Author: bestmedeal

Call it the first law of Netflix, or of the platform movie. Within a minute,or at most two, something violent has to happen in a new title. Something thatforces the viewer to look through, instead of scrolling through theincreasingly blurry range of subcategories.

Director Romain Gavras (41) and screenwriter Ladj Ly (44) were determined tohonor this law with Athens , their tragedy inflated to war-film proportionsabout an uprising in the French suburb, which will premiere on the pay channelon Friday. The apparently uninterrupted and fabulously filmed opening scenelasts a good ten minutes. The toss of a Molotov cocktail heralds the stormingof a police station, whereupon the young perpetrators barricaded themselves ina captured police van like a medieval fortress. quarter hurry, waving theFrench flag. Because the whole thing was filmed with a refrigerator-sized Imaxcamera, the image is Hollywood-worthy blockbuster -quality. At the sametime, the way in which people navigate between the people in the swirlingmasses make it seem as if they are turning handheld.

Simple question to the filmmakers, who queue up in Venice for a conversationwith the press, a day after the world premiere of Athens. How could theyfilm this like that? ‘Blood, sweat and tears’, sums up Gavras. ‘We firstrehearsed for months, with actors and a small camera, to understand how thechoreography would work with the actors. And then we started adding elements,step by step: the extras, the fireworks. We only got well after take fifteen.I think we needed about 25 for the opening scene. With all the explosions,yes, every time. We worked on the details for each take. Sometimes we had agreat shot, but there was just that one extra who went wrong or tried to getinto the shot. Or then the actor couldn’t get his motorcycle helmet off, rightat the end of the otherwise perfectly executed choreography of the take. Thathappened to us twice.’

Ladj Ly and Romain Gavras.Image WireImage

Netflix provided 15 million euros in budget: little for an American actionfilm, generous for a French production. Gavras: ‘We wanted to make everythingreal. Even with the highest budget for computer effects you still feel that itis not real. When my daughter watches a Marvel movie, I hear her say all thetime: CGI, CGI ( computer-generated imagery , red. ), fake, fake. You alsoknow with such a superhero movie that what you see is impossible, whileeverything you see in Athens is possible. The camera is everywhere. And byfilming in this way you give urgency to what you see. By the way: it’s alsojust more fun for the director to work like that.’

Gavras’ father is Costa-Gavras, the now 89-year-old Greek-Frenchcinematographer who caused a furore in 1969 with z , his Oscar-winningpolitical thriller that inspired the Black Panthers, among others. Son Gavras,raised by his politically engaged parents under a strict Disney ban, stood outfor directing incendiary and violent music videos for artists such as MIA,Jay-Z and Kanye West. He scored a hit in France in 2018 with his smooth crimefilm The World is Yours.

Gavras and screenwriter Ly have known each other since they first picked up acamera. They are both members of the French artist collective Kourtrajmé. Lybroke through as a director in 2019 with Les miserables , his 2019 Oscar-nominated feature film about derailing (police) violence in a French suburb.The director and screenwriter grew up in such a concrete place many kilometersfrom the Paris city center, as the son of Malian migrants. He directed hisfirst and controversial documentary there 365 days à Clichy-Montfermeil ,about the weeks-long riots of 2015. Ly: ‘I experienced those riots from theinside, they took place downstairs near my flat. Of Athens we place theviewer in the heart of the consternation, we nail him to his seat. In this waywe want to convey something essential about those riots: that you don’t havetime to think or reflect when you’re in the middle of it.’

In Athens three brothers face each other when a video shows their brotherbeing killed by police brutality. Karim is the undisputed leader of the mob offighting youth, Abdel the decorated soldier who preaches ‘calmness’, Moktarthe drug mobster who only serves his own interests and trade. Meanwhile, theFrench mobile unit surrounds their neighbourhood. Gavras: ‘The film isconstructed like a modern Greek tragedy, in which characters cannot escapetheir fate. Their own will gives way. The pressure of that first act ofviolence is too strong, what unfolds after that is inevitable. That blueprintof conflict is timeless, I think. And to convey that timeless idea in thefilm, we gave parts of the besieged quarter the appearance of a castle wall ofsorts, with those battlements. And that’s how you see officers with shields insuch a turtle formation, like Roman soldiers.’

The French suburb, also called banlieue, has often been the arena forexcellent French cinema. From the classic La Haine by Mathieu Kassovitz to theGolden Palm winner Dheepan by Jacques Audiard from 2015. Or Bande de filles byCéline Sciamma and the Oscar-nominated Les misérables (2019) by film-makerLadj Ly, the screenwriter of Athena.

The director, when asked by one of the journalists whether his film can alsoincite young people to violence: ‘It is always the same discussion: are it thevideo games that make children violent? I tend to think it’s the society, thecultural and social context. Films are a reflection on society, I don’t thinkthey give such an impulse. Are you going to smoke because Marlon Brando smokesin a movie? Okay, a movie can inspire you to wear a shirt like Tony Montana,but to Scarface looking doesn’t make you a drug dealer.’

And is he now also a political filmmaker, just like his father? ‘I do notknow. My father’s answer to these kinds of questions is always that everythingis political. A superhero movie is also political, because that movie sayssomething about the cultural influence that America is washing out on theworld. I don’t like preachy movies. When someone tells me what to think, Iusually go against it – that’s my nature. With a good film you feel somethinginside, only then does your brain start analyzing.’

Dali Benssalah and Sami Slimane in Athena.

below Athens the share of far-right groups in the conflict, which may haveplayed a role in the battle between the residents of the neighbourhood, isdormant. “I believe such forces have influence, but I don’t want to focus toomuch on them. The film is also about the tragedy that takes place between thebrothers. And there are always forces pushing humans toward conflict, eversince the Trojan War. Sometimes that is the government: like US SecretaryColin Powell in the Iraq war. But tomorrow it could be something or someoneelse again. Maybe Elon Musk from the moon, who knows?’

