It's not a horrible film. It's just that it is so poorly paced and so scattered that it never really grabs one's interest. The plot revolves around the discoveries of a young woman who is suddenly orphaned by a woman whom she thinks is her mother. When the police discover the woman never had children, this is the tipping point. She seems to have enough resources to run all over the place, investigating, almost getting killed. Her "mother" had been struck down by a hit and run driver, but he drove over her twice. She delves into family history, stirring up skeletons and eventually almost paying for it. The conclusion is strikingly unsatisfying and poorly done. The video is so bad that we can't see what is going on as she confronts her adversary. There are also some red herrings and superfluous characters that keep showing up. This is pretty much a waste of time. The film was made in Denmark and some of the scenery is interesting.
10 Reviews
A Mediocre Mystery-Thriller
Rainey-Dawn17 January 2016
Death in the Shadows aka De prooi (1985) is a mediocre mystery-thriller. They do keep some mystery as to who and why is after Valerie Jaspers but it's not a great mystery. There are a handful of "thrills" but not enough to be a wonderful thriller.
It's slow in parts, which is fine to me because I like some slow films, but it may not suit some viewers who prefer a fast-paced film. The movie held my interest to a degree but it's easy to get distracted while watching this movie. It's kinda boring at times and sorta interesting at other times.
You aren't missing much if you pass on watching this film but it's not a terrible film.
5/10
It's slow in parts, which is fine to me because I like some slow films, but it may not suit some viewers who prefer a fast-paced film. The movie held my interest to a degree but it's easy to get distracted while watching this movie. It's kinda boring at times and sorta interesting at other times.
You aren't missing much if you pass on watching this film but it's not a terrible film.
5/10
A mystery movie that was put in a horror collection I own
Aaron137515 June 2013
Warning: Spoilers
Part of my disappointment in how this film played out is not the fault of this film at all. Rather, it is the inclusion of this film in a horror collection I bought. This film is not a horror film and thus should not have been included in the collection, thus while watching the film I kept waiting for a horror twist that never arrived. However, the film itself was disappointing too in that the big reveal at the end is very underwhelming. You spend the whole film watching this girl try to solve the mystery, and then when all is revealed, it really is nothing all to shocking or thrilling. The movie did keep me watching as I was curious as to see how it was going to end up.
The story has a woman getting hit by a car at the beginning of the film. Her daughter learns that this woman is not her actual birth mother. During the rest of the film, she tries to learn who her real parents were, why her mother was killed and all the other strange things that seem to have popped up in her life. The film makes it out like this or that person is responsible in typical fashion, but as I stated already, when we do learn the truth it really is nothing all that shocking.
So, I have to say it was almost a good movie. I would have perhaps liked it better had I not been expecting some sort of witch coven or deal with Satan or any number of other things of the horror nature to be the reason behind the woman being run over at the beginning. Like I said, I got this film in a horror collection. Still, the story kept you wondering just enough that you did keep watching. They just needed to work on the reveal a bit better. When the killer was finally shown, it was too flipping dark to see him!
The story has a woman getting hit by a car at the beginning of the film. Her daughter learns that this woman is not her actual birth mother. During the rest of the film, she tries to learn who her real parents were, why her mother was killed and all the other strange things that seem to have popped up in her life. The film makes it out like this or that person is responsible in typical fashion, but as I stated already, when we do learn the truth it really is nothing all that shocking.
So, I have to say it was almost a good movie. I would have perhaps liked it better had I not been expecting some sort of witch coven or deal with Satan or any number of other things of the horror nature to be the reason behind the woman being run over at the beginning. Like I said, I got this film in a horror collection. Still, the story kept you wondering just enough that you did keep watching. They just needed to work on the reveal a bit better. When the killer was finally shown, it was too flipping dark to see him!
There are several things to like about this movie
aceroy13 August 2011
The other reviews were unduly harsh, in my opinion. People who like flashy special effects and expensive Hollywood productions won't care much for this film, but personally I'm tired of those so I liked it. This movie is very "European" so there's no bigger-than-life hero or fuzzy warm happy ending that Americans usually expect. It's not a great movie but it has a feeling about it, an atmosphere and intimacy I like. And the leading lady - Maayke (pronounced mica, like the mineral) Bouten - is very pretty. She reminds me of Brooke Shields at that age. In addition there are many interesting and pleasant scenes of Holland, having been filmed on location there. I like the unusual and sometimes eerie soundtrack too, especially the haunting theme music at the movie's end. The English over-dubbing is good and well synced with lip movements for the most part. I think this is a decent film and apt to be enjoyed by someone who likes smaller-scaled and more personal films.
