This was the film that Paul Verhoeven was allowed to make for the Leiden student corps following his first short film, not counting the few minutes of 'Cup of coffee'. 'One lizard too much', which originally had the title: 'A fairytale of grime', tells about the inability of a sculptor to "see" his own wife, or to accept, what is translated in his failing sculptures. The man has to make up and dress up his wife differently before being able to imitate her.
The film, shot in a relaxed manner, between examinations and diseases of cast and crew, is in form and content inspired by Alfred Hitchcock which Paul Verhoeven also indicates on the accompanying audio commentary on the DVD. There are the cool blonde, here in the person of classmate Hermine Menalda as Janine - someone who would eventually lead to the character of Sharon Stone (Sharon Stone) in Basic Instinct (1992) -, person exchanges, doubles, to clothing, make -up and shot choices. Especially Vertigo (1958) appears to be a great inspiration. But Ingmar Bergman has also been of great importance for this film, especially his airier films such as Sommarnattens leende (1955). His style can be seen in the elaboration of several scenes in the student's apartment, where he is played by two women. In addition, Luis Buñuel and Jean-Luc Godard were important influences for Paul Verhoeven when he made this film.
When Janine visits her lover and finds another woman (the deeper meaning of the lizard from the title), an interesting kind of tension is perceptible. No hitting. No shouting or banging quarrel, no Janine walks quietly inside, sits down on the chair next to the bed where the pair lies, and pulls out her gloves perfectly calmly. So calm, that it becomes agonizing for the boy, who quickly gets up and walks away from the bed. An interesting scene, just like the scenes that follow, in which the two ladies chat quasi-nonchalantly about this and that and drinking wine, while he is reading a book himself. Much more fascinating than the traditional confrontation scenes with big words and angry people running away. Now the two women walk on the boy, and at the same time give him a kiss on both his cheeks, before leaving his apartment: funny, and effective. And a construction that would return regularly in the work of Paul Verhoeven: the man trapped between, and dominated by, two women. A situation that probably has its roots in the directors own life. He tells in the audio commentary about the film that he did not always know how to deal with women in his youth.
But also the way in which characters are framed reminds me of Ingmar Bergman, and also of Michelangelo Antonioni, in the close-ups of faces. Furthermore, the narrative structure, especially Janine's frequent voice-over, owes a lot to Hiroshima mon amour (1959). This voiceover, a neat, poetic voice, still manages to generate sympathy and interest for the problem of this woman, and of her husband. The fact that the man only recognizes her as "his hands live in (her) face," as Janine says, clearly shows the tragedy of the situation. The man wants to create his own wife, his own ideal image; something that we also see quite literally in Vertigo (1958), while film adaptations of the feasible man can be found throughout history.
The problem of Janine has a particularly comical, airy effect, despite the heavy tragedy suggesting voice-over, and this is perhaps only the best, because the film sometimes threatens to collapse under its own weight. Just when the attention of the viewer is on the point of weakening, due to the long silences or woolly dialogue, there is another cut to an outdoor shot accompanied by swinging jazz music. In his montage - in which he seems to have left out quite a bit of material - Ernst Winar has managed to find a nice balance between drama and humor, between stylization and a tight narrative.
The boy's story unfortunately gets a little snowy. Thus, in form, very interesting moments towards the end of the film - like a dream sequence - have little resonance in their drama. It looks interesting, but it does not touch us. In terms of content these pieces could just as well have been omitted.
This first real film by Paul Verhoeven has become a very charming film that experimentes with different styles in an interesting way, and also captivates content and structure. Situations are not easy to guess and therefore continue to hold the attention of the viewer. "What is that note that she picks up there?", "What is going to happen now that Janine has caught her lover with someone else?". The (visual) answers to these kinds of questions often turn out to be surprising. Dressed up in beautiful, although somewhat dark, images, and adequately acted, 'One lizard too much' has become a very nice debut film by Paul Verhoeven. Clearly a promising filmmaker.
The film, shot in a relaxed manner, between examinations and diseases of cast and crew, is in form and content inspired by Alfred Hitchcock which Paul Verhoeven also indicates on the accompanying audio commentary on the DVD. There are the cool blonde, here in the person of classmate Hermine Menalda as Janine - someone who would eventually lead to the character of Sharon Stone (Sharon Stone) in Basic Instinct (1992) -, person exchanges, doubles, to clothing, make -up and shot choices. Especially Vertigo (1958) appears to be a great inspiration. But Ingmar Bergman has also been of great importance for this film, especially his airier films such as Sommarnattens leende (1955). His style can be seen in the elaboration of several scenes in the student's apartment, where he is played by two women. In addition, Luis Buñuel and Jean-Luc Godard were important influences for Paul Verhoeven when he made this film.
When Janine visits her lover and finds another woman (the deeper meaning of the lizard from the title), an interesting kind of tension is perceptible. No hitting. No shouting or banging quarrel, no Janine walks quietly inside, sits down on the chair next to the bed where the pair lies, and pulls out her gloves perfectly calmly. So calm, that it becomes agonizing for the boy, who quickly gets up and walks away from the bed. An interesting scene, just like the scenes that follow, in which the two ladies chat quasi-nonchalantly about this and that and drinking wine, while he is reading a book himself. Much more fascinating than the traditional confrontation scenes with big words and angry people running away. Now the two women walk on the boy, and at the same time give him a kiss on both his cheeks, before leaving his apartment: funny, and effective. And a construction that would return regularly in the work of Paul Verhoeven: the man trapped between, and dominated by, two women. A situation that probably has its roots in the directors own life. He tells in the audio commentary about the film that he did not always know how to deal with women in his youth.
But also the way in which characters are framed reminds me of Ingmar Bergman, and also of Michelangelo Antonioni, in the close-ups of faces. Furthermore, the narrative structure, especially Janine's frequent voice-over, owes a lot to Hiroshima mon amour (1959). This voiceover, a neat, poetic voice, still manages to generate sympathy and interest for the problem of this woman, and of her husband. The fact that the man only recognizes her as "his hands live in (her) face," as Janine says, clearly shows the tragedy of the situation. The man wants to create his own wife, his own ideal image; something that we also see quite literally in Vertigo (1958), while film adaptations of the feasible man can be found throughout history.
The problem of Janine has a particularly comical, airy effect, despite the heavy tragedy suggesting voice-over, and this is perhaps only the best, because the film sometimes threatens to collapse under its own weight. Just when the attention of the viewer is on the point of weakening, due to the long silences or woolly dialogue, there is another cut to an outdoor shot accompanied by swinging jazz music. In his montage - in which he seems to have left out quite a bit of material - Ernst Winar has managed to find a nice balance between drama and humor, between stylization and a tight narrative.
The boy's story unfortunately gets a little snowy. Thus, in form, very interesting moments towards the end of the film - like a dream sequence - have little resonance in their drama. It looks interesting, but it does not touch us. In terms of content these pieces could just as well have been omitted.
This first real film by Paul Verhoeven has become a very charming film that experimentes with different styles in an interesting way, and also captivates content and structure. Situations are not easy to guess and therefore continue to hold the attention of the viewer. "What is that note that she picks up there?", "What is going to happen now that Janine has caught her lover with someone else?". The (visual) answers to these kinds of questions often turn out to be surprising. Dressed up in beautiful, although somewhat dark, images, and adequately acted, 'One lizard too much' has become a very nice debut film by Paul Verhoeven. Clearly a promising filmmaker.
