"Vuur, liefde en vitaminen" is a forgotten black-and-white comedy from the Dutch-speaking north of Belgium. The comedy deals with a middle-aged firefighter who commits an act of bravery and, by doing so, earns the gratitude of an equally middle-aged lady. Much impressed by his manly courage and resolve, she invites him to spend the weekend at her father's house, which turns out to be a veritable nest of eccentrics. (The father, for instance, is a noble general who went ga-ga after being thrown by his horse.) Our firefighter is a widower, the lady is a widow : so could romance blossom ?
The movie is a pleasant light-weight comedy meant for a not-too-sophisticated audience. Although part of the action is set in an environment of firefighters, there's an agreeable sense of fun - we're far removed from a "To save or to perish" drama. The tone is set early on in the movie, when firemen rush to a fire somewhere in Antwerp. (Quite a lot of historically interesting detail, here.) A house is blazing ; in front of the house a panicked, despairing woman screams "Hippolite ! Hippolite !" Without a moment's hesitation, one of the senior firemen rushes into the burning building. Minutes later he returns safely, having rescued "Hippolite" from a certain death. We're talking about a large parrot in a cage...
Another example : our protagonist, who is father to a lovely daughter, receives a visit from one of his younger colleagues. The young man comes asking for the daughter's hand in marriage. The following piece of dialogue ensues : "So what do you do for a living ?" "Well, you know me, sergeant, I'm a fireman." "But is it a solid, steady job ? What are you going to do if there are no more fires ?"
It's a movie without pretensions : it tries to amuse and entertain, period. Sadly it contains some old, old stereotypes straight out of provincial theatre ; just watch that English butler. And our old general, as a "senex bis puer", is not exactly a nuanced creation... However, I'm giving "Vuur, liefde en vitaminen" six stars, mainly because of the sly "Hamlet" parody in the second half. It redeems a lot.
The movie is a pleasant light-weight comedy meant for a not-too-sophisticated audience. Although part of the action is set in an environment of firefighters, there's an agreeable sense of fun - we're far removed from a "To save or to perish" drama. The tone is set early on in the movie, when firemen rush to a fire somewhere in Antwerp. (Quite a lot of historically interesting detail, here.) A house is blazing ; in front of the house a panicked, despairing woman screams "Hippolite ! Hippolite !" Without a moment's hesitation, one of the senior firemen rushes into the burning building. Minutes later he returns safely, having rescued "Hippolite" from a certain death. We're talking about a large parrot in a cage...
Another example : our protagonist, who is father to a lovely daughter, receives a visit from one of his younger colleagues. The young man comes asking for the daughter's hand in marriage. The following piece of dialogue ensues : "So what do you do for a living ?" "Well, you know me, sergeant, I'm a fireman." "But is it a solid, steady job ? What are you going to do if there are no more fires ?"
It's a movie without pretensions : it tries to amuse and entertain, period. Sadly it contains some old, old stereotypes straight out of provincial theatre ; just watch that English butler. And our old general, as a "senex bis puer", is not exactly a nuanced creation... However, I'm giving "Vuur, liefde en vitaminen" six stars, mainly because of the sly "Hamlet" parody in the second half. It redeems a lot.
