06/05

Theo van Gogh’s last film is about the murder of the controversial politician Pim Fortuyn; on his way to a post-production screening in November 2004, the director himself was shot to death. Monday 6 May 2002, six in the evening. Photographer Jim de Booij is taking pictures of soap starlet Birgit. In the background, a man passes wearing a baseball cap, carrying a plastic bag. One minute later, we hear gunshots and police sirens start sounding at once. This couple of minutes forms the start of five hectic days in which the photographer finds himself in a spiral of plots and intrigues and sees not only his shoot in danger, but also his life. 06/05 is a tightly directed and stunningly edited ‘factional’ film, in which Van Gogh plays with the possibility of a plot behind the assassination of Pim Fortuyn. He interweaves two different genres: the thriller and the cinematographic essay. In the thriller, a photographer threatens to reveal that Dutch politicians and secret service agents were involved in the murder. As agitprop essayist, the film maker suggests that the murder of Fortuyn was really provoked by his colleagues in politics, albeit in a less direct way. Important themes from 06/05, such as the hypocrisy of Dutch politicians, their small-mindedness and corruption while they simultaneously present themselves as icons of integrity, will feed the national debate long after the death of Theo van Gogh. (SdH)