While researching films that played, particularly in the art houses of San Diego, during the summer of 1984 for my work in progress, I came across a newspaper ad for Paul Verhoeven’s The 4th Man and became quite intrigued.
Searching all the online streamers yielded the result that no one had the film available, nor was it available for a Video on Demand rental or purchase. The fact that the movie seemed impossible to watch only enhanced my curiosity about it. Eventually I found a copy in the public domain section of the Internet Archive and after much toil and trouble got the subtitles working as the film is in Dutch. So, this past weekend my sweetie-wife and I watched The 4th Man.
Verenigde Nederlandsche Filmcompagnie
The story centers on Gerard Reve, a bisexual novelist and clearly on the path to severe alcoholism. After fantasizing about murdering his roommate and lover, Gerard takes a train to another city to give a lecture to a local literary society. Along the way he becomes fascinated by a strikingly handsome man he briefly sees in the carriage of a passing train and is also haunted by strange delusions or visions of a seemingly threatening woman.
After the lecture and experiencing seeming confirmation of his frightening visions, Gerard accepts an invitation from the society’s treasurer, Christine, to stay the night at her home and business. The pair become lovers, but Gerard continues to have disturbing dreams and visions, some of which present Christine as a murderous woman killing off her former lovers. When her current lover Herman returns from his business trip, Gerard is shocked to see it was the same handsome man that had fascinated him at the train station. Now with his sexual desire for both Christine and Herman burning strongly, Gerard’s visions or delusions also intensify and he must discover if they are truth and if he or Herman is destined to become the 4th man murdered by Christine.
Given the similarities in theme—a potentially murderous woman, bisexuality, and explicit sexual scenes—The 4th Manis often compared to another Verhoeven film, Basic Instinct, with the director himself calling The 4th Man a spiritual prequel.
The 4th Man is a stylish erotic thriller that is uninterested in providing the audience with any solid answers to the questions it raises. Gerard’s visions might be prophetic flashes of both future and past or they may be delusions of an alcohol-soaked brain. Christine may be a spider luring men into her parlor and their deaths or she may be a woman tragically unlucky who has suffered the loss of several lovers. It is for the viewer to determine which is the more likely scenario. While watching this film I turned to my sweetie-wife and commented that “David Lynch probably loved this movie.” My feelings were only intensified by the lush, lovely, and captivating cinematography of Jan de Bont. There is absolutely no doubt that The 4th Man is a masterpiece of photography, even with its limited budget.
I have no idea if the movie will make it to the pages of my work in progress—elements of it fit perfectly with my cast of characters—but whether or not it makes an appearance, it was worth the viewing.
