Overrated

Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

In between the TV showings of the original series of "Special Branch" (1969) and "The Sweeney" (1975), Thames Television delivered a classic piece of Detective fiction in the form of "Van Der Valk" - Commissaris Piet (Simon) Van Der Valk of the Dutch CID based in Amsterdam. It was a very good updated take on the character from a series of best- selling novels by Author Nicolas Freeling and a superlative characterisation by actor Barry Foster in the lead role. Furthermore, it was the marrying of Foster's performance with the intelligent and gritty realism of the scripts and location that made this a must-see of the time (the entire five series - 32 Episodes in total - was made over a twenty-year period). As a youngster, I was more familiar with the third series (1977) which was made by Euston Films for Thames, but watching the episodes of the original series from 1972 and 1973 (2nd series) was most enjoyable too as it not only gave us an insight into how the character of Van Der Valk was originally conceived for television, but also allowed us to experience the production process of the time - a mix of VT (studio) and film (location) work that assisted in the unfolding of the drama. The city of Amsterdam is beautifully captured in each and every overcast shot of period detail - trams, bikes, canals, cars and bars all add to the realistic take on a glorious setting. There was a gap of almost 14 years before the decision was finalised to commence work on the fourth series (screened 1991) and by this time the episodes were produced for a longer format: a two-hour time slot (the trend of the time). However, it was wonderful to see the older Barry Foster continue his memorable characterisation all those years on, and I felt that the series had lost none of that gritty style and intelligence that gave it an endearing quality almost two decades previously. In these longer early '90's episodes there is obviously an emphasis on the changing face of culture and environment, and a new face is added to the Van Der Valk family - namely an adopted daughter called Ruth who has a young child. The Van Der Valk's eldest son, Wim is also in the employ of the Amsterdam Police as an Inspector, and he plays a considerable part in some of the case-cracking proceedings of these later episodes, and reference is also given to his brother in the final series (1992) although he never makes an appearance. Overall, 'Van Der Valk' is a highly-recommended viewing experience especially for those entertained by the crime fiction genre.

I think I must have seen a few episodes as reruns in the late seventies,always after News at Ten. After a recent visit to Amsterdam I remembered the original and wanted to see it again so bought the box set. Barry Foster is very good and was clearly a fine actor. He has some really good scenes that exploits to the full Filmed in Amsterdam in colour you get to see the sights. The plots are complex and some scenes may seem a little laboured by modern standards but the show really holds up well against Wallender, Montalbano etc. If there is a production company out there looking for the next European detective they couldn't do much better than resurrect one of the originals, Commissaris Piet van der Valk and pay tribute to the excellent Barry Foster who made the part.

Has the distinction (IMHO) of being the TV show with the best ever theme music. Track it down on the net if you haven't heard it.Oh, and it was a great detective show also.

I saw this British TV series a few times on PBS and I loved it. I love the theme song as well. It features Barry Foster as a detective in Amsterdam (it's all in English) investigating various crimes. One I remember is some Yugoslavs were ripped off by a tractor salesman who dies, and they are the suspects.