''Ciske de Rat'' ("Ciske the Rat") is the first part of a
trilogy
A trilogy is a set of three distinct works that are connected and can be seen either as a single work or as three individual works. They are commonly found in literature, film, and video games. Three-part works that are considered components of ...
by
Dutch author
Piet Bakker. It is part of the Ciske
trilogy
A trilogy is a set of three distinct works that are connected and can be seen either as a single work or as three individual works. They are commonly found in literature, film, and video games. Three-part works that are considered components of ...
which was written between 1941 (publication was however delayed by paper shortages until 1942) and 1946. The book was published in more than ten countries. It was made into two films, a television series and a musical. Best known is the
film version of 1984, starring
Danny de Munk as Ciske,
Herman van Veen, and
Willeke van Ammelrooy
Willy Geertje van Ammelrooij (born 5 April 1944), known as Willeke van Ammelrooy, is a Dutch actress.
Life and career
Willeke van Ammelrooy was born in Amsterdam, where she also attended drama school. She has acted on stage as well as in fi ...
.
Plot summary
The setting is in
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
in the 1930s. The story is told by Ciske’s new teacher Bruis.
Ciske de Rat ("Ciske the Rat") is the story of eleven-year-old lonely
street child Ciske (Franciscus) Vrijmoeth, who has no friends and is only called "the Rat". Ciske has to change school, because he poured ink over his teacher's head. After school, he helps out in a pub, where his mother Marie also works. His beloved father Cor is a sailor and therefore not at home.
At school, he makes friends with a gifted, but sick boy called Dorus and Betje, a girl with abnormally low grades but a loving character, but also meets the unbearable bully Jantje. One night, Ciske finds his mother with another man, who beats him. As his mother tears out pages from a book which was borrowed from Dorus, Ciske gets angry and kills his mother with a knife. He is then arrested and sent to a
reform school
A reform school was a Prison, penal institution, generally for teenagers, mainly operating between 1830 and 1900. In the United Kingdom and its colonies, reformatory, reformatories (commonly called reform schools) were set up from 1854 onward f ...
for half a year.
Ciske groeit op ("Ciske grows up") is the second part of the trilogy, in which we follow Ciske's imprisonment on the
reform school
A reform school was a Prison, penal institution, generally for teenagers, mainly operating between 1830 and 1900. In the United Kingdom and its colonies, reformatory, reformatories (commonly called reform schools) were set up from 1854 onward f ...
. Once an outgoing, lively boy, he is now a seemingly abnormally calm and thoughtful young fellow, which disturbs Bruis. After being released, his life is rougher, since everyone, even his former friends but except Betje, his father and his stepmother Jans, treats him differently. Besides, Ciske's Jantje bullies him even worse and Ciske even gets to confront Jantje's mother. The case escalates when Jantje tackles Ciske as he tries to jump over the malt barges at the brewery, causing him to get stuck in the water and being severely injured. Luckily, Ciske heals quite quick and makes amends with his former friends.
In the third part, Cis de man ("Cis the man"), Ciske is now an adult soldier and fights against the German soldiers in May 1940, when the Germans invaded the Netherlands. His former teacher Bruis, who tells this story as well, happens to be his sergeant. Cis actually has more authority than Bruis, even having a lower position. He meets his nemesis Jan as well, who still hates him nowadays. In the end, Cis tries to save two soldiers who are left behind, but during his attempt to save them, he gets nearly fatally injured. However, he is able to cure and marries his girlfriend Betje.
This part of the book was published in 1946 after the Dutch liberation and is not included in the films.
Films
1955
The first film was issued in 1955, starring
Dick Van der Velde as Ciske and
Kees Brusse as the teacher Bruis. The black-and-white film, which was directed by
Wolfgang Staudte
Wolfgang Staudte (9 October 1906 – 19 January 1984), born Georg Friedrich Staudte, was a German film director, script writer and actor. He was born in Saarbrücken.
After 1945, Staudte also looked at German guilt in the cinema. Alongside ...
, won an
OCIC Award and a Silver Lion at the
Venice Film Festival
The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...
. Based on admissions, it is still the third most popular Dutch film in Dutch box office history.
1984
The second film was directed by
Guido Pieters and filmed by
Frans Bromet. Ciske is played by
Danny de Munk who also sang the title song ''Ik voel me zo verdomd alleen'' ("I feel so damned alone") which scored a number one hit in the Netherlands.
An enhanced television series was later broadcast.
Both films are still in the
Top fifteen most-successful films in The Netherlands since 1945.
Soundtrack
The 1984 soundtrack features two songs from the film: ''Ik voel me zo verdomd alleen'' (composed by Herman van Veen, lyrics by Karin Loomans) and ''Vergeet nu maar je zorgen'' ("Now forget your worries"), which is played at the closing credits.
Musical
From October 5, 2007 to November 29, 2009, a musical based on the full trilogy toured the Netherlands and Belgium, starring 37-year-old
Danny de Munk (who had gone on to appear in several Dutch musicals in the years after his portrayal of young Ciske in the movie) as grown-up Ciske. The musical was based on the 1984 film but added part of the storyline of the third book, switching back and forth between flashbacks to the events occurring in the 1930s and the days before the German invasion of the Netherlands in 1940. The show featured music by
Henny Vrienten
Henny Vrienten (27 July 1948 – 25 April 2022) was a Dutch musician best known as the singer and bassist of the popular 1980s ska pop band Doe Maar. He also composed music for television and film.
Biography Early days
Vrienten began his car ...
and lyrics by André Breedland. Paul Eenens directed the production. Queen
Beatrix of the Netherlands
Beatrix (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, ; born 31 January 1938) is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as List of monarchs of the Netherlands, Queen of the Netherlands from 30 April 1980 until her abdication in 2013.
Beatrix was born ...
was present at the gala premiere at the
Royal Theater Carré in Amsterdam. The show received very positive reviews and seven Dutch musical awards (in 2008 the most awards ever bestowed on a single production).
A CD and DVD were released of this stage production.
The musical was staged again in 2016/2017, in a slightly modified version, once more directed by Paul Eenens and starring Danny de Munk. It won, among others, the 2017 Dutch Musical Award for Best Dutch Musical.
References
External links
*
*
Psychological study on 1984 film fragmentat hollandsfilmglorie.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ciske De Rat
1942 novels
20th-century Dutch novels
1942 children's books
Dutch children's novels
Dutch musicals
Novels set in Amsterdam
Children's books set in Amsterdam
Musicals set in the Netherlands
Novels set in the 1930s
Children's books set in the 1930s
Musicals set in the 1930s
Novels set in the 1940s
Children's books set in the 1940s
Musicals set in the 1940s
Novels set during World War II
Children's books set during World War II
Musicals about World War II
Novels about bullying
Children's books about bullying
Novels about murder
Fiction about matricide
Dutch novels adapted into films
Children's books adapted into films
Dutch novels adapted into television shows
Children's books adapted into television shows
Dutch novels adapted into plays