Gavras and Ly’s film is reminiscent of the Egyptian Oscar submission here andthere clash from 2016, for which filmmaker Mohamed Diab mobilized largenumbers of extras with flash mobs. The spectacular shots sometimes turned intoreal riots when the police arrived. ‘Our organization was very strict,’ saysGavras. “Almost like a military organization. We filmed chaos, but organizedchaos. And I know what can happen when you shoot conflict scenes like this,thanks to the music videos I’ve directed before. If the two groups you pitdon’t really know each other, things can get really tough. In front of_Athens_ the youths from the neighborhood and the stuntmen who play the copstrained together for months. When you know each other so well, such a scene ismore like a dance.’

So no one got hurt at Athens? “What’s your definition of injured?” Gavrasreplies. ‘Someone goes through his ankle: a bobo , as we call it in France.No one lost their eye, or arm.’

Did you know that there are five characters from The Rings of Power even in_The Lord of the Rings_ were on display? It’s been over twenty years since wesaw the first big screen adaptation of the Tolkien books (let’s forget aboutthis 1978 monstrosity). Time to refresh that memory. we got you.

In both reality and fantasy, there is an eternity between the series and thetrilogy. The new Amazon Prime prequel is set a few thousand years before theadventures of Sam and Frodo and is basically an origin story. Not only fromthe ‘One Ring that Rules Them All’, as a result of which Sauron eventuallyloses out twice. But also from some characters from _The Lord of the Rings_that should ring a bell.

Five (un)known faces of The Rings of Power

Following are the five characters from The Rings of Power from whom you knowthe ‘older me’ from The Lord of the Rings .

1. Galadriel

Cate Blanchett (left) and Morfydd Clark(right) as Galadriel (Image: New Line Cinema / Prime Video / Screenrant)

In The Rings of Power the mighty elf is played by Morfydd (she is fromWales, give her a break ) Clark . Galadriel may be a feared general in theprequel, but she clearly has yet to earn her stripes. In The Lord of theRings on the other hand, the Lady of Lothlórien has acquired an almostmythical status as the moral compass of Middle-earth. We do wonder where CateBlanchett got her inspiration for that role. Anyway.

2. Elrond

Hugo Weaving (left) and Robert Aramayo(right) as Elrond (Image: New Line Cinema / Prime Video

In the The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Elrond is a key figure. He firstbrought the Fellowship together in Rivendell and allowed his daughter Arwen tomarry Aragorn. You probably recognize Hugo Weaving as Agent Smith from TheMatrix. In The Rings of Power we see a younger and more cuddly Elrond,played by Robert Aramayo.

3. Gil-galad

MarkFerguson (left) and Benjamin Walker (right) as Gil-galad (Image: New LineCinema / Prime Video)

In the prologue of Fellowship of the Ring we briefly see Gil-galad, playedby Mark Ferguson, fighting alongside Elrond and Isildur. Gil-galad is the lastHigh-King and has the greatest authority on Middle-earth among the elves. EvenGaladriel dares not go against his orders. There is a good chance that we willencounter Gil-galad more often in The Rings of Power where Benjamin Walkerplays the part.

4. Isildur

HarrySinclair (left) and Maxim Baldry (right) as Isildur (Image: New Line Cinema /Prime Video

Aragorn’s ancestor got in the first Lord of the Rings movie (good, you’vealready forgotten about the monstrosity) only a brief cameo, but seems toclaim one of the main roles in the prequel series. Maxim Baldry takes thehonors. You may recognize him from the (viewing tip!) series _Years and Years_which can be seen on HBO Max.

5. Sauron

The Dark Lord Sauron, or not? (Image: PrimeVideo)

Last but not least. In the film trilogy, Sauron (played by Sala Baker)appeared mainly in the form of a large yellow eye who had set his sights onthe conquest of Middle-earth. We will probably get in Rings of Power –literally and figuratively – to see a more complex character, with a beautifulorigin story. Unfortunately, it has not yet been announced who will play therole of the dark lord will take on.

First look at Anson Boon as Sauron in The Lord of the Rings:> #TheRingsOfPower> pic.twitter.com/4so5cHM25y>> — Culture Crave 🍿 (@CultureCrave) July 22,> 2022

Contrary to what is being said in the tweet above, this is not Anson Boon.After seeing these images, fans started to speculate who that blond actor was,but studio bosses have now confirmed that it is Bridie Sisson. They also saidthey “enjoy” the wild speculation, but would not confirm or deny whetherSisson will actually play Sauron. In addition, there are also theories thatSauron would be a shapeshifter who can make Middle-earth unsafe in variousguises (read: characters we already know). To be continued.

Awaiting the reveal, watch below what Sala Baker has to say about his role asSauron in Lord of the Rings :

More Rings of Power or House of the Dragon?

Want to learn more about this wonderful series? Then read this article aboutwhat Rings of Power has cost. Or, for example, were you already aware thatthe prequel doesn’t just have trouble fighting Orcs?

If you are more to the side of House of the Dragon we recommend that youdelve into this article. At least you won’t be surprised next week when acompletely different Princess Rhaenyra suddenly flies on a dragon.

Eight soldiers from the Grenadier Guards, an elite unit of the British Army’sinfantry, were chosen to carry Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin at her funeral.Five of them were flown in from Iraq just hours after her death was announced.The whole world saw how the soldiers performed their task flawlessly andgracefully. But their mission was not over when the coffin descended into thecrypt below St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle. Away from the cameras, theystill had to interred the Queen with her husband in the King George VIMemorial Chapel, with her parents and sister.

