The Unplaceables

Funny obdoc on the addicted street cleaners of Rotterdam.

The Unplaceables Explore the strange quirky world of Spike and Dick, two unusually loud-mouthed street cleaners. Spike is a dystopian figure with multiple addictions, who tries to see the beauty and goodness in everything, despite his pitiful circumstances and the nastiness of his fellow humans. Dick is a criminal, ex-cage fighter who tries to help others but by doing so only finds himself in ever-deeper trouble. A frank, funny and engaging portrait of those who live in the limbo between the gutter and reintegration.
"You're not alone here. We'll take care of you, of each other", says Spike, as he cleans the street by himself, dreaming of a house where all the lonely and unwanted could live in harmony together. He is one of a group of unplaceables - addicts, criminals - who spend their days cleaning the streets, a job provided by the Dutch organisation Jobs-Score. Despite their background and tough circumstances the guys are quick to see the funny side of life. "I remember my 18th birthday. Then you have two sex adventures, vomit twice and all of a sudden you're 50!" Dick delivers deadpan. But not all of the humour is intentional much of it lies in the loveable eccentricity the guys exude: "25! Well, I'm sure I'll calm down now, hahaha!" Chuckles Spike, his big blonde beard wiggling, as he and a co-worker share out sedatives. "Now that's a good foreman I don't want to lose him!"

Dick came from a house of fifteen, most of which have gone "bad" according to him. His stepfather abused him and, at 13 years old, Dick killed him in retaliation. He was jailed two subsequent times, after murdering two more men and dealing arms. "You don't like to look at yourself in the mirror". He tries to help by taking a new worker under his wing, trying to inspire him to seek better treatment. However in the end this interference leads to a week's suspension from the job. Spike also suffered abuse at the hands of his father. "First I begged, don't do that", but the beatings just escalated in severity. Later in his life, Spike helped an East German woman escape, by marrying her only to have her run off after the wedding with the few thousand euros they had managed to accumulate. Despite this betrayal he says, "I just wanted to help another person".

Addiction plagues the group working for Jobs-Score. They sneak cans of beer or enjoy the half-smoked spliff they found during their shift. The men move between awareness and denial of their situation. "I'm addicted to hash and alcohol, but nothing else", claims Spike as he smokes some smack and lays out his plan to cut down his alcohol consumption. After avoiding treatment for so long, Dick's behaviour gets him dismissed from Jobs-Score for selling his medication on the job, and stalking other workers.

During the two years of filming the men getting closer to and then further away from their dreams and reintegration. Redemptive images of another worker playing the organ and taking on new work are obscured by Spike's ending affirmation that "It's a dirty world. No matter how hard you scrub, it never gets clean."

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Laurel Official Selection, IDFA 2012

Laurel Official Selection, Semaine de la Critique, Locarno 2013
FULL SYNOPSIS

The Producers


René Hazekamp (1962) graduated in the late eighties at the film academy in Brussels. During the early nineties he made one of the first series of successful independent dance films in The Netherlands. For the legendary music program "Lola da Musica", he made portraits of Solomon Burke, AC / DC, Tiesto and RL Burnside.

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