"It's better not to know some things,"
classicsoncall17 November 2012
Warning: Spoilers
Anyone reading this, you have to do me a favor. Who's the killer? Drop me a note. Seriously, I went back a second time to watch the ending and couldn't recognize the guy who got electrocuted under the bed. This just didn't make any sense to me. Up till then, the story had an air of mystery about it, and young Valerie's (Maayke Bouten) attempt to find out who her real parents were seemed to be an interesting quest. But I didn't come away with any rationale why her 'mother' Trudy and long lost Uncle Bob had to be murdered, much less the attempt on Valerie herself. I was sufficiently informed of Valerie's true origin from the Uncle's story, but for everything that follows, the picture just falls apart. Even the inspector managed to throw in a dig when he said to Valerie - "So now you know pretty much everything". Maybe so, but it looks like a well kept secret.
a pretty dreary film
kidboots27 March 2008
Warning: Spoilers
This is a quite confused and dreary Danish film about a girl trying to solve the riddle of her past.
A woman is run down and killed (seemingly targeted by a lone car) while returning home late one night. She has a teenage daughter Valerie (Maayke Bouten, quite pretty - strangely she only made 3 films) who finds out through an autopsy carried out on her mother that she is not her natural daughter. She starts to put together pieces to find out who her real parents are. She is helped (as usual) by an over worked detective.
Names she finds in an address book lead her to a couple who operate a garage who are very hostile toward her. A neighbour, Lia, who pops up at the oddest times to "help" Valerie tracks down to an "adult" show but nothing happens with that. Then Valerie is also the victim of an attempted hit and run. She finds a long lost uncle who is then murdered.
I didn't guess the culprit but then before the end I was too bored to care.
A woman is run down and killed (seemingly targeted by a lone car) while returning home late one night. She has a teenage daughter Valerie (Maayke Bouten, quite pretty - strangely she only made 3 films) who finds out through an autopsy carried out on her mother that she is not her natural daughter. She starts to put together pieces to find out who her real parents are. She is helped (as usual) by an over worked detective.
Names she finds in an address book lead her to a couple who operate a garage who are very hostile toward her. A neighbour, Lia, who pops up at the oddest times to "help" Valerie tracks down to an "adult" show but nothing happens with that. Then Valerie is also the victim of an attempted hit and run. She finds a long lost uncle who is then murdered.
I didn't guess the culprit but then before the end I was too bored to care.
Maayke makes it just about bearable.
BA_Harrison12 May 2016
At the centre of this mid-'80s Dutch murder mystery is a rather attractive girl, teenager Valerie Jaspers, played by Maayke Bouten, who looks like a cross between actresses Jennifer Connelly and Brooke Shields (as eye-candy goes, that's a pretty good combination). After Valerie's mother is flattened by a hit and run driver, an autopsy reveals that the woman Valerie had called mum for seventeen years had never actually given birth. Valerie decides to do a little amateur investigative work into her origins but finds herself the next target of her mother's killer.
This being a Dutch film, Valerie takes off her clothes quite a bit, to make love to her boyfriend, take a bath, or just for the heck of it, all of which makes the film just about bearable despite an instantly forgettable plot and very little in the way of tension or scares. Death in the Shadows also features one of the weirdest musical scores to be heard on film—strange accordion playing, random whistling, and repetitive percussion; at times it has a quirky charm, but most of the time it is bloody irritating.
This being a Dutch film, Valerie takes off her clothes quite a bit, to make love to her boyfriend, take a bath, or just for the heck of it, all of which makes the film just about bearable despite an instantly forgettable plot and very little in the way of tension or scares. Death in the Shadows also features one of the weirdest musical scores to be heard on film—strange accordion playing, random whistling, and repetitive percussion; at times it has a quirky charm, but most of the time it is bloody irritating.
3/4 into the movie, and...well, I'm waiting!
mark.waltz17 October 2016
Warning: Spoilers
Where's the story? What's going on? Why is everything about long running around segments, looking for information, and nothing ever happens? The opening scene shows the mother of the heroine, allegedly, in some sort of accident. The daughter visits her at the hospital, and all of a sudden, we're lead to believe that the mother is dead. The daughter begins checking out clues she found that her mother left behind, and all of a sudden, she's being chased. She then finds out that she has an uncle, and is suddenly out to find him. Long moments of silence with sinister sounding music leads her down the path to the revelation of what the writers mistakenly refer to as a mystery, and for me, the only mystery is how this ended up getting produced.