British comedian, writer and actor Stephen Fry thought the bearers of QueenElizabeth II’s coffin deserved a pint. “Carriers, to the pub, quick march.Porters, lift the mug. Porters, drink beer. You deserved it,” Fry tweeted at2:38 p.m. our time. But he turned out to be a bit too quick with his tweet.2.5 hours later, at 5:08 PM, he added: “Oops, I hope they didn’t follow myadvice. Do one last shift first.”

Fry intended that the elite soldiers still had to take the Queen along withher husband to her final resting place in the King George VI Memorial, whereshe was interred with her parents and her sister. This burial vault in StGeorge’s Chapel in Windsor Castle had been requested by Queen Elizabeth II in1962 for her father, King George VI. Seven years later, on March 26, 1969, theburial vault did indeed become George VI’s final resting place. And then in2002 also his daughter, Princess Margaret, and his wife Queen Elizabeth, theQueen Mother, who died seven weeks after her daughter. Princess Margaret -exceptionally for a member of the royal family – was cremated. Yesterday,Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, Prince Philip, who died last year, werealso interred in the King George VI Memorial side chapel.

Stephen Fry > @stephenfry >

You cannot view this content

This content includes cookies from social media or other external platforms.Because you have disabled these cookies, this content will remain hidden.Please accept social media cookies to still display the content.

Open privacy settings

That task was the last of a grueling day—starting before 10:30 a.m. localtime—for the ten-strong Grenadier Guards deputy who had to look after the atleast 225kg box. Eight of them had already lifted, carried and set downElizabeth II’s coffin flawlessly ten times during the Queen’s final journeyfrom Westminster Hall to St George’s Chapel in Windsor.

The first was when they carried the coffin from Westminster Hall, where theQueen lay in state for four days, and placed it on the ceremonial gun carriagethat would carry the Elizabeth II’s remains to Westminster Abbey where thestate funeral was to begin. From there, after the service, the processionproceeded via The Mall and Constitution Hill to Wellington Arch, with thecoffin back on the 123-year-old cannon base. There the soldiers placed thecoffin in a hearse, which they drove to Windsor.

© via REUTERS

The most difficult part of the trail for porters was probably the steep stepsof the more than 500-year-old St George’s Chapel. The eight were assisted atthe rear by a ninth soldier from the first battalion Grenadier Guards,19-year-old Fletcher Cox, from the island of Jersey. He had to keep the oakbox from sliding on the slope. At the front, Sergeant Major Dean Jones led thecoffin bearers upstairs.

The last image the world saw of the Queen descending from her coffin into thecrypt beneath St George’s Chapel, where she was reunited with Prince Philip,her husband who died last year and was given his provisional resting placethere. Elizabeth and Philip’s coffins were interred at the King George VIMemorial in a private ceremony that evening, eleven days after the death ofElizabeth II at age 96 in Balmoral, Scotland. The Grenadier Guards were calledin again for this. The elite soldiers were on the job for about 12 hours whentheir shift ended late in the evening.

The royal family, honored guests, all of the United Kingdom and the rest ofthe world said goodbye to Queen Elizabeth on Monday. After a long mourningperiod, her coffin was lowered into the Royal Vault of St. George ‘s Chapel inWindsor. The day was emotional and several guests were crying, includingMeghan Markle.

Harry and Meghan – who have been in the UK since the Queen’s death – wentout of their way to be discreet at the late monarch’s funeral. Meghan wipedthe tears from her face, although not everyone believes the gesture is as realas it seems.

Television host Karl Stefanovic – known for harboring a strong dislike forMeghan – claimed that pictures of Meghan wiping her tears could bemisleading.

Phil Noble – WPA Pool/Getty Images

In recent years, Harry and Meghan’s relationship with the British royal familyhas deteriorated. But at Queen Elizabeth’s funeral, the couple reunited withthe other members of the royal family to show a united front.

Harry & Meghan Markle at Queen Elizabeth’s Funeral

Harry walked behind the coffin alongside his brother William as the Queen’sfuneral procession passed through the streets of London yesterday.

He did not wear a military uniform to Queen Elizabeth’s state funeral, as hewas stripped of his military titles when he stepped down as a working memberof the Royal Family in 2020. At a vigil held by the late monarch’s eightgrandchildren, Harry was allowed to wear his military uniform by his father,King Charles.

Meghan Markle is said to have honored the Queen in a beautiful way during thestate funeral. She is said to have worn the earrings with pearls and diamondsthat the Queen gave her during their engagement together in 2018.

It has been a mourning tradition within the royal family since the time ofQueen Victoria to wear pearls.

In the infamous 2021 Oprah interview, Meghan spoke heartily about the Queenand how she had treated her during their engagement.

“The Queen, for example, has always been wonderful to me. I mean, we had oneof our first dates together,” Meghan said at the time.

Shutterstock

“She asked me to go with her, and I went by train. And we had breakfasttogether that morning and she gave me a beautiful present and I just reallyenjoyed being in her company, and I know we were in the car – yes, she gave mea pair of beautiful pearl earrings and a matching necklace – and we sattogether in the car between appointments.”

Did Meghan Markle Break a Royal Tradition?

Meghan added: “And she has a blanket over her knees for warmth and it waschilly and she said Meghan come on and put the blanket over my knees too.”

Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle both followed royal protocol with theirattire. However, many royal fans reacted to the fact that Meghan seemed to bebreaking a certain royal tradition. It is said to be tradition – although notmandatory – for the royal women to wear a mourning veil. Kate, Camilla – theQueen Consort – and Princess Sophie were some of the women who wore such aveil, along with the traditional black hat.

However, Meghan Markle and the young Princess Charlotte decided not to wearthe veil.

Last Wednesday, Queen Elizabeth’s coffin was transported from BuckinghamPalace as she left her official home for the last time.

MeghanMarkle at the Queen’s funeral (Photo by Samir Hussein/WireImage)

The journey to Westminster Hall passed Queen’s Gardens, The Mall, Horse Guardsand Horse Guards Arch, Whitehall, Parliament Street, Parliament Square and NewPalace Yard, with tens of thousands of people paying tribute to her along theway.

