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Ard Vijn

Tomatometer-approved critic
Biography:

Ard Vijn joined ScreenAnarchy.com in November 2006 (it was named differently then), promising its founder Todd Brown to share information about the Dutch film industry. Instead, he focuses on cinema from all over the world, and Japanese animation in particular. A few times each year, he gets the chance to score some real scoops, most often during the International Film Festival Rotterdam. He juggles his time between his wife and two sons, a career as an IT-landscape manager in a big oil company, writing about films, and actually seeing films.

Publications:

Reviews

Movies TV Shows
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023) 71% 7/10 EDIT “Sure, you can nitpick this one to death and argue endlessly over plotholes. That's actually true of all Indy films by the way, back to Raiders even. But Ford is Jones in this one, whether you count it as Mangold's fan-fiction or not. And he is great. ” – ScreenAnarchy Oct 17, 2025 Full Review Dune: Part Two (2024) 92% 7.5/10 EDIT “His ending deviates from the book, but I expect its purpose is to crash us all, all the harder, into film three in a few years. And that's fine. I'll be waiting. This one was worth the wait, I'm sure the third one will be worth the wait too.” – ScreenAnarchy Oct 17, 2025 Full Review Nosferatu (2024) 85% 6.5/10 EDIT “I saw the film at an IMAX and it wasn't darkness I saw, but the silver sheen of pale moonlight. This will be a devil to watch at home, for sure, peering at the screen through slitted eyes, but in a cinema it was visually powerful.” – ScreenAnarchy Oct 17, 2025 Full Review Lilim (2025) 8/10 EDIT “For those expecting some deep, "elevated" horror, Lilim is not it. It is a pretty basic shock-fest and its jumpscares will be be expected by experienced horror viewers. But as shockers go it's a very, very solid one, looking polished.” – ScreenAnarchy Oct 17, 2025 Full Review HalloWiebe (2025) 7/10 EDIT “Jasper ten Hoor and Ivan Hidayat do not aim high, but they do not miss either. Hallowiebe is kiddie-oriented fun and the fact that they manage to make their brand of humor work in this format bodes well for the future.” – ScreenAnarchy Oct 17, 2025 Full Review Christy (2025) 100% 8/10 EDIT “Brendan Canty's film is emotional rather than sentimental, and the occasional rays of sunshine feel wholly earned. Christy won a youth-jury prize in Berlin and that's not a surprise.” – ScreenAnarchy Oct 17, 2025 Full Review How to Make a Killing (2024) 7.5/10 EDIT “Poelvoorde is a delight to watch, often laugh-out-loud funny, effortlessly switching between the straight guy and clown when needed. It's a French slapstick comedy with corpses, a bit too sweet to become a classic, but still with a pleasant acid edge. ” – ScreenAnarchy Oct 17, 2025 Full Review Mi bestia (2024) 6.5/10 EDIT “(...) the setting is special, the inner animal Mila encounters is refreshingly different, and the film manages to defy its obvious low budget.” – ScreenAnarchy Mar 12, 2025 Full Review Memoir of a Snail (2024) 95% 8/10 EDIT “The film's saving grace is not actually its dour protagonist Grace, nor its stellar animation, but the constant stream of caustic satire and adult jokes which are peppered throughout.” – ScreenAnarchy Mar 12, 2025 Full Review I'm Still Here (2024) 97% 9/10 EDIT “One of the most powerful films I have seen on the subject, treating it with respect and intimacy, I'm Still Here is a punch to the gut, but a good one. ” – ScreenAnarchy Mar 12, 2025 Full Review 13 Bombs (2023) 50% 3/5 EDIT “What you do get is a solid piece of entertainment with spectacular use of locations, likeable leads and surprisingly grey-shaded villains. It's not The Raid, it's like several Raids stitched together in a way that doesn't quite gel. Still, I had fun.” – ScreenAnarchy Nov 17, 2024 Full Review Eternal (2023) 3/5 EDIT “The youth jury did not find it trite, or boring, or overly sentimental. They appreciated seeing a film about environmental issues, showing an urgency to act even if that brings heartbreaking sacrifices with it. It wasn't for me, but