OBSESSIONS

Hitchcock, Scorsese and sex. Made In Holland.

A curious cultural hybrid where late-’60s Dutch exploitation and classic Hollywood collide in a provocative and revolutionary fashion! Of big importance: the film was co-written by a young Martin Scorsese, who shot the legendary erotic dream sequence in Amsterdam for WHO’S THAT KNOCKING AT MY DOOR that same year! On top of that, it’s scored by frequent Hitchcock composer Bernard Herrmann (PSYCHO, NORTH BY NORTHWEST, VERTIGO, TAXI DRIVER.)

This gritty psychedelic mystery -- notably the first Dutch film shot in English -- starts savagely. When a painting of van Gogh falls from a wall and exposes a makeshift peephole, student Nils (played by the film’s German producer Dieter Geissler) becomes an unwitting witness to a gruesome sex crime next door. When his enterprising journalist fiancée (Alexandra Stewart, DAY FOR NIGHT) tells him of a murder report she’s writing, he naturally wonders if it’s the very same killing...

This classic exploitationer was the birth of Holland’s auteur cinema, inspiring filmmakers such as Paul Verhoeven to re-start their industry. Originally distributed in over 100 countries, the film remained unreleased in the U.S. -- until now.