The Queen’s Last Voyage

The procession – which, according to The Guardian, was literally decades inthe making – saw the queen’s coffin placed on a gun-carriage and pulledthrough the center of the capital. The coach, The George Gun, was also usedfor the ceremonies when the Queen Mother and King George VI – Her Majesty’sparents – died.

King Charles walked behind the coffin alongside William and Harry, as did theQueen’s other children, Prince Andrew, Prince Edward and Princess Anne.Meanwhile, the Queen Consort, Kate Middleton, Sophie and Meghan Markletraveled by car.

Hundreds of thousands of people were allowed to say goodbye to the queen forthe last time. Westminster Hall was open 24 hours a day. Not everyone in linecould see the queen, however, because of how she lay in state.

The BBC reported that access to the back of the line would be closed early toensure anyone already waiting would have a chance to walk past the Queen’scasket.

Among the well-known royals who attended the funeral were King Felipe VI andQueen Letizia of Spain, King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of theNetherlands, Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako of Japan, and King Carl XVIGustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden.

Meghan Markle cries at funeral – and gets criticized

King Charles fought back tears when his mother’s coffin was lowered into theroyal vault, but he wasn’t the only one crying. Meghan Markle also wiped tearsfrom her face after the state funeral, with the makeup showing on one of herblack gloves.

Meghan was pictured with William and Kate’s two children, Prince George andPrincess Charlotte, as they waited for their car after the state funeral. Atone point, Charlotte turned and saw Meghan’s gaze, who looked down and gavethe young princess a beautiful, reassuring smile.

As mentioned, several members of the royal family wept as they bid farewell toQueen Elizabeth. But apparently Meghan’s tears really upset a televisionpersonality.

TimMerry – WPA Pool/Getty Images

The coverage of the program Today The Queen’s funeral was led by presenterKarl Stefanovic, who decided to poke fun at Meghan after photos of her cryingwere published.

“We don’t know if it was real or not”

He said they were open to interpretation, meaning photos of Meghan wipingtears from her face may have been misleading.

“There are a lot of photos in circulation and interpretations of photos thatmay or may not be real,” Stefanovic said.

“There’s a few with Meghan, er, with a tear running down her face – apparently- and even one of Princess Charlotte that everyone said she was crying, and wejust don’t know if it was real or not.”

What do you think of this? Share the article on Facebook with friends andfamily!

**You can now also follow us on Instagram for more great stories, photos and

In their blazing, pamphleteer documentary What ‘s Left – The Mess of theLeft (BNNVARA), this Thursday on NPO 2, writer-columnist Johan Fretz anddocumentary maker Juul Op den Kamp show the demise of the Labor Party. Theonce great workers’ party, which has plummeted over the years from more thanfifty to a meager nine parliamentary seats, has, according to them, renouncedthe social-democratic ideal by converting to neoliberalism, or at the veryleast by giving it a helping hand. grant.

The Netherlands is becoming increasingly right-wing – why make a film aboutwhat’s wrong with a moribund left-wing party?

Fretz: “The film is not intended to further break down the PvdA, it was bornout of a warm heart for social democracy. Juul and I both come from a LaborParty nest. And with that love comes justified anger and disappointment at itsloss. The story of a left-wing power party drifting so far from its corevalues ​​– I think it will definitely be an eye opener for millennials andzoomers.”

Op den Kamp: “This is intended for them. It’s a whodunnit popcorn movie aboutthe decline of social democracy. It makes sense to make something about whatthe right has done, but far fewer people know what the left’s part has been init.”

Fretz: „VVD members believe that the government is not responsible for, forexample, homelessness, the housing crisis, poverty. They carry out what theystand for, so that’s not very interesting for a movie. That the PvdA alsofacilitated the demolition, that is the story.”

Why so devastating? Only six minutes before the end, there is some hope on thehorizon.

Op den Kamp: “In order to know how things can be done differently, you firsthave to know how we ended up here.”

Fretz: „It does contain some tirades from me, but we present it with a lot ofhumor and self-mockery, and above all involvement. Some see harsh criticism ascynicism, or annoying yelling. But that fire is a sign that we care.”

Op den Kamp: “The team that made this film is furious about how things aregoing in the Netherlands, and we used that as fuel to make the film. Takingaction because you are concerned can never be cynical. Cynical is doingnothing. We end with hope and combativeness. The aim of the film is to moveviewers. We see the ideal of social democracy blossoming again among youngpeople.”

Three former party leaders speak, but they say little. What is the addedvalue?

Fretz: “They do say something, and sometimes saying nothing is also revealing.This is a movie, no news hour. There is something smooth and inscrutableabout Wouter Bos, but that ambivalence also makes him mysterious, which isgood for the film.

Op den Kamp: „Diederik Samsom kept on avoiding, and eventually came up with:who did something wrong, it doesn’t matter, because we live in a beautifulcountry after all. That was exactly where we wanted to go. Because that’s whatpoliticians say, but it’s not true. The evasive interview gives structure tothe film.”

Fretz: „Job Cohen is the only one who dares to say: it was three timesnothing, the Rutte II cabinet, and we have done things that were reallyunacceptable. In this way he gives our film much more weight. If I say so, itmay not impress. But the older nestor says so himself.”

Former PvdA leader Ad Melkert has not spoken to you, but his classicconfrontation with Pim Fortuyn in 2002 is included. Was that the beginning ofthe end of the Labor Party?

Fretz: “I think so. After that, the charisma of Wouter Bos kept the partygoing for a while. But the Fortuyn revolt brought out the rot. In that debate,Fortuyn provides a correct socio-economic analysis of the decline of hospitalsdue to economies of scale and privatisation. And Melkert doesn’t respond tothat, because he knows it’s true.”

