classicalsteve In the Netherlands, this film is simply called "Michiel de Ruyter", but in English-speaking countries it's called "The Admiral". If you grew up in the Netherlands, you'd know the name Michiel de Ruyter just like the British revere Horatio Nelson and Americans know of John Paul Jones. (Jones probably is one of those figures who ends up in his own colored box in American high school history text books.) Three statues plus a marble tomb exist in the Netherlands honoring Michiel de Ruyter which is a large number considering the size of the country. He is probably the most famous naval admiral in the history of the Netherlands, and probably ranks among the top half dozen in the history of Europe and America. A pretty good case could be made he was the greatest prior to the 20th century. He is a figure Americans could admire particularly because he was not of noble birth and seemed to have decided lack of selfishness, uncommon in a period where advancement through connections and not always achievement was the rule and not the exception.The film begins with the death of Martaan Tromp during the Battle of Scheveningen, known by the British as the Battle of Texel. (Despite popular rumor, I don't think Martaan Tromp is an ancestor of Donald Trump, considering the latter's name probably comes from Germany, not the Netherlands, spelled Drumpf, and the family respelled their name to "Trump" when they came to America in the 19th century.) De Ruyter (Frank Lammers in an outstanding performance) is given an offer from the current grand pensionary (sort of like a prime minister) of the Netherlands, Johan de Witt (Barry Atsma), to become the new admiral of the Dutch fleet. De Ruyter declines citing his unfitness for the task. However, when it appears the English will attack again, de Witt asks de Ruyter to reconsider, persuading him by inviting him and his wife to dinner.During the film, other events are taking place in politics aside from the naval battles. This was both the film's strength and weakness. Particularly for Americans, this history is unfamiliar. The Netherlands was a young republic in the wake of having pushed Catholic-Spanish rule out of Spain by 1648. The seven provinces were supposed to be ruled by an elected stadtholder (a governor or prince); some of the provinces who were ruled by princes who inherited their positions rather than being elected. William of Orange (Egbert-Jan Weber) ruled as stadholder over five of the seven provinces. These statholders then met in the Hague with other members of their parliament to decide matters of state. Two opposing factions emerged vying for control of the government: Republicans (desiring non-noble house or non-monarchical rule) and Orangists, those who favored rule by monarchy, which also implied non-elected leaders like a king. The latter faction desired William of Orange (who would later become King William of the William and Mary co-monarchy of England) to become King of the Netherlands.While Michiel de Ruyter is trying to defend his nation from the English navy which had been attacking Dutch merchant vessels since circa 1650, the country was in a lot of political turmoil. The film juxtaposes two pieces of history: the Anglo-Dutch Wars of the mid-17th century and the political turmoil within the Netherlands. The only issue is that for those unfamiliar with the history this could get confusing. The Netherlands was attacked by ground forces from Germany which the Netherlands was unprepared to defend against. Johan de Witt and his brother Cornelis de Witt were scape-goated for the attacks and also blamed for a possibly secret plot to assassinate William of Orange.Still, this is a fantastic film about a period of European history which doesn't get a lot of cinematic treatment outside of the Netherlands. All the acting is superb. The portrayal of King Charles II of England is a bit over-the-top, but if there has to be a major baddie of the film, he's it. The other character, William of Orange, is shown to grow from a rather snooty young nobleman into a concerned statesman. He is at first worried about his own reputation as he feels there are unfair rumors about him. Towards the end we see him rise above his own political well-being and become more centered on the fate of his nation. He will eventually become King William III of England, a co-monarch with his wife Queen Mary II, the only co-monarchy in the history of England/Britain, and regarded as one of the finest reigns in the history of Europe.

k-thomas I was interested in to see this movie Admiral, because i come from Chatham in England. In 1967 on the 300th anniversary of the Battle Of Chatham a Dutch band visit Chatham and tour some our schools. We were taught about the battle. The film itself, i thought was very good. I disagree one reviewer, that us English were portrayed as dumb. It showed that we were arrogant. Our politician Samuel Pepys warned England and not underrated the Dutch. It showed that, the Dutch took a gamble. If they had lost, Holland would be open to invasion by England, France and Germany. It is good that two versions have been made, so younger viewers can watch it. Dutch and English. Nice to see some good actors from Holland. Frank Lammers, Dereck Le Lint, Barry Atsma and of course Rutger Hauer in a small role and English Actor, Charles Dance as King Charles 11. I hope at this movie will be shown at least on English television.

Motherspot This movie is Fabulously awful.The acting is so bad.The storyline lacks any depth and the characters off the historical figures are utterly flat.I am always amazed how it is possible that a director does not see these things.I mean it's a historical drama but the language spoken is utterly 21th century dutch.The main character Frank Lammers's character as Michiel de Ruyter is totally superficial lacking any passion and shows us nothing as to what kind of man the protagonist was.Of course it's a dutch movie so we will be seeing a tit or two flying about for no purpose whatsoever. Do they ever learn in this country?....the slow-mo shots of f.i the sea-wars get so boring becourse they are merely gimmicks to show off what's possible with cinematography nowadays but..a movie like this is fun to watch...you''l roll of y'r couch laughing....maybe that's the power of this monster?

Dylan - GREAT movie, i am dutch so that might be one of the reasons. I am also a huge fan of history movies you really get the feeling you are on one of those old huge battle ships from the 16th century and you will get a good image of this hero "Michiel the Ruyter" which served and fought many battles for our country against the English and France. If u like History movies whit naval battles you should certainly see this movie. Great cast whit very talented people who play their roles very good. Also the filming locations where very nice on of them is filmed in my home town. Credits to Roel Reiné which made this great movie possible. I hope to see more of this kind of movies in the future.