Little Tony (Dutch: Kleine Teun) is a 1998 Dutch comedy drama film written and directed by Alex van Warmerdam, based on his play Kleine Teun. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival.
Contents
Plot
Farmer Brand can't read and he is quite happy with that. His wife, Keet, who has to read him all the subtitles on the television, isn't. She decides to hire a teacher for him. This is a beautiful young woman, called Lena. Brand falls in love with her. To his puzzlement and dismay Keet encourages him, because as she says she doesn't want a husband with another woman in his head. She even goes so far as to claim, she's just Brand's sister. She also wants Lena to give Brand and her a son. The love between Brand and Lena does not grow stale as Keet hoped after the birth of little Tony. Keet, who is a barren herself decides Lena has to be eliminated with the arrival of little Tony between them.
Cast
Alex van Warmerdam as Brand
Annet Malherbe as Keet
Ariane Schluter as Lena
Sebastiaan te Wierik as Kleine Teun
Aat Ceelen as Butcher
Beppe Costa as Verger
Joeri Keyzers as Baby
Rick Keyzers as Baby
Maike Meijer as Young Mother
Thomas Rap as Man at strawheap
Hanneke Riemer as Friend of Lena
Dolf Sauter as Priest
Tomas te Wierk as Teun
Houk van Warmerdam as Acolyte
Marc van Warmerdam as Neighbour
Mees van Warmerdam as Acolyte
Reception
In a review for Variety, David Rooney called the film "[a] droll comedy", but also mentioning that its "both blacker and more tightly focused".