In addition to the PvdA, left-wing parties such as the SP, GroenLinks and Bij1have emerged. Why did you not include them in the analysis?

Op den Kamp: “They are included, but we wanted to focus on the PvdA because itis the only left-wing party that has had government power for the past fortyyears.”

Fretz: “We also wanted to keep it personal: I come from a PvdA nest, in thefilm we see the leaders I voted for.”

Op den Kamp: “Johan’s personal story is important to take viewers along. He isthe poster boy of social mobility: he comes from a poor family, went to study,became a writer and theater maker. A child of social democracy. But the roadhe has traveled is no longer self-evident for children. The power of film isthat you can identify with Johan and through his story realize how muchinfluence politics has on a person’s life.”

What is the way out for the PvdA? To cancel? merge?

Fretz: “Merging makes little sense if you don’t first consider what you standfor. We especially want to start the conversation about the foundation. Theparty must first return to the core values ​​as formulated by former leaderJoop de Uyl in the 1970s: more equal distribution of knowledge, power andincome. It is essential to make it clear that the class struggle and theemancipation struggle are not opposites, but always go hand in hand.”

What ‘s Left (BNNVARA), Thursday on NPO2, 22u29. And on NPO Start.

From October 4, four mothers will search for their ideal daughter-in-law in’Matched By Mom’. In this brand new dating show, four men and their mothers goin search of true love. Sixteen ladies are going on the adventure of ‘MatchedBy Mom’ and we now introduce you to the single ladies.

Image © Tom Cornelissen

Amber

The 26-year-old Amber is a feisty lady in terms of looks, but her heart is inthe right place. She is half Antillean, born in New York, raised in Drentheand has traveled extensively in Australia. So a real woman of the world. Amberis already in love with her two naked cats, but is still looking for anenterprising romantic with a strong opinion; someone who can cope well withher exuberant character.

Also read:

Edson da Graça regrets swingers statement: ‘I should have underestimated’

Image © Tom Cornelissen

Cynthia

The 29-year-old Cynthia from The Hague is a real entrepreneur in heart andsoul. She owns a modeling agency and a hairdressing business. It is thereforenot surprising that she is attracted to an ambitious and enterprising man.That person must also be neatly groomed, because she can’t stand someone whosmells or has tousled hair. Besides entrepreneurship, she loves nature,animals and her religion is also important to her. Cynthia herself wants alarge family with three or four children, so she is really looking for a manwho shares this wish with her.

Image © Tom Cornelissen

Daphne

Daphne is 23 years old and lives in Amsterdam. The small Limburg village whereshe originally came from was far too ‘small’ for its outspoken character.Daphne is looking for a real buddy who is always there for her and with whomshe can do fun things. She finds respect and trust in a relationship veryimportant. In addition, her relationship must be equal and she does not needto be cared for. She can also stand on her own two feet, so Daphne doesn’tneed a man for that.

Image © Tom Cornelissen

Isabel

Isabel is only 20, but already knows exactly what she wants. She currentlyworks as an account manager at an ICT company, but she does this mainly tobuild up a buffer so that she can start her own business. In terms ofcharacter, Isabel is above all very sweet, but also sincere and steadfast. Sheis not afraid to open up and she is emotionally mature for her age. Isabellikes slightly older sporty and sociable men who have a bit of a ‘crook’sface’.

Image © Tom Cornelissen

Joy

Family is very important to 28-year-old Joy from Rotterdam. It is a dream forher to have a partner share the same family value. Joy is extremely ambitious,she has been working in the banking sector for some time and is climbing thecareer ladder here. Ultimately, she wants to become an entrepreneur in realestate. Joy’s ideal man is tall and has a typical Dutch direct character _._She also appreciates openness and honesty in a potential partner.

Also read:

Edson goes with mothers looking for dates for sons in reality series

Image © Tom Cornelissen

Joyce

23-year-old Joyce is a cheerful, enthusiastic girl who can be a clumsy flapperat times. She is confident, but she is quite insecure about her love life; shehas never had a ‘real’ steady relationship. In terms of the type of man, Joyceis looking for a funny and romantic person who doesn’t beat around the bushand just goes for her. She does not have a fixed type in terms of appearance,because according to her, a man must ‘have something’ that immediately makesher feel attracted. So Joyce might fall for a man you don’t expect.

Image © Tom Cornelissen

Also read:

Joey from The Bachelorette regrets participating in TV show

Kiki

Three years ago, this spirited, blond 31-year-old lady tasted entrepreneurshipand it went very well. Now she never wants to work for a boss again. In thefield of work, the Haarlem bombshell has a strong opinion and, in her ownwords, prefers to be a loner. In the field of love, a man must continuouslytrigger her, because otherwise she will quickly get bored. Her future partnerhas to take into account the critical view of her mothers, because they arereal ‘ three hands on one belly ‘.

Image © Tom Cornelissen

Kyra

25-year-old Kyra is a feisty lady who does not mince her mouth. With her sweetsmile she is sometimes considered a wallflower, until she opens her mouth! Shealso has a very caring and helpful side. She has always said she wants tostart having children at 31, so in five years she wants to be settled with achild. A man must therefore also have a wish to have children! Being able totrust each other and keep doing ‘your own thing’ are important to her in arelationship.

Image © Tom Cornelissen

Lisanne

The 23-year-old Lisanne is the calm, sweet girl next door. Her calmdisposition comes across as a bit mysterious. She is a homebody, although shedoesn’t mind a party every now and then. Lisanne, her ideal man with whom shewould like to build that future, has a sense of style and is therefore welldressed. Furthermore, he is ambitious, sweet, caring, intelligent and she canhave good conversations with him. It is also ideal if he gets on well with herparents.

