detective

Because of the Cats

A thriller written by Hugo Claus, based on a novel by British author Nicolas Freeling.

The search for the culprits in a case of a violent rape takes an Amsterdam police inspector to a nearby garden city where he picks up the trail of a gang of youngsters from rich homes. Divided into gangs the Ravens and the Cats, they take part in violent crimes and strange rites. The inspector manages to disband the gangs and settle the score with the evil, Charles Manson-esque genius behind the scenes.

Moord in het modehuis

Crime film with cartoon hero Dick Bos

A daring train robbery by an obscure gang called Nemesis is making headlines. When the gang members also kill a partner in a The Hague fashion house and threaten the other owners of the firm, they turns to Dick Bos for help in solving the Nemesis mystery.

Moord in het modehuis was directed by Piet van der Ham and cartoonist Alfred Mazure, who created the Dick Bos character. The lead role in this semi-professional production was played by Maurice van Nieuwenhuizen, a famous judo champion at the time.

Het waterrad des doods

Like Laan's earlier De zoon van Nick Carter en de moordenaar this was another parody of the penny dreadful detective yarns once so popular with youthful readers. In this one, Nick Carter's son and his cousin are on the trail of a gang of counterfeit coiners who have their hide-out in a water-mill. The crooks catch Carter's son and plan to torture him to death. The lad is tied up and put in a bag that is suspended in the water-wheel. Shortly thereafter, the cousin is also captured by the villains, who tie him to a tree with a rope.