Available today on DVD and on digital is the intense drama, Holiday. It premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival.
Holiday stars Victoria Carmen Sonne, Lai Yde, Thijs Römer and was directed by Isabella Eklöf.
As you can guess by the names, this is a foreign film. It is in Dutch (I believe) but subtitled in English. Normally I am not a fan of subtitled films. I always feel like I’m missing the action on the screen as I’m reading the words down below. I have learned that overlooking a subtitled film is not always a good thing. One of my favorite horror movies, Train to Busan, is a subtitled Korean film. I love that film! Had I overlooked it because of the subtitles I would have missed out on a great film.
Holiday is about a beautiful, young woman named Sacha (Soone). She is living with her boyfriend Michael (Yde). However it’s not a true relationship. Sacha is more so Michael’s “arm candy,” and in some aspects, is captive.
Sacha seems to have an ideal life. She lives in a beautiful home, has the finest things and doesn’t have to work a day in her life. That might sound like a wonderful life to most people, but the reality is that appearances are deceiving. Sacha is at Micheal’s beck and call. Michael is often cruel and abusive towards her for the littlest thing. Sacha knows that there is no way she is going to escape Michael.
One day Sacha meets a handsome traveler named Thomas, as well as Thomas’ friend. Thomas is unaware that Sacha is in a relationship with Michael, and Sacha neglects to tell Thomas that.
The two have a flirtatious relationship with one another. It is not known if Sacha truly likes him, or that she is bored and/or wants a way out from being under Michael’s “thumb.”
What exactly does Sacha want with Thomas? What will happen if Michael finds out that she’s hanging out with another man? To find out you need to purchase, or rent, Holiday. Look for it where ever movies are sold. I have seen it on Amazon, both for purchase as well as to rent.
First and foremost, this is NOT a “family friendly” film. This film is very violent. In addition, Michael is a drug lord, so there is plenty of drug references as well.
I must say that the scenery where this film takes place (Turkey) is beautiful. I would never think of Turkey in that way (sandy beaches, beautiful water). When I think of the country of Turkey, the first things that come to mind are spice markets and ancient ruins. WOW! Needless to see I’m very impressed. Turkey looks like an amazing place to visit.
I still don’t like reading subtitles. I thought I’d be OK with it, but I honestly prefer not to have to read. I rather just watch what was going on. Honestly, there are large portions of this movie that you don’t really need to need to know what is being said. You can pretty much guess what is going on based on the action on the screen.
I don’t really know much about the actual actors, but the parts seem to be well cast. Sonne, who plays Sacha, is beautiful, and I can see why men would want to have her as their “arm candy.”
The plot of this story seemed realistic enough. I’m sure that there are plenty of drug lords around the world that have women like Sacha held as captives – some willingly and others against their will.
I was really surprised by the end of the film. I didn’t see that coming. I had a different scenario played out in my head. It makes me question Sacha’s motives all along.
I couldn’t find any social media accounts for this film. I did find it on Amazon both as a rental (Amazon Prime) as well as for purchase (DVD).
Below is the trailer for your enjoyment.
Kimberly
*I received a free screener copy to review. There was no compensation. The opinions expressed are my own and not influenced in any way.