The Man Who Had His Hair Cut Short
1966·Drama·1h 35m
7.1
★
Govert Miereveld is a lawyer from a small Flemish town who also teaches in a school for girls. He harbors a secret love for one of his young students, Fran, whom he loses touch with after her graduation. Some time later, Miereveld has to attend an autopsy, and the shock of the experience deeply affects his mental balance. He finds out - or he believes so - that Fran has become a popular singer. He arranges to meet her to finally reveal his feelings. An ambiguous but perhaps tragic denouement follows which might be a figment of the protagonist's disturbed mind.
Directed by André Delvaux
IMDB
N/A
Cast
Senne Rouffaer
Govert Miereveld
Beata Tyszkiewicz
Eufrazia 'Fran' Veerman
Hilde Uitterlinden
Beps
François Beukelaers
Patient
Arlette Emmery
One of the Seven
Crew
André Delvaux
Director
André Delvaux
Dialogue
Antoine Bonfanti
Sound
Popular Reviews
6 reviews
Eurydice
8.0★ · 03/21/26
Qu’est-ce qui était vrai? Qu’est-ce qui était qu’un rêve? Je ne sais trop & c’était le but de Delvaux #onremercielaconference
Moi aussi je veux pourvoir m’acheter des nouvelles pompes à 3h du mat
Il a tellement un girly run
Moi aussi je veux pourvoir m’acheter des nouvelles pompes à 3h du mat
Il a tellement un girly run
Qu’est-ce qui était vrai? Qu’est-ce qui était qu’un rêve? Je ne sais trop & c’était le but de Delvaux #onremercielaconference
Moi aussi je veux pourvoir m’acheter des nouvelles pompes à 3h du mat
Il a tellement un girly run
Moi aussi je veux pourvoir m’acheter des nouvelles pompes à 3h du mat
Il a tellement un girly run
Alfred HitchTOK
8.0★ · 03/21/26
I guess this is what it’s like to be John Hinkley Jnr?
This obscure little gem explores the life of teacher Govert Miereveld (Senne Rouffer) who is obsessed with his student Fran (Beata Tyszkiewicz) but it doesn’t appear the feeling is mutual. I’m not sure she thinks much about the dude at all tbh. He gets so distraught he leaves the teaching profession and moves with his wife and kids (did I mention he was married?) to another town and a whole new gig as a court clerk. But when he is called to assist the coroner with an autopsy in another town he has a chance meeting with Fran and his obsession goes next level…
Shot in black and white, with slow deliberate pacing that imbues every action undertaken with a pervading sense of dread and impending doom. The autopsy is a master class of discomfort for both Miereveld and the viewer, utilising sound design to echo the snap of bone, effective in its inducement of horror without ever actually seeing any blood. For Miereveld even getting his hair cut (which seemed unwise considering he was already rocking the Phil Collins aesthetic) feels like the eerie calm before the fast approaching storm.
This obscure little gem explores the life of teacher Govert Miereveld (Senne Rouffer) who is obsessed with his student Fran (Beata Tyszkiewicz) but it doesn’t appear the feeling is mutual. I’m not sure she thinks much about the dude at all tbh. He gets so distraught he leaves the teaching profession and moves with his wife and kids (did I mention he was married?) to another town and a whole new gig as a court clerk. But when he is called to assist the coroner with an autopsy in another town he has a chance meeting with Fran and his obsession goes next level…
Shot in black and white, with slow deliberate pacing that imbues every action undertaken with a pervading sense of dread and impending doom. The autopsy is a master class of discomfort for both Miereveld and the viewer, utilising sound design to echo the snap of bone, effective in its inducement of horror without ever actually seeing any blood. For Miereveld even getting his hair cut (which seemed unwise considering he was already rocking the Phil Collins aesthetic) feels like the eerie calm before the fast approaching storm.
I guess this is what it’s like to be John Hinkley Jnr?
