''Achtste Groepers Huilen Niet'' (English: ''Eighth Graders Don't Cry'', also known as ''Cool Kids Don't Cry'') is a 2012 family drama that was directed by
Dennis Bots
Dennis Bots (born 11 June 1974) is a Zambian-Dutch film director.
Biography
Dennis Bots was born in the Zambian city of Kitwe in 1974. His Dutch parents lived in Zambia, where his father was employed. As an infant, he moved to the Dutch town of ...
. The film is an adaptation of the Dutch book
of the same name by Jacques Vriens. It was first released into cinemas in the Netherlands on February 15, 2012, and has won a 2012
Golden Film Award.
Synopsis
Akkie (pronounced as Ah-key) (Hanna Obbeek) is an 8th grade student. In her free time she enjoys to play
soccer
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
. She has a few good friends and likes most of the kids in her class. However, there is one boy she hates. His name is Joep (pronounced as Yoop) and the two have a row every other day. But one day, when the class plays football during lunch break, Joep goes too far and hurts Elise, Akkie's best friend. Akkie wants to take revenge and after school, Joep and Akkie start a fight. The fight ends soon, because their teachers finds out about it. Akkies nose is bleeding when she returns home. Later that evening, her nose spontaneously starts bleeding again. Her mother is worried and takes her daughter to see a doctor.
Things take a turn for the tragic when Akkie discovers she has
leukemia
Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ' ...
. Despite this, Akkie tries to keep busy helping prepare for the next soccer tournament. Her friends support her, but Akkie is discouraged when she has to spend several days in the hospital. Still, she is desperate to go on a school camp where she plays various games. When they play hide and seek, Akkie hides in a tree. She can't come down herself and eventually Joep climbs in the tree to help her get down. From that moment on, the two are friends. The same day, Akkie suddenly passes out. She has to be taken to hospital.
Akkie starts
chemotherapy
Chemotherapy (often abbreviated to chemo and sometimes CTX or CTx) is a type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs (chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) as part of a standardized chemotherapy regimen. Chemotherap ...
, but because the leukemia is so aggressive, Akkie begins to realize that she probably will not survive. In an emotional scene, Akkie learns that the cancer has spread to her brain and that she has a terminal illness. She asks her best friend Elise (Fiona Livingston) to play on her behalf in the soccer tournament, since she knows she will not be able to attend the tournament on her own. This leads her teammates to play an impromptu game at the hospital, where Akkie’s bed is in a room facing the field so she can watch the game. Happily watching them play, Akkie dies peacefully. Her classmates will honor Akkie in the school tournament, where she attends in spirit through her classmates wearing her name on their uniforms and banners throughout the area.
Cast
* Hanna Obbeek as Akkie
* Nils Verkooijen as Joep
* Fiona Livingston as Elise
* Bram Flick as Laurens
* Amin Belyandouz as Brammetje
*
Eva Van Der Gucht
Eva Van der Gucht (born 1 September 1977) is a Belgian actress.
Eva graduated in 2000 at the Amsterdam Theater and Drama academie. While studying she was selected to star in the film ''Everybody's Famous!
''Everybody's Famous!'' ( nl-BE, Iede ...
as Juf Ina
* Loek Peters as Dokter Snor
*
Johanna ter Steege
Johanna ter Steege (born 10 May 1961) is a Dutch actress.
She won the European Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for her movie debut in '' The Vanishing'' (1988). Among her other films are Robert Altman's ''Vincent & Theo'' (1990), István ...
as Moeder Akkie
* Reinout Bussemaker as Vader Akkie
* Chris Comvalius as Afida
*
Xander Straat
Xander Straat (born 1965) is a Dutch stage, television, and film actor.
He studied at the theatre school in Arnhem
Arnhem ( or ; german: Arnheim; South Guelderish: ''Èrnem'') is a city and municipality situated in the eastern part of the ...
as Meester Henk
*
Bram van der Hooven as Frenklin
*
Lea Vlastra as Tamara
*
Renee de Graaff as Christel
*
Lucas Dijker
Lucas or LUCAS may refer to:
People
* Lucas (surname)
* Lucas (given name)
Arts and entertainment
* Luca Family Singers, also known as "lucas ligner en torsk"
* ''Lucas'' (album) (2007), an album by Skeletons and the Kings of All Cities
* ''Luc ...
as Rico
Reception
Awards
*''
Golden Film Award'' (2012, won)
*''
Golden Calf Audience Award'' at the
Nederlands Film Festival
The Netherlands Film Festival ( nl, Nederlands Film Festival) is an annual film festival, held in September and October of each year in the city of Utrecht.
During the ten-day festival, Dutch film productions and co-productions are exhibited. Be ...
(2012, won)
*''
Rembrandt Award
The Rembrandt Award was a Dutch film award. Initially created in 1993, it was not awarded between 1999 and 2006, but was recreated in 2007 by René Mioch..
It has not been awarded since 2015.
2007
*''Zwartboek'' – Best Dutch Film
*Daniël ...
for Best Dutch Youth Film'' (2012, won)
*''Rembrandt Award for Best Dutch Actress'' (2012, nominated - Hanna Obbeek)
[Rene Mioch onthult nominaties Rembrandt Awards]
Televizier
*''Rembrandt Award for Best Film Song'' (2012, nominated -
Kim-Lian van der Meij
Kim-Lian van der Meij (born 1 October 1980 in Beverwijk) is a Dutch musical actress, presenter and a singer-songwriter.
Biography
Kim-Lian comes from a musical family. Both her parents were professional dancers. Kim-Lian won a number of dance co ...
)
[
*''Audience Award for Best Feature Film'' at the TIFF Kids (2013, won)
*''Best Children's Film'' at the China International Children's Film Festival (2013, won)]
References
External links
* {{IMDb title, 1800372
Achtste Groepers Huilen Niet
at Movie Meter
2012 films
Dutch drama films
Golden Calf winners
Films based on Dutch novels
2012 comedy-drama films
Dutch children's films
Films about cancer
Films directed by Dennis Bots