Image © Tom Cornelissen

Nikki

The cheerful Nikki is 25 years old and lives in Amsterdam. She has almostfinished her studies in legal services and after that she starts a job insales recruitment. Instead of a hobby, Nikki prefers to spend her free hourssurrounded by friends and family. Good company is the most important thing toher. If Nikki had to choose, her ideal man is tall and light-eyed. She alsolikes a man who is enterprising and knows what he wants with his life. Inaddition, he must be confident, because otherwise Nikki will waltz oversomeone.

Image © Tom Cornelissen

Petra

The 26-year-old ambitious Petra was a producer in the music industry until thecorona crisis, but two years ago she took a job at the Zuidas as a financerecruiter. One of her dreams is to make a documentary about her grandmother’slifestyle, because she lives in Suriname with a native Indian tribe. She wouldlike to capture this before this culture disappears due to outside influences.Petra thinks she’s real’ wife material ‘ _is and falls in appearance ratherfor a _laidback beach boy than for the popular Amsterdam technoboy.

Also read:

These mothers are looking for love for their son in Matched by Mom

Image © Tom Cornelissen

Romy

The 24-year-old Romy from Nijmegen can best be described as an enthusiastic,exuberant and sporty girl. She doesn’t fall in love easily and doesn’t want tosettle down until someone really adds to her life. Romy does not want tocommit to a fixed type, but is very critical. She finds it important that herfuture partner is sporty, ambitious, but also loyal and yet a little bitcrazy. Romy later sees herself living together with her partner and preferablywith a dog, on the beach and preferably in Haarlem.

roshita

The 24-year-old Roshita lives in Amstelveen and wants nothing more than tostart a large family. She loves children very much and it will come as nosurprise that Roshita has a babysitting job and works as a nanny in a hotel.When it comes to love, things are a little less smooth in her life. Roshitalikes men who are taller than she is. Or as she puts it with a smile: “When Iget married I just want to be able to wear heels.” Oh and that sarcastichumor? She must also be able to appreciate her future husband.

Image © Tom Cornelissen

rosemary

The Groningen Rosemary is 23 years old and very confident, but certainly notarrogant. She is also sweet and social. She is a real sales tiger and worksnext to her regular job at the local radio. She thinks it is very importantthat her dream man can get along well with her friends and that he isadventurous and sporty. She thinks the click with him is the most important,but it is a bonus if the in-laws are also nice.

Image © Tom Cornelissen

Shannan

The 24-year-old Shanna from Zoetermeer is a cheerful, spontaneous but alsoslightly stubborn and chaotic lady. Although she can be a bit chaotic in dailylife, in the workplace she is in complete control and she is very ambitious.Shanna likes to dance and goes to parties. You can also wake her up for a walkin nature or game night with friends. Shanna comes from a warm family andhopes to build just as good a bond with potential in-laws. She is looking foran introverted boy for whom family is also important.

Image © Tom Cornelissen

sibel

The 27-year-old Sibel lives in Utrecht, is in her graduation phase and has abusiness in sales. Sibel doesn’t like looks at all, as long as a man is(emotionally) intelligent and there are no awkward silences – she hates that.It is important that her future husband is accepted by her parents, especiallyby her father, because she is a father’s boy! Sibel herself also finds itimportant to have a good relationship with her in-laws and especially hermother-in-law. Starting a family is a dream for her.

The fifteenth season of Dear Singers got off to a hesitant start. At leastif we look at the ratings. On evenings when no football matches are broadcast,the program still attracts more than a million viewers. A hit like Takes toolong (Davina Michelle) or Through the wind (Miss Montreal) is not in ityet, but Jaap Reesema is successful with his interpretation of Nielsons_Gray_.

By Michiel Vos

The season is almost coming to an end. Tonight, in addition to Reesema andNielson, we will also see Claudia de Breij, Sarita Lorena, Roxeanne Hazes andBlanks interpret the music of Ferdi Bolland. The season ends next week with aduet episode. Although the program does not manage to attract a millionviewers every week, this viewing figure limit was broken again with the pasttwo broadcasts. And on YouTube, the individual performances are also viewedhundreds of thousands of times.

For the time being, Reesema has emerged as the most successful participant. Inthe fourth week of Dear Singers the artists decide which Nielson song theywant to sing. Reesema goes for the number Gray which Nielson released underhis own name Niels Littooij, on an EP he wrote after the death of his cousinand good friend.

Reesema’s version has been listened to more than 1.6 million times on Spotifywithin a few weeks, more than three times as often as the original so far.Reesema is currently in 27th place on the list of the most listened to songson Spotify in the Netherlands. The performance has been viewed nearly 600,000times on YouTube.

Reesema’s version of Gray scores a lot better than the other songs that havebeen featured in the program so far. In second place is Roxeanne Hazes, whowon the number in the second week Don ‘t Stop from Blanks edited to_Tonight_. The song has been listened to over 465,000 times on Spotify andover 200,000 times on YouTube. Nielson also has a success with his performancein the ‘Blanks week’. He translated New Rules from Dua Lipa to _Game rules_which was streamed almost 400,000 times on Spotify and about 170,000 times onYouTube.

Unfortunately this content cannot be displayedWe do not have permission forthe necessary cookies. Please accept the cookies to view this content.

Wijzig cookie-instellingen

Davina Michelle still has the biggest hit

Davina Michelle still has the biggest hit from the program to her name. In2018 she released the song Takes too long by Glen Faria. The song was infirst place in the Dutch Top 40 for eleven weeks and has now collected morethan 106 million streams on Spotify.

Rolf Sanchez and Emma Heesters ended up in second place a year later withtheir hit Pa Olvidarte , which has been listened to 70 million times onSpotify. The most recent big hit from the program dates from 2020. Then MissMontreal sang the song Through the wind from Stef Bos to third place in theTop 40, with 40 million streams to date.

Reesema is already well on its way to surpassing last season’s biggest hit.Then stayed Hijo De La Luna , performed by Karsu, stabbing at 2.3 millionstreams. With the 83,000 streams Reesema is now raking in a day, it seems onlya matter of time before he exceeds that number.

