Most of us think we have a solid grasp on the definition of good and evil. This is good and right, but that over there is so bad and evil. I’m good because I do this, but what they do over there is evil. We like to throw these labels around like they are black and white, carved in stone and not at all subject to interpretation or context. At this, I laugh heartily with the best of intentions. One of the many things I love so much about cinema is the freedom it gives the artist to explore sides of humanity that most of us would otherwise dare not even think of acting out in real life. Nor would most of us ever wish such things on others, but there is something to be said for exploring such things on a philosophical and artistic level instead of avoiding and ignoring the urges and curiosities.
BORGMAN is written and directed by Dutch filmmaker Alex van Warmerdam. The film begins harmlessly enough, with a small mob of angry men and their dogs led by a priest carrying a shotgun. Nothing out of the ordinary. The priest and his posse appear to be hunting a vagrant who has ingeniously dug out an underground home for himself beneath the forest floor, complete with a hidden entrance and furniture. The vagrant’s name is Camiel Borgman, played by Jan Bijvoet, and he will prove to be much more complex than he appears at face value. Camiel is a relatively small, skinny man, filthy and unkempt with long ratty hair and beard. Despite our first impressions, there is something about the way Camile moves and carries himself, right from the beginning, that sets him apart and conveys an unmistakable intelligence.
Having caught wind of the intruders, Camiel abandons his home and warns his neighboring vagrants as he stealthily retreats from the oncoming threat. He happens upon an upper class home nestled within the woods and takes it upon himself to knock upon the front door. Richard, played by Jeroen Pereval, answers and with perfect politeness, Camiel asks the man if he may take a bath, or even a shower would suffice, as its been ages since he’s had the opportunity. It may come with great shock when Richard refuses, politely enough at first, but this is when things really begin to get interesting. Masterfully improvising as he goes, Camile begins to spin a seemingly believable tale of how he knows Richard’s wife Marina, played by Hadewych Minis. This, of course, reestablishes Richard’s interest which ultimately leads to Camiel receiving a testosterone-fueled beat down from Richard on his front lawn. Shocked and genuinely concerned for his health, Marina feels drawn to help Camile and make up for the barbaric display of masculine pride her husband has bestowed upon him. After all, Camiel appears harmless enough, right?
With each step he takes and boundary he pushes, Camiel reveals more of his true nature. Simultaneously, Marina — an artist — falls deeper and deeper into his spell as we watch her loyalty shift. Meanwhile, Richard’s corporate career is falling apart and their family life is beginning to crumble and Camiel leaves out of boredom. As a crucial turning point, Camiel returns to Marina’s house as their new gardener. He is cleaned up, almost unrecognizable except to Marina. With him Camiel brings a motley crew of fellow confidence artists who share his diabolical taste for manipulating others’ lives and, in some cases, ending them as well. Pascal, Ilonka, Brenda and Ludwig — played by Alex van Warmerdam — are a team of brilliant misfits who thrive on anarchy and deception. As the new gardeners, they begin constructing their intricate design which will forever change the lives of Marina and her family. Equally disturbing, but on a much less noticeable scale than Camiel, is the quietly discomforting performance given by Elve Lijbaart as Isolde, Marina’s blonde-haired white-skinned daughter. Isolde gets credit for the most shockingly unexpected and disturbing moment in the film, revealing that perhaps she too is predisposed to being a sociopath.
BORGMAN is rich with dark details and curious notions. Camiel comes across as some mysterious Loki-like deity of mischief, playing with peoples’ lives like so many fragile tin soldiers in a young boy’s toy chest. Camiel operates with a malevolent modesty that is disarming. He picks and chooses those he knows he can control and discards those he chooses not to control, instead toying with them first like setting ants on fire with a magnifying glass. They slowly feel the burn, not knowing the source, then suddenly they are dead. Warmerdam leaves plenty open to interpretation and discussion. While BORGMAN has a complicated but accessible plot, there are many elements that raise questions rather provide answers. Pay close attention to these key moments in the film and enjoy discussing them with fellow viewers afterwards. Few films since PULP FICTION have provided this caliber of debatable cinematic content.
What begins as a dry, quirky tale of a homeless man rapidly escalates and transforms into something more sinister. BORGMAN is often surreal and edgy, never ceasing to surprise the viewer as Camiel gradually unfolds his devilishly wicked wings from beneath his mild-mannered cloak. Such a change might prove too much and over the top, but Warmerdam does it with such subtlety and attention to keeping the tone of the film calm and almost meditative, that the transition from good to evil appears almost seamless and natural. In a sense, BORGMAN attempts to blur the lines between what is good and evil. Marina and those close to her are Camiel’s playthings and Camiel is the filmmaker’s master of puppets in his deadly and seductive game of chess.
If you enjoyed Michael Haneke’s FUNNY GAMES, I highly recommend Warmerdam’s BORGMAN, as it falls somewhere on the slightly less psychotic end of the scale for such films.
BORGMAN opens theatrically in NY on June 6th, 2014 at Lincoln Plaza & IFC Center with an expanded release on June 13th & 20th, 2014
Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
