Cloaca

Cloaca

Year: 2003

Runtime: 108 mins

Language: Dutch

Director: Willem van de Sande Bakhuyzen

ComedyDrama

Four college friends now in their forties reunite during a period of personal crisis. As old jokes and memories surface, the gathering forces each to confront the harsh realities of their lives. The unresolved tensions and disappointments threaten to fracture the long‑standing bond between them.

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Timeline & Setting – Cloaca (2003)

Explore the full timeline and setting of Cloaca (2003). Follow every major event in chronological order and see how the environment shapes the story, characters, and dramatic tension.

Time period

Early 2000s

Set in the early 2000s, the film reflects the era's blend of public power and private vice. The art market and cultural politics intersect with personal scandal and professional pressures. The characters navigate a modern urban society where fame and influence can quickly rise and collapse.

Location

Netherlands

The story unfolds in a contemporary Dutch urban environment centered on a municipal archive, theatres, and political circles. The city serves as a backdrop for art collecting, bureaucratic maneuvering, and personal crises. It highlights a culture where art, politics, and personal ambitions collide.

🇳🇱 Dutch setting 🏛️ Cultural institutions 🗺️ Urban life

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 12:08

Main Characters – Cloaca (2003)

Meet the key characters of Cloaca (2003), with detailed profiles, motivations, and roles in the plot. Understand their emotional journeys and what they reveal about the film’s deeper themes.

Pieter

A homosexual art historian and municipal archivist whose long career has stagnated; on his birthday he steals paintings as a form of revenge. He has sold some Van Goppels to pay his apartment, and he fights to keep control of the works when they become valuable again. His moral compass is compromised as public duties clash with private desperation.

🧭 Ambition 🧠 Intellectual 🎨 Art world

Joep

A politician on the verge of becoming Minister for Foreign Affairs who is haunted by an extramarital affair. His relationship with his wife Conny is strained as the scandal grows. He grapples with loyalty, public image, and the consequences of his choices.

🤝 Friendship 🏛️ Politics 🕵️‍♂️ Deception

Tom

A lawyer and Pieter's old friend who agrees to help, but spirals into cocaine-fueled madness. He seeks to represent Pieter's case but eventually deteriorates, reflecting the fragility of reason under pressure. His actions push the group toward a breaking point.

🤝 Friendship 🧠 Legal world 🌀 Addiction

Maarten

A rancid, pretentious theatre director whose new play, The Wheel of Ixion, is about to open. He has an ambiguous relationship with Laura, Joep's daughter, and his selfish ambitions threaten everyone around him. He remains evasive about his past actions while the premiere looms.

🎭 Theatre 🧭 Self-interest 🧨 Scandal

Laura

Joep's almost 18-year-old daughter who is cast in a nude role in Maarten's play. The project forces Joep to confront his family, and Laura becomes entangled in the adults' hidden desires. Her growing awareness of the adults' machinations marks a turning point in the story.

🎬 Theatre 🧩 Coming-of-age 🫧 Vulnerability

Conny

Joep's wife who has kicked him out due to his affair. She embodies the strain of a marriage under public scrutiny and private betrayal, and her reactions reveal the personal costs of political entanglements.

💔 Relationship 🏛️ Domestic life 🌀 Conflict

Brest

The boss's boss who orders Pieter to return the paintings; his authority frames the power dynamics of the art theft crisis. He appears as a gatekeeper of institutional power within the bureaucratic system.

🏛️ Authority 💼 Bureaucracy 🗳️ Politics

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 12:08

Major Themes – Cloaca (2003)

Explore the central themes of Cloaca (2003), from psychological, social, and emotional dimensions to philosophical messages. Understand what the film is really saying beneath the surface.

🏛️ Power and Corruption

Ambition and public status drive characters into morally compromised choices. Pieter's theft and the pressure to prove ownership of the Van Goppel paintings reveal how institutions bend under desire and money. Joep's ascent toward becoming a minister complicates loyalties, while friends face pressure to bend or break the rules.

🤝 Friendship under Pressure

A tight-knit circle of friends tries to help one another, but loyalties are tested by fear, ego, and secrecy. Pieter, Joep, Tom, and Maarten rely on each other to solve problems, yet their pasts and flaws pull them apart. The film scrutinizes how long true friendship can survive when survival instincts take precedence.

🎨 Art and Authenticity

The sudden monetary value of Van Goppel paintings provokes questions of ownership, legitimacy, and art market manipulation. Pieter's attempt to legitimize his hold on the paintings exposes the fragility of trust in the cultural world. The story contrasts genuine artistic meaning with the mercenary logic of money and status.

💋 Sex, Scandal and Power

Romantic and sexual entanglements fuel the plot: Joep's affairs and the exposure of the relationships behind closed doors. The theatre world staging a nude scene for Joep's daughter adds to the public scandal. The interplay of sex and power underscores how personal desires intersect with public consequence.

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 12:08

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Narrative Summary

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Narrative Summary

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Unlock the Full Story of Cloaca

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Cloaca Summary

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Cloaca Summary

Cloaca Timeline

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Cloaca Timeline

Cloaca Spoiler-Free Summary

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Cloaca Spoiler-Free Summary

More About Cloaca

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