Het mysterie van de sardine

The Mystery of the Sardine, a film version of the book by the Polish-English writer (and experimental film maker) Stefan Themerson, is a light surrealistic story about life after an attack. The question ‘how to live on’ turns out to be more important than the question ‘who was responsible?’ Tim Boerhave (Löw), a lecturer in philosophy, loses his legs in a bomb attack. The culprit is not known. His last memory before the explosion is the image of a large black dog with a sardine tin on its collar as the dog jumps up at the kitchen door. After the attack, Tim wrestles with the question why he was the target of the attack. On the island where he is staying with his family while their house is rebuilt, Tim continues obsessively to look for answers. He sits in his room day and night, working on his card system with clues. His wife Vera wants answers too and finds references to the attack all over the island, including a painting portraying the attack on her husband. When Tim finally gets out again, he is shocked and stunned to see Anne, his first love, standing on the dance floor. Soon after, he has another mysterious encounter. The atmospheric light across the island contrasts with the dark room in which Tim is trapped. The powerful, restrained acting of Löw, Fokker, De Bruijne and Rotteveel (Bluebird) as daughter Emma turn The Mystery of the Sardine into an intriguing psychological drama. (SdH)