Set within a conservative farming community in the Dutch countryside sometime during the early eighties, the film centres around a precocious twelve year old Katelijne (Hendrikje Nieuwerf) growing up in a large family.
We see a stoic mother (Suzan Boogaerdt) and a hard working father (Steven van Watermeulen) bringing up their seven children in an orthodox Christian environment where everyone knew their place. And the discipline, apart from their parochial education, also extended to sharing household chores and farming duties.
A naturally curious Katelijne, whilst wholeheartedly undertaking her tasks, is nevertheless drawn towards a wider, more modern world with secular and material values that she discovers during a brief stay at her aunt's in the city. She takes advantage of the liberal surroundings to try out fashionable goods and dress-up as an adult.
Katelijne also has a vivid imagination; she captivates her siblings by feeding them fantastical accounts made up by mixing truth with fiction, which while well-intentioned, will invariably land them in trouble, and sometimes, peril. One such occasion shall see her elder brother Christiaan (Yannick de Waal) forced into a marriage. It is her gesture to make amends in her very own way that lends the film its title.
Carefully composed and endearingly captured in bright hues, Talullah lends a nostalgic air to her film by accompanying it with a cheerful soundtrack. Her pleasant, sweet, and innocent protagonist might just as well be a pubescent version of Amélie. Recommended Viewing..!
Amazon DVD Link [PAL]
| Amazon Blu-Ray Link
The Nudity: Laurine Booij and Lotte Oskam
There is brief nudity in a scene when Katelijne narrates a story to Christiaan concerning two "pale" girls in the village who allegedly had the habit of sunbathing naked on the bed when their parents were not around. On one such occasion, a stranger who notices them will attempt to break in. Christiaan naturally gets curious and wants to know more...
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