Dad, but the doctor encourages her to go along with it, that Rem will let go when he’s ready to accept Dad’s death.

Around the same time, Rem independently goes to see an orthopedist about his ankle. The orthopedist sends the family doctor and Mom a letter saying that Rem’s ankle ligaments are too stretched out for his age, and he should immediately cease playing football or risk permanent disability.

However, Rem intercepts the letter to his Mom. He shows it to Dad, who tells him to keep playing, and they increase Rem’s training. Rem and Winston get a call up to a trail match for the Dutch YNT, which Dad says is “the best news since my death”.

A girl whose family owns a pharmacy wants to be Rem’s girlfriend, even though he is not interested in females at this point. She brings him athletic tape in exchange for kisses, making her his secret girlfriend.

Dad also expresses disappointment that Mom is getting more involved with Arend. On the night of the musical performance, knowing that Arend is allergic to many things, Rem spikes the dinner soup with almonds. Arend ends up scratching while dancing and singing with Mom on stage, with ghost Dad watching from the balcony.

The YNT game is 4 days away when Mom visits the family doctor and finds out the dire prognosis on Rem’s ankle. She tells Rem he can’t go to the YNT game, and he gets on his bike and runs away. But he has nowhere to go. Dad takes him across the river to an old abandoned (possibly ghost) stadium. He says this is where he lives. They stay there 3 nights and train. Dad turns on the stadium lights so that Rem can play with Garrincha, the ManU Busby Babes, Bobby Moore, Andres Escobar, Dutchman Abe Lenstra, and other past players. But Dad blows up and yells at Rem about his weak left foot, embarrassing Rem and all the ghosts.

Rem walks away and realizes that he has grown up enough that he does not have to take this kind of nagging. He sadly tells Dad that he doesn’t need him anymore. They say goodbye, and Dad disappears. Rem tries to go home but there is no boatman to ferry him back across the river. He sleeps in the marshes and is rescued by a search party.

Once home, Rem realizes he still wants to play in the morrow’s YNT game. His pharmacy girlfriend gets  him sleeping pills, which he slips into orange juice for Mom and little sister. This allows Rem and the girlfriend to go to the game at the Olympic Stadium with Winston’s family.

During the game, Rem assists Winston on a goal. But he makes other mistakes in the first half because he is confused by the number of Dads yelling instructions at their sons. He realizes he misses his own father.

At halftime, his mother shows up as Arend has awakened them and brought them to the stadium. Rem tells Mom that Dad is finally gone. But he wants to keep playing for himself, to prove what he can do. She agrees, but on returning to the field, Rem gets hurt again.

On examination, the YNT doctor tells Rem that his ankle is bruised and the ligaments are a little stretched, but with proper training and monitoring as he grows, he can continue to play football. The family plus Arend become united, Rem promises not to poison anyone anymore, Arend helps reopen the modernized store, he and Mom keep performing, and life becomes normal.

Three weeks later, Rem and Winston both make the YNT, and Dad appears at the top of the stadium to wave Rem goodbye. During the film credits, a sports announcer describes the game where Rem scores.

The soccer and the actors

Soccer is portrayed very well, and there is no question that Yannick van de Velde can play. He has said that he had to demonstrate his football skills in order to win the role of Remco.

Since the film is over 20 years old, I could find out what happened to the actors playing Rem and Dad. Yannick remains a busy actor in both film and theater and is a huge Ajax fan. It turns out that Thomas Acda is a success in multiple disciplines: singing, acting, and writing. Apparently his musical duo Acda en De Munnik has been extremely popular in the Netherlands for decades.

In conclusion

Certainly, after reviewing over 450 soccer movies, this is a type of soccer story I have not seen before. I think of In Oranje as a mix of Ghost (1990) + Field of Dreams (1989).  I found a Dutch article where the writer complained that the film is broadcast on Dutch TV everytime the NT is generating a lot of orange fever, and that it implies that anything (such as poisoning) is allowed if you want to play for the NT.

I too disapprove of Rem’s poisoning tactics, and I know how severe food allergies can be. Maybe the Dutch show this film frequently, because their children are more resistant to following such suggestions. Maybe you can’t show this move in the USA, where society is overly influenced by film and social media. Think of the people who drank bleach because of President Chaos. But In Oranje addresses other youth challenges such as grief and dealing with change, so I am supportive of this film. But maybe you’ll have to go to Europe to see it.

8 Soccer Movie Mom Rating = 8

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