poops-mcghee Review of Crusade in Jeans

Crusade in Jeans (2006)

not recommended to those who love the original book

[1/10 · 30 June 2007]

I've read the book when I was a little boy, read it again when I became an adult and read it a few times more during my adulthood. After I read it again a few weeks ago, I stumbled on the DVD. Nicely packed, comes with a DVD containing extra's and a PC game. But after watching the movie I really felt like tossing it out again as quick as I can. It starts out totally different from what's written years ago. The main characters are quite far off the ones they are in the book also, which does change the whole story significantly. I couldn't find any sensible traces of how Dolf(coming from the future) actually used his nowadays knowledge to constructively help out the children's crusade on their long path to certain doom. There are hardly any signs of Dolf struggling with the authority of the Priest Anselmus (yet another crucial thing in the original story). This filmmaker would make Thea Beckman (the original writer) turn in her grave if she would be able to watch the movie in her afterlife. Dolf is not the kind of heroic boy in the movie at all, strange new characters pop up, filling in roles which aren't supposed to be there at all and mainly twist the original into an ugly looking toilet paper story. This is by far the most awful translation from book to movie I've ever seen. Simply horrible. I just wish I'd never seen it........... For all of those who really love the book (and know it from childhood like I do) steer clear from this production even though the package might catch your attention.