They are very happy, the young family with whom Sea of ​​time opens, that’sfor sure. There are coarse-grained home video images of the laughing coupleJohanna and Lucas (Sallie Harmsen and Reinout Scholten van Aschat) and theircheerful angelic son Kai. And we see them sailing across the Atlantic, bathedin the sun, surrounded by glistening water. Lucas emphasizes it again as thethree of them lie together on the deck as the sun sets: “And now press pauseand then this forever.” But then it turns out that five-year-old Kai hasdisappeared in the middle of the sea.

The 42nd edition of the Dutch Film Festival kicks off on Wednesday eveningwith Sea of ​​time. It is one of 88 feature films, documentaries and shortfilms that will premiere in Utrecht in the next ten days. The festive openingevening will again take place this year in the Stadsschouwburg, after theKinepolis Jaarbeurs was twice diverted due to corona measures.

Death and mourning

The subject of Sea of ​​time , coping with the death of a child, sets thetone for the four long fiction premieres at the festival. Death and mourningare also central to the dramas narcosis , bo and femi. “You have to goto the short films this year for cheerfulness,” said programmer Claire vanDaal.

Out of four treats Sea of ​​time , loosely based on a true story, thesubject being the most straightforward. Shortly after the idyllic openingmoments, Flashforwards look ahead to a prickly meeting between the coupleforty years later. But the first part of the film is set in the early eightiesand is mainly about how their relationship cracks in the period immediatelyafter their immense loss.

They are well-acted, but sometimes somewhat perfunctory and literal scenesthat depict various stages of mourning. There is denial: once back in theNetherlands, Johanna regularly thinks she sees Kai and wanders along the coastof Zeeland at night. There is apathy, portrayed with staring at swirling fluffon which the sunlight reflects. And there’s anger: like when Lucas seesanother father with child and rambles on with a hammer during his job indemolition. What doesn’t help is that the music tells the viewer what to feel.

Only in the second part do the characters seem to become more flesh and blood.Is it possible that the main characters in that part are closer to directorTheu Boermans (1950) himself? Forty years after the fatal sailing trip, Lucas,now played by Gijs Scholten van Aschat, turns out to be a successful theaterdirector. He is working on a farewell performance full of dance, a tribute tohis son who died young.

Boermans himself was artistic director of De Theatercompagnie and HetNationale Toneel for many years and has directed dozens of major (repertoire)performances. He is also the man behind major productions like Soldier ofOrange. As a film and TV director he made Golden Calf winners 1000 Rosen(1994) and series The Partisans (1995). Eleven years later he directed TVdrama The chosen one.

A little more freedom

Johanna (Elsie de Brauw) has also continued with her life in the film, but ina completely different way. Gijs Scholten van Aschat and De Brauw seem to get(or take) a little more freedom with the material. There are occasionalhesitations in conversations, emotions feel a little less like an illustrationand more like a spontaneous reaction.

And while the first part, despite the violent events, could sometimes havebeen shorter, in the second part it is almost a shame that the conflict thatarises between the former couple is not worked out a little deeper and longer.She doesn’t want painful memories to be publicly stirred up.

The makers choose to bring lightness to the story thanks to a twist halfwaythrough the film. In the end it produces a crowd-friendly, well-acted andemotionally chopping, but little groundbreaking opening. For the latter youhave to be at other mourning dramas in Utrecht this year.

Bill Maher didn’t really have time to do another show. After all, he’s beenhost and executive producer of HBO’s Real Time With Bill Maher for nearly 20years. And like he tells Yahoo! Entertainment, he works very hard on it.

“It takes a lot out of me every week,” Maher says.

Yet here he is, six months into his brand new podcast called _Club Random_which is recorded in “a little nightclub” that Maher built on his propertythat he also calls Club Random, and the concept is pretty simple.

“I do love to get high at Club Random,” Maher reveals. “And I love to talk tomy friends with a drink and a joint. And if you want to do that, and have somereally interesting people come over here, I’d be happy to do that.”

But when it comes to prepping for the show or the interviews, which haveincluded names like William Shatner, Quentin Tarantino, Leslie Jones, BellaThorne, Mike Tyson and Woody Harrelson, Maher is not having any of it.

“I’m just gonna show up. I barely know who the guest is. I’m not gonna preparefor it like I do for my show. It’s not that kind of show,” Maher explains.“Why would I do another kind of show unless it was very different? And it’svery different, except it’s still me. It’s just me that you would see out of asuit, smoking pot. The real me, in other words.”

One of those interviews he showed up for recently was with NFL quarterbackAaron Rodgers, who came under fire in 2021 after he claimed to have been“immunized” ahead of the football season when he instead underwent alternatetreatments. Maher says he reached out to Rodgers after hearing a lot of whathe had to say about vaccines.

“We kind of bonded over the fact that both of us believe in medical autonomyin a way that a lot of the country has dragged its feet on and, I think, a lotof the country is ignorant about it. I think people are just scared abouttheir health so they think there’s this priesthood in white lab coats who haveall the answers.”

Story continues

Maher went on to say that neither of them are an “anti-vaxxer” but that itshould be everyone’s personal decision.

“So we kind of bonded over that,” Maher says. “We talked about a millionthings, but certainly I admire his guts for standing by what he trulybelieves. Which is pretty much what I believe.”

Maher, whose TV career dates as far back as 1993 with Politically> Incorrect , had been hesitant to get into podcasting for quite a while. Not> only because he already had a show, but because he really didn’t understand> the appeal of the medium.

“It’s exactly like radio and radio was the most unhip thing in the world,”Maher says. “First of all, it blows my mind that the attention span of Americais either six seconds or three hours, and apparently nothing in between.”