Nifty thriller
Woodyanders1 March 2012
Warning: Spoilers
Sweet teenager Valerie Jaspers (a solid and appealing performance by the comely Maayke Bouten) and her mother Trudy (Yuka Berretty) live a quiet life in a small village near Amsterdam. After Trudy gets killed by a hit-and-run driver, the autopsy reveals that she wasn't Valerie's real mother. So Valerie decides to find out the identities of her actual parents. Director Vivian Peters, who also co-wrote the absorbing script by Ton Ruys, relates the gripping story at a steady pace, builds a considerable amount of suspense, and firmly grounds the plot in a totally believable everyday reality. This film further benefits from the sound acting by the capable cast: Bouten holds everything together with her charming presence and pretty looks, plus there are sturdy supporting contributions from Johan Leysen as helpful detective Mellema, Marlous Fluitsma as sympathetic neighbor Ria de Jong, and Rijk de Gooyer as Trudy's regretful brother Bob. Moreover, there's an intriguing and provocative subtext on how people can keep deep secrets from those closest to them. The killer's identity is a genuine surprise. Peter Brugman's slick and lively cinematography gives the picture a nice polished look.Henny Vrienten's pulsating score further enhances the overall spooky mood. A real sleeper.
A piece of 80s Dutch film history
sorendanni24 June 2021
It's always nice to revisit 80's film from small European countries. The budgets of the American b-movies of the days was not there. But this did lead to high creativity among the European directors.
This Dutch film makes for a very enjoyable film. Lots of typical 80s irresponsible things like cigarettes, Alcohol during work hours and unnecessary nude scenes, including with someone who had to play a teenager! From a moral point of view, this is reprehensible. Thankfully, with today's knowledge, let's not spoil the fun of watching an old movie.
I'm not sure if the movie was filmed too dark, or if the transfer from the master to my low budget Just Brigde DVD is bad. The fact is that the film is too often too dark so that many important details do not become clear. Sometimes it is so bad that you look at an almost black image for almost a full minute.
But otherwise a lot of good: It is a very exciting story of a girl who goes into a kind of identity crisis after her mother was hit by a car. The hit'n'runner doesn't give the poor kid real time for depression, because she has to fight for her life and fight for the truth. The story is also layered: on the one hand it is an adaptation of a British novel in the psychodrama genre. On the other hand, it is a Dutch interpretation of elements from the Italian 'Giallo' thriller, with some scenes being quite scary and shocking, especially for the zeitgeist.
Much bad has been written about this film, but I don't agree. This is a good film, made in a country with only a limited thriller culture and therefore limited thriller experience. It is not a Nederhorror, this film never intended to be a film like Amsterdamned. But De Prooi is exciting enough in my eyes. The ending is only slightly spoiled by the already mentioned bad lighting. Because revealing the culprit, meant as a serious plot twist, is literally lost in the darkness. But it could also just be my bad DVD transfer.
In short, a must see if you are a fan of the 1980s!
This Dutch film makes for a very enjoyable film. Lots of typical 80s irresponsible things like cigarettes, Alcohol during work hours and unnecessary nude scenes, including with someone who had to play a teenager! From a moral point of view, this is reprehensible. Thankfully, with today's knowledge, let's not spoil the fun of watching an old movie.
I'm not sure if the movie was filmed too dark, or if the transfer from the master to my low budget Just Brigde DVD is bad. The fact is that the film is too often too dark so that many important details do not become clear. Sometimes it is so bad that you look at an almost black image for almost a full minute.
But otherwise a lot of good: It is a very exciting story of a girl who goes into a kind of identity crisis after her mother was hit by a car. The hit'n'runner doesn't give the poor kid real time for depression, because she has to fight for her life and fight for the truth. The story is also layered: on the one hand it is an adaptation of a British novel in the psychodrama genre. On the other hand, it is a Dutch interpretation of elements from the Italian 'Giallo' thriller, with some scenes being quite scary and shocking, especially for the zeitgeist.
Much bad has been written about this film, but I don't agree. This is a good film, made in a country with only a limited thriller culture and therefore limited thriller experience. It is not a Nederhorror, this film never intended to be a film like Amsterdamned. But De Prooi is exciting enough in my eyes. The ending is only slightly spoiled by the already mentioned bad lighting. Because revealing the culprit, meant as a serious plot twist, is literally lost in the darkness. But it could also just be my bad DVD transfer.
In short, a must see if you are a fan of the 1980s!
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