it might be for you. ” – ScreenAnarchy Nov 17, 2024 Full Review Animale (2024) 94% 7/10 EDIT “Animal left this viewer with an unbalanced and unsatisfied feeling. It's this what prevented me from outright loving this film, and I can't quite tell you all why because I'd have to totally spoil the film. Which, to its credit, would still be a shame.” – ScreenAnarchy Nov 17, 2024 Full Review Meanwhile on Earth (2024) 82% 7/10 EDIT “The film looks good, Megan Northam is great, the few special effects are fine and Jérémy Clapin, an experienced animator, spices up the narrative with some animations. It's therefore hard to pinpoint why I don't like the film more.” – ScreenAnarchy Nov 17, 2024 Full Review The Colors Within (2024) 92% 4/5 EDIT “There is surprisingly little drama in this drama, but it isn't missed or needed here either. While the designs lean heavily on the familiar side, The Colors Within is just a very pleasant viewing experience, one of the best anime films released this year.” – ScreenAnarchy Nov 17, 2024 Full Review Joram (2023) 95% EDIT “Manoj Bajpayee is fantastic as Dasru and effortlessly sells the man's desperation as a father trying to keep a baby alive and well, but he is also a believable strongman...” – ScreenAnarchy Nov 3, 2023 Full Review Dark Satellites (2022) 6/10 EDIT “We as humans need other people. But that point has been made in plenty of other films as well, and many of those will get that across without having to hammer it home. If seeing people wallow in misery is your thing, rejoice, this is the movie for you.” – ScreenAnarchy Nov 3, 2023 Full Review Sira (2023) 7/10 EDIT “The evildoers do not get portrayed as stupid caricatures, their deeds are attributed to a confused mess of faith and adherence to tradition. It makes the film more suspenseful, the danger believable. And when all hell breaks loose it looks spectacular.” – ScreenAnarchy Nov 3, 2023 Full Review The Taste of Things (2023) 97% 9/10 EDIT “The ex-couple sparkle when on screen together, and the years of intimacy with ups and downs between the two characters they play are instantly believable. Their shared love for food and friendship for each other feel real. ” – ScreenAnarchy Nov 3, 2023 Full Review December (2022) 7/10 EDIT “There are numerous pitfalls such a film can fall into, from the overly sentimental to the depressing, to the ridiculously uplifting. Director Chauhan veers close to them all but manages to avoid fully falling into them too. ” – ScreenAnarchy Nov 3, 2023 Full Review New Religion (2022) 89% 7/10 EDIT “At the end, there was plenty to discuss with the people I saw it with. Is this a classic? No, but if Kondo Keishi ends up making classics, New Religion will go into history as the very promising debut which foretold this.” – ScreenAnarchy Oct 13, 2023 Full Review Gold Kingdom and Water Kingdom (2022) 7/10 EDIT “Gold Kingdom and Water Kingdom is a fun enough film, beautifully animated and with several laugh-out-loud moments. But its dependency on tropes works against it, and the ending is so sweet it may damage the enamel on your teeth. ” – ScreenAnarchy Oct 9, 2023 Full Review Squaring the Circle (The Story of Hipgnosis) (2022) 92% 4/5 EDIT “It should not be a surprise that as a subject for his first documentary film, the Dutch director chose a legendary design studio known for iconic sleeve art. What may be surprising is how enjoyable and generally light-hearted the end result is.” – ScreenAnarchy Sep 26, 2023 Full Review Exhibit #8 (2022) 7.5/10 EDIT “In Exhibit #8, the found footage aspect is an integral and even necessary part of the story. It's easily one of the best recent found footage films, and shows fun and surprises can still be had within this sub-genre.” – ScreenAnarchy May 3, 2023 Full Review Unicorn Wars (2022) 81% 4.5/5 EDIT “Those who think they're in for a fun evening of gory shenanigans, Happy Tree Friends style, will not be disappointed. But they may be caught off guard by the film's excellent art direction, its building of dread and the telling of a unique mythology.” – ScreenAnarchy Mar 24, 2023 Full Review
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