This obscure little gem explores the life of teacher Govert Miereveld (Senne Rouffer) who is obsessed with his student Fran (Beata Tyszkiewicz) but it doesn’t appear the feeling is mutual. I’m not sure she thinks much about the dude at all tbh. He gets so distraught he leaves the teaching profession and moves with his wife and kids (did I mention he was married?) to another town and a whole new gig as a court clerk. But when he is called to assist the coroner with an autopsy in another town he has a chance meeting with Fran and his obsession goes next level…
Shot in black and white, with slow deliberate pacing that imbues every action undertaken with a pervading sense of dread and impending doom. The autopsy is a master class of discomfort for both Miereveld and the viewer, utilising sound design to echo the snap of bone, effective in its inducement of horror without ever actually seeing any blood. For Miereveld even getting his hair cut (which seemed unwise considering he was already rocking the Phil Collins aesthetic) feels like the eerie calm before the fast approaching storm.
This obscure little gem explores the life of teacher Govert Miereveld (Senne Rouffer) who is obsessed with his student Fran (Beata Tyszkiewicz) but it doesn’t appear the feeling is mutual. I’m not sure she thinks much about the dude at all tbh. He gets so distraught he leaves the teaching profession and moves with his wife and kids (did I mention he was married?) to another town and a whole new gig as a court clerk. But when he is called to assist the coroner with an autopsy in another town he has a chance meeting with Fran and his obsession goes next level…
Shot in black and white, with slow deliberate pacing that imbues every action undertaken with a pervading sense of dread and impending doom. The autopsy is a master class of discomfort for both Miereveld and the viewer, utilising sound design to echo the snap of bone, effective in its inducement of horror without ever actually seeing any blood. For Miereveld even getting his hair cut (which seemed unwise considering he was already rocking the Phil Collins aesthetic) feels like the eerie calm before the fast approaching storm.
strawberry milkshake
De wereld lijkt mij altijd zo diffuus. Ik zie de waarheid, twee-, driedubbel. Maar die diffuusheid, net daarin geloof ik. Er is altijd iets broos in me, diep binnenin me, waardoor ik behoefte voel om mezelf van buiten uit te bekijken. Dan wordt alles duidelijk. Maar dan ben ik een andere. Dan is ‘ik’ en andere.This was the story of Govert Miereveld, the man who had his hair cut short. A hidden gem in belgian cinema that depicts the unadorned and tormented life of a man who’s overpowered by his relentless delusion and obsessive fixation for his own made up narrative of someone who paid no mind to him.
While not being designated as such, it’s a terribly scary movie, as it is dreadfully human.
De man die zijn haar kort liet knippen is definitely not the easiest of watches. It prolongs itself slowly and takes its sweet time in doing so all throughout; though that doesn’t stop it from being an incredibly hypnotizing experience — from each dramatically framed shot, to Delvaux’s startling direction, to Rouffaer’s phenomenal performance and the premise behind the action; we’re completely swept into the play as it goes along.
The uneasiness depicted by the picture is nothing of sorts but a direct reflection of the burdens that come with our unfulfilled desires, staying then true to one’s nature and the film itself aswell, making it viable for the viewer to connect with the humanity portrayed on screen.
De wereld lijkt mij altijd zo diffuus. Ik zie de waarheid, twee-, driedubbel. Maar die diffuusheid, net daarin geloof ik. Er is altijd iets broos in me, diep binnenin me, waardoor ik behoefte voel om mezelf van buiten uit te bekijken. Dan wordt alles duidelijk. Maar dan ben ik een andere. Dan is ‘ik’ en andere.This was the story of Govert Miereveld, the man who had his hair cut short. A hidden gem in belgian cinema that depicts the unadorned and tormented life of a man who’s overpowered by his relentless delusion and obsessive fixation for his own made up narrative of someone who paid no mind to him.
While not being designated as such, it’s a terribly scary movie, as it is dreadfully human.
De man die zijn haar kort liet knippen is definitely not the easiest of watches. It prolongs itself slowly and takes its sweet time in doing so all throughout; though that doesn’t stop it from being an incredibly hypnotizing experience — from each dramatically framed shot, to Delvaux’s startling direction, to Rouffaer’s phenomenal performance and the premise behind the action; we’re completely swept into the play as it goes along.
The uneasiness depicted by the picture is nothing of sorts but a direct reflection of the burdens that come with our unfulfilled desires, staying then true to one’s nature and the film itself aswell, making it viable for the viewer to connect with the humanity portrayed on screen.
Katie WhelanPRO
7.0★ · 05/12/26
Tu Puta Madre
7.0★ · 01/21/25