Kidnapping Freddy Heineken
Kidnapping Freddy Heineken (U.S. title Kidnapping Mr. Heineken) is a 2015 British-Dutch crime drama film directed by Daniel Alfredson based on the 1983 kidnapping of Freddy Heineken. The screenplay, based on the 1987 book by Peter R. de Vries, was written by William Brookfield. The role of Freddy Heineken is played by Anthony Hopkins, with Sam Worthington as Willem Holleeder, Jim Sturgess as Cor van Hout, Ryan Kwanten as Jan Boellaard, Thomas Cocquerel as Martin Erkamps and Mark van Eeuwen as Frans Meijer.[1]
| Kidnapping Freddy Heineken | |
|---|---|
U.S. theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Daniel Alfredson |
| Screenplay by | William Brookfield |
| Based on | Kidnapping Freddy Heineken by Peter R. de Vries |
| Produced by | Judy Cairo Howard Meltzer Michael A. Simpson |
| Starring | Anthony Hopkins Sam Worthington Jim Sturgess Ryan Kwanten |
| Cinematography | Fredrik Bäckar |
| Edited by | Håkan Karlsson |
| Music by | Clay Duncan Lucas Vidal |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Alchemy A Plus Films Signature Entertainment |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 95 minutes |
| Countries | United Kingdom Netherlands |
| Language | English |
Plot edit
This article needs an improved plot summary. (January 2016) |
The film takes place in 1983, primarily in Amsterdam, and centres on a group of five Dutch friends: Willem Holleeder, Cor van Hout, Jan Boellard, Martin Erkamps and Frans Meijer. Looking for easy money, they decide to kidnap the Heineken owner and tycoon Freddy Heineken to achieve a very high ransom. Although capturing Heineken and his driver Ab Doderer successfully, the group eventually face difficulties due to a lack of experience in crime. They fail to negotiate with the police, and Cor feels it is his duty to take care of his pregnant wife, Sonja. After Heineken is finally released by the police, Willem and Cor flee to Paris, where they plan to remain hidden. However, Cor experiences strong emotions to telephone Sonja, a dangerous action that could easily reveal their location to the police tracing. He is initially reluctant and has arguments with Willem, but ultimately gives in to his feelings and calls Sonja, resulting in Cor and Willem being arrested by the French police when leaving their apartment. According to the final headline, Freddy Heineken died in 2003; he actually died in 2002.
Cast edit
- Anthony Hopkins as Freddy Heineken
- Sam Worthington as Willem Holleeder
- Jim Sturgess as Cor van Hout
- Ryan Kwanten as Jan Boellard
- Jemima West as Sonja Holleeder
- Thomas Cocquerel as Martin Erkamps
- Mark van Eeuwen as Frans Meijer
- David Dencik as Ab Doderer
- Billy Slaughter as Junior Officer
- Eric Godon as The cop
Production edit
Filming began in Belgium in October 2013.[2] Most of the outside action scenes were filmed on location in Amsterdam.
Reception edit
Kidnapping Mr. Heineken received generally unfavourable reviews from critics. The film has a 33/100 score at Metacritic[3] and a 19% score at Rotten Tomatoes.[4]
The Los Angeles Times commented, "Despite its true-events pedigree, Kidnapping Mr. Heineken is woefully captive to B-movie crime saga tropes."[5]
Variety wrote, "About as appealing as day-old beer littered with cigarette butts, the abysmal caper drama Kidnapping Mr. Heineken is one of those international co-productions produced for all the right tax-credit reasons and none of the right artistic ones."[6]
Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter wrote, "By the time the relatively brief but seemingly interminable proceedings reach their conclusion, viewers may feel like they've been held hostage themselves."[7] Conversely, Rex Reed of The New York Observer gave the film 3 out of 4 stars, and commented, "Anthony Hopkins plays the king of the hops, and he is excellent. So is the rest of the movie, a sober, no-frills account about the highest ransom ever collected up to that time—$10 million and counting."[8]
References edit
- ^ "Veel animo voor onaffe Heineken-film in Cannes". Algemeen Dagblad (in Dutch). 14 May 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
- "Was Mastroianni maar een biermerk". Algemeen Dagblad (in Dutch). 15 May 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
- "Anthony Hopkins wordt Freddy Heineken". De Telegraaf (in Dutch). 12 May 2013.
- "Hopkins gaat Heineken spelen". NOS (in Dutch). 12 May 2013.
- "Anthony Hopkins speelt Heineken in nieuwe film over ontvoering". de Volkskrant (in Dutch). 13 May 2013.
- "Sir Anthony Hopkins set to film Heineken kidnap movie". BBC News. 9 October 2013. Retrieved 18 March 2021. - ^ McNary, Dave (8 October 2013). "Jim Sturgess, Sam Worthington, Ryan Kwanten Joining 'Freddy Heineken'". Variety. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
- ^ "Kidnapping Mr. Heineken Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
- ^ "Kidnapping Mr. Heineken". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
- ^ Abele, Robert (5 March 2015). "Review: 'Kidnapping Mr. Heineken' brews up a B-movie crime tale". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
- ^ Foundas, Scott (5 March 2015). "'Kidnapping Mr. Heineken' Review: An Abduction of Your Time and Money". Variety.
- ^ "'Kidnapping Mr. Heineken': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. 4 March 2015. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
- ^ Reed, Rex (4 March 2015). "Rex Reed Reviews 'Kidnapping Mr. Heineken'". The New York Observer. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
External links edit
- Official website
- Kidnapping Freddy Heineken at IMDb