Maher says that he comes from a world where you’re supposed to leave peoplewanting more, which is not the case with podcasts. Although he has come toappreciate the lack of a time limit, and has gone as long as two hours withsome of his guests.

“It’s amazing to me. I don’t know where these people are listening or wherethey get this time. But I’m happy because you know, I come from a radio line,my father was in radio,” Maher says. “I was sad to see radio go away and nowit’s kinda come back, but through the podcast.”

The host, who has made a name for himself in the political space through theyears, said that the conversations on his podcast will sometimes go in thatdirection but that he doesn’t push for it.

But, with another election cycle on the horizon, Maher is as energized as everabout covering politics. Even with the levels of divisiveness and vitriol thathave risen in the world.

“The messier it is, the better for me. The worse it is for the country, thebetter for me,” Maher says. “We’re doing better than ever because I feel likemost of the media is locked into their bubbles. Even comedy media, you know,they just pander to the people who are in the audience who are just gonna claplike seals at the things they already think they know and want to hear back.”

Maher said that while he does agree with points of view from other shows, hehas been much more willing to make fun of the left than he used to because, ashe says, “they’re a lot crazier than they used to be. ”

“Nobody else seems to be doing that,” Maher says about making fun of the left.“So I love having that all to myself. You guys want to pander? good. I’ll justkeep doing what I do. I think I’m generally left of center, but I thinkthere’s a lot. I go where the comedy is.”

He acknowledges that it is a very dangerous time in America and that he“frets” for what the country will go through at the next election.

“I don’t know what’s gonna happen in this country. So it’s a perilous time.But you know, I’m loving covering it. It’s not boring.”

Watch the trailer:

New episodes of ** Club Random drop weekly wherever you get your> podcasts, and also on YouTube .**

It is exceptional: a woman who collects Dutch old masters. Baukje Coenen,specialist in seventeenth-century painting at Sotheby’s in Amsterdam, cannoteasily recall another example. “Ty Scheumann was a particularly tough lady,”says Coenen about the American collector. Early next year, Sotheby’s willauction its collection in New York, which mainly consists of paintings made inAmsterdam.

That the auction house proposed a preview of the so-called _single owner sale_at a historic location in Amsterdam was one of the reasons for the Scheumannheirs to award the sale to Sotheby’s, says Coenen. For security reasons, theauction house does not want to be published in the newspaper where the privatepreview is being held. From Thursday to Sunday, the Scheumann collection canthen be viewed by appointment at the Sotheby’s office in the capital.

Ty Scheumann, art collector and horse breeder. Photo Sotheby’s

Theiline “Ty” Scheumann died in December at age 90 in her hometown ofBellevue, Washington. She left a still life with oysters by Willem Claesz.Heda at the Seattle Art Museum, an institution in her hometown for which shedid board work. Twelve other works from her collection – still lifes andforest, city and seascapes by well-known old masters such as Aert van derNeer, Frans van Mieris and Jacob van Ruisdael – will be presented on January26 in New York as The Ty Scheumann Collection be auctioned. The auctionhouse estimates the proceeds at at least eight million euros.

trucks

Ty Scheumann came from a good family. Her grandfather William Pigott founded atrucking company in Seattle in 1905 which, under the leadership of her fatherPaul, grew into multinational Paccar, one of the largest manufacturers ofheavy trucks in the world – the Dutch DAF is one of the company’s brands. Herstepfather John McCone was director of the CIA’s foreign security serviceduring the Cold War in the early 1960s.

Ty Scheumann himself also stood her ground, according to the obituaries thatappeared in American media at the beginning of this year. She had fivechildren with her first husband, who died young. She loved the outdoors: sheenjoyed hunting and fishing, played tennis and golf, rode horses, had apilot’s license and, at the age of 69, was still crossing the North Atlanticby sailboat. She also kept many pets, including the hippo Gertrude.

Frans van Mieris the Elder, A young woman seals a letter, 1667 PhotosSotheby’s

In the equestrian world Ty Scheumann was known as a breeder and trader. Shefounded the Grousemont Farms stud. There she bred several racehorses ofinternational caliber that sometimes changed hands for millions of dollars.Her most famous racehorse, Noble Nashua, won several major American races andwas sold to a syndicate of breeders for $11 million in 1981.

The collection of Dutch old masters belonging to friends of her parents, Edand Hannah Carter (bequeathed to the LACMA in Los Angeles in 2009), inspiredTy Scheumann to start collecting herself. Baukje Coenen: „Scheumann onlywanted Dutch old masters of the highest quality. An increasingly complicatedtask, because those paintings are coming onto the market less and less andoften go to museums.”

Top piece from the Scheumann collection is a genre painting by Frans vanMieris the Elder, a small A4 panel completed around 1667 of a young woman whowants to seal a letter with a touch-up pen. Van Mieris was a fine painter whowanted to represent reality as accurately as possible. He did so in a detailedstyle, reportedly sometimes using brushes with only one hair. The portrait ofthe young woman has a target price of 1.5 to 2 million euros.

forest landscape

Five other paintings received target prices of around a million fromSotheby’s. A small forest landscape by Jacob van Ruisdael, a forest view byAert van der Neer and an Amsterdam canal by Jan van der Heyden should eachyield 1 to 1.5 million. A painting with the whaler Prince Willem by theRotterdam maritime painter Lieve Verschuier and a small, but fine seascape byWillem van de Velde the Younger were both estimated at 800,000 to 1.2 million.

In addition to old masters and horses, Ty Scheumann was passionate aboutAmerican football. According to the Seattle Times On the weekend before herdeath, she was still watching the television coverage of one of her favoriteteams, the Seattle Seahawks. They lost 20-10 to the Los Angeles Rams.

The Ty Scheumann Collection can be viewed from Thurs to Sun by appointmentat the Sotheby’s auction house in Amsterdam. Info: amsterdam@sothebys.com and