A year after De Kribbebijter took the first step away from the traditional, folksy Dutch Jordaan-films, Jonge Harten provided a much more radical break with the cinema of the past, pleading for a whole new style of filmmaking altogether.
When her in-laws threaten to separate free-spirited actress Maja from her infant child, she flees to the Dutch island of Texel, where she severely disrupts the established romantic order in a group of young, attractive Amsterdam students who camp there.
From the deliberately fake-looking set of the in-laws house, where dialogues are corny and acting is stiff and wooden, the action soon moves to the real location of Texel, exhibiting a complete change of style: the camera moves freely through the landscape and the acting becomes as natural as it can get, at times coming across as improvised. A rather brilliant symbolic break with the past.
Charles Huguenot van der Linden explained: 'We didn't want to make another De Jantjes, Bleeke Bet or Malle gevallen. We wanted less chat, no theatricality and less drama. In short, a film about real life.'
In its desperate struggle against mainstream cinema through location shooting, experimental cutting and natural acting, Jonge Harten almost seems a prognostication of sorts, predicting the French New Wave that would bloom decades later.
When the film premiered at the Venice Film Festival of 1936, Italian newspapers were raving:
"With 'Cuori Giovanni', the Netherlands have delivered one of the most beautiful films of this 4th Biennale. The story is so full of pristine charm that the audience, overwhelmed by the joyous and healthy accomplishments of this work, felt compelled to applaud and cheer for the directors and cast." (De Popolo d'Italia)
"Of the three films shown today, 'Jonge Harten' is the most interesting and at the same time the most modest. It is most important that the Biennale opens her gates to such important endeavours, instead of the banalities of films made for purely commercial reasons..." (La Stampa)
After the Venice success Jonge Harten went on to garner rave reviews and... eventually be forgotten. As most Dutch pre-war films unfortunately are.
This important yet underseen film is now available on Youtube (with watermarks) and EYE Film Player for free, without subtitles.
