Crusade in Jeans
What if your favourite childrens book of all times would be made into a movie?
Me and book movies have a love-hate relationship. The movie images never look like the mental images I made of the characters and the story myself. I cannot fully enjoy the movie, because while watching I am comparing every little detail to the book. I know changes are necessary, but most of the changes I have seen are not. The book is always better. Period.
Still I can never resist watching the movies of books I've read.
When Kruistocht in Spijkerbroek (Crusade in Jeans) by Thea Beckman was adapted for the screen this year, I hesitated shortly. Thea Beckman is my hero. She wrote about 30 novels for children, most of them historical and long. Perfect for little book and history nerds like me. Kruistocht in Spijkerbroek is a classic. Written in 1973, translated in 15 languages, and still reprinted over and over again. Mine is signed by Thea herself, and I have read it many times.
So would it be a mistake to watch this movie?
Of course I watched it, the day I got home for christmas. And I have to say: it was not that bad! A few big changes, but explainable, except for the ending, that was different and dissapointing, but the main line of the book was very well translated. The movie is in English, obviously to sell it abroad, but I believe this has not happened yet... dispite the fact that no one less than Emily Watson plays a big part!
Ok, the story: 16 year old Dolf uses a time machine to go back to a lost football game. He ends up in the middle ages, the year 1212, in the middle of a childrens crusade just departed from Keulen (Cologne?).
Obviously, Dolf sticks out. He doubts much, not in the last place God, and the promise of the leading priest that the sea will split for the crusade. Also, he has a 'troubadour in a box': his i-pod (in 1973 his special thing was his watch...) He risks being charged with herecy, but fortunately he does much good too. He 'breaths a boy back to life', he knows how to make gunpowder, he teaches the kids football, he knows its important to separate the sick kids from the healthy, he manages to bake everyone bread in a night... a miracle, this 'Rudolf from Rotterdam'.
The priests leading the crusade are a bit dodgy... as it turns out they plan to bring the children to Genua, not Jeruzalem, to sell them as slaves... Will Dolf be able to stop this? And will he make it back to his own age? Watch or read it yourself!
Thea Beckman always based her novels on historical facts. Kruistocht in Spijkerbroek is full of interesting facts and teaches children a lot about medieval customs, but the main subject, a childrens crusade, is in fact based on a legend, occurred from historian's errors.
When little 10 year old book nerd Aletta gave a presentation in school about Thea Beckman, she discovered confusion exists because of the latin word 'Pueri', which means child in classic Latin, but in Medieval Latin it was used in the meaning of 'poor people' as well...
It doesn't matter. This is the book every kid has to read. In fact, seeing this movie made me want to re-read it right away! The story is interesting, exiting and moving. The crusade leads the children from forests, through the mountains, to the ocean... the sights of the movie are beautiful, the characters are beautiful, the story is beautiful. I almost got the feeling back I had when I read this book as a kid.
Almost. The book is always better.
Me and book movies have a love-hate relationship. The movie images never look like the mental images I made of the characters and the story myself. I cannot fully enjoy the movie, because while watching I am comparing every little detail to the book. I know changes are necessary, but most of the changes I have seen are not. The book is always better. Period.
Still I can never resist watching the movies of books I've read.
When Kruistocht in Spijkerbroek (Crusade in Jeans) by Thea Beckman was adapted for the screen this year, I hesitated shortly. Thea Beckman is my hero. She wrote about 30 novels for children, most of them historical and long. Perfect for little book and history nerds like me. Kruistocht in Spijkerbroek is a classic. Written in 1973, translated in 15 languages, and still reprinted over and over again. Mine is signed by Thea herself, and I have read it many times.
So would it be a mistake to watch this movie?
Of course I watched it, the day I got home for christmas. And I have to say: it was not that bad! A few big changes, but explainable, except for the ending, that was different and dissapointing, but the main line of the book was very well translated. The movie is in English, obviously to sell it abroad, but I believe this has not happened yet... dispite the fact that no one less than Emily Watson plays a big part!
Ok, the story: 16 year old Dolf uses a time machine to go back to a lost football game. He ends up in the middle ages, the year 1212, in the middle of a childrens crusade just departed from Keulen (Cologne?).
Obviously, Dolf sticks out. He doubts much, not in the last place God, and the promise of the leading priest that the sea will split for the crusade. Also, he has a 'troubadour in a box': his i-pod (in 1973 his special thing was his watch...) He risks being charged with herecy, but fortunately he does much good too. He 'breaths a boy back to life', he knows how to make gunpowder, he teaches the kids football, he knows its important to separate the sick kids from the healthy, he manages to bake everyone bread in a night... a miracle, this 'Rudolf from Rotterdam'.
The priests leading the crusade are a bit dodgy... as it turns out they plan to bring the children to Genua, not Jeruzalem, to sell them as slaves... Will Dolf be able to stop this? And will he make it back to his own age? Watch or read it yourself!
Thea Beckman always based her novels on historical facts. Kruistocht in Spijkerbroek is full of interesting facts and teaches children a lot about medieval customs, but the main subject, a childrens crusade, is in fact based on a legend, occurred from historian's errors.
When little 10 year old book nerd Aletta gave a presentation in school about Thea Beckman, she discovered confusion exists because of the latin word 'Pueri', which means child in classic Latin, but in Medieval Latin it was used in the meaning of 'poor people' as well...
It doesn't matter. This is the book every kid has to read. In fact, seeing this movie made me want to re-read it right away! The story is interesting, exiting and moving. The crusade leads the children from forests, through the mountains, to the ocean... the sights of the movie are beautiful, the characters are beautiful, the story is beautiful. I almost got the feeling back I had when I read this book as a kid.
Almost. The book is always better.
posted by Let @ 10:56 pm
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