89. Krabbé is looking for...
I.
Jeroen Krabbé’s birthday is being celebrated in style. It is, after all, a milestone: eighty. A few years ago, he came up with the idea of dividing his life so far into eight paintings, one for each decade. The works are on display and formed the basis for a biography of his life: Krabbé. A Biographical Portrait. I finished reading it this week and, during a book-signing at Broese, pitched my alternative title to Krabbé: Krabbé in Search of… Himself.
I do think we in the Netherlands could be a bit prouder of people like Jeroen Krabbé, who always gets a lot of criticism here. The man starred in Soldier of Orange, became a Bond villain in The Living Daylights, starred opposite Harrison Ford in The Fugitive, directed Left Luggage and has always remained a student of the arts. In recent years, he has been passionately guiding TV viewers through the lives of his great role models: Vincent van Gogh, Pablo Picasso and Paul Gauguin. The series Krabbé is looking for… Matisse.
In the book, biographer Rosa Koelemeijer describes Krabbé’s life in much the same way. Not from the first-person perspective, but in the third person. “I was interested in his memories of certain events in his life, with all the contradictions, omissions and personal interpretations that go with them,” writes Koelemeijer in the book’s preface. “It therefore goes without saying that the ‘truth’ in this book is a flexible concept.”
In broad strokes, you read about the highs and lows of his life, but also about luxurious getaways and the many celebrities he knows – Krabbé is, after all, a proud man. What struck me was Krabbé’s Jewish history, which runs like a thread through the book. At the same time, the biography erects a monument to his mother Greet, who had lost a large part of her family in the Holocaust and was never able to talk about it properly. It became a trauma that she passed on to her son, who spent his whole life exploring it and trying to come to terms with it. That is what drives Jeroen Krabbé; he is able to express it through painting and acting.
II.
Many have undergone a ‘Twitterectomy’ and moved to Bluesky, wrote Nick Cave this week in his Red Hand Files. I, too, have all but made the switch. My X account is locked and remains in read-only mode for as long as I convince myself that I need to be there for work from time to time.
Since Elon Musk took over Twitter, there have been frequent resurgences on similar platforms, but this time the (Dutch) exodus seems larger and more promising than ever. There are good reasons for this. The journalism platform Villamedia (which left X this week) summarises the main points: “In our view, the core values of independent journalism and democratic decision-making are no longer compatible with the way in which X is managed, used and abused by its owner.”
For now, Bluesky feels both like a warm bath and something completely different. Tech columnist Kevin Roose describes it rather well: “After an hour of scrolling on Bluesky, I felt something I haven’t felt on social media for a long time: liberation. Liberation from Elon Musk and his annoying mission to turn X into a right-wing echo chamber where you can’t escape him and his friends. But also free from Threads and its stifling algorithm, which suppresses news and discussions in favour of meaningless engagement bait. And free from my bad habit, exacerbated by obsessive Twitter use, of packaging my thoughts for an audience of strangers with opinions.”
A golden find by Bluesky for rapid growth are its so-called starter packs. People can create lists of people, which others can follow all at once with the click of a button. This instantly gives you a lively timeline where a lot is happening. The internet is now bursting with guides on how to get started with Twitter, but in a fun way, for example this one from NU.nl.
III.
The Substance is one of this year’s blockbuster films, about the quest for eternal youth and the human imperfection of striving for perfection. Ten years ago, director Coralie Fargeat made a short film based on the same idea, called Reality+.
Instead of a syringe that allows the user to create a new, younger version of themselves, the main character in this film has a chip implanted in his neck. This allows him to choose an appearance (an avatar like the ones you create in games) which he can then maintain for up to twelve hours at a time, before reverting to his old self until the avatar is recharged for the next session.
This short film also presents that concept convincingly. There’s a shot in it that immediately brings The Substance to mind, although the ending is very different and Reality+ doesn’t go nearly as far in its exploration. The great thing is: it’s available legally and for free on YouTube.
---PS.
Blogger Manuel Moreale may well have a Bluesky account, but he has no intention of doing much with it. Most social media platforms are, in his view, doing their utmost to “exploit every one of our psychological weaknesses to keep us hooked”. Hard to argue with that. He describes his love for RSS feeds and the ‘mark all as read’ button.
Laurens Verhagen delved into the wonderful world of virtual fires for de Volkskrant and listed the five best. With descriptions such as: ‘A fire without any frills, the Opel of fires’. Glad the paper has made room for this.
News from The Simpsons: Pamela Hayden is stepping down. After 35 years and more than 700 episodes as the voice of Milhouse, Rod and Todd, among others, the 70-year-old voice actress is moving on to other things. The creators of The Simpsons will soon be looking for a replacement (and have therefore decided not to have her voice replicated by AI from now on, hooray!).
---Some great music releases this week. Starting with news from André 3000, who is continuing with his experimental flute music and has released a track over 26 minutes long. The title is:* IV. Something Is Happening And I May Not Fully Understand But I’m Happy To Stand For The Understanding (Awakening)*. Brilliant!
Michael Kiwanuka is back with another lovely album to help you slip comfortably into winter: Small Changes. Produced by Dangermouse and Inflo (SAULT), by the way.
But the biggest surprise for me was the album We Can’t Be Wrong by I Believe In My Mess, consisting of the Amsterdam duo Geert de Groot and Frank van Praag. All sorts of musical styles are in the mix, and it sounds absolutely brilliant.
---Writer Rob van Essen gave a literary sermon at the Stevenskerk in Nijmegen. He has now posted the text online as a PDF file, an atypical sermon of 22 pages, which aims to teach the listener/reader nothing. Yet he does touch on a few points. Literature is dead, says Van Essen. “How do I know that? I was at the funeral.”
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