The word “spetter” translates roughly as “hunk” via Dutch slang, and there is plenty of beefcake on display in this slice of celluloid 80s kitsch. Amid the muddy world of motocross, four sexually-charged Dutch teenagers find themselves on a turbulent collision course with destiny, encountering break-neck twists and turns along the way.
Rien, young racing champion, mechanic Eef, and racing amateur Hans share one passion in life, motocross. They dream of the day that they can compete alongside their hero, the smug Gerrit Witkamp, played by leader of the Replicants, Rutger Hauer. Their friendship and loyalty are tested when Fientje wiggles into their lives. She’s a curvy blonde vixen with an Olivia Newton-John obsession that peddles croquettes from her dirty fast food van, along with her her butch gay brother. (Spetters also reads as “splatters” and thereby refers to the chips stall.) She busies herself with sleeping her way through them, to escape what she sees as an end to a life of working class misery.
At first, Rien protects Fientje from a rowdy biker gang, and it’s love at first sight. Riding high on happiness, he’s offered a Japanese sponsorship deal. Soon after, fate intervenes as severe accident dumps studly Rein into a wheelchair, and it’s bye-bye big money. His main squeeze’s affections quickly pass from one dude to the next. Neither hunk possesses Rien’s awesome ability, so none of this ends entirely happily as they all rev into top gear. It’s like an extreme Dutch soap opera with a few rays of hope near the finale. The male rape sequence, featuring a biker gang getting their ‘vengeance’ on Fientje’s hunky brother, threw me for a loop, was not expecting that twist at all, with complete full frontal and semi-penetration shots, those Dutch went full throttle with the shocks, they mean business!
Long before sexy shockers like Basic Instinct & Showgirls, Paul Verhoeven directed this high-speed coming-of-age flick in 1980. The film was met with minimal success in the US of A, but it did help the launch this great director’s career abroad. Watch for the wild motorbike stunts, knockabout action sequences, and sexual shenanigans, …including an eye-popping wiener-measuring contest! Slip on your best pair of legwarmers, bangle bracelets and wiggle along with an amazing soundtrack featuring Blondie, M, and Abba. A little dirt, sweat, and tears equals pure pulp perfection! Rad all the way.
