Stricken
A reckless Dutch advertising executive’s marriage is tested beyond endurance when his wife develops breast cancer.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Extreme
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- None
- melancholic
- intimate
- harrowing
- quiet evening
- tearjerker night
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Stijn repeatedly pursues meaningless one-night stands while Carmen accepts and absorbs the damage within their marriage.
Carmen’s breast cancer overturns the couple’s marriage, family life, and assumptions about their future.
The film moves from sensual marital drama into emotionally severe cancer melodrama and anticipated bereavement.
Stijn’s advertising career and social life give way to fatherhood and a move to the boring country before the illness crisis.
Films like Stricken, and why
The Fault in Our Stars
romantic drama centered on infidelity, illness, and emotional loss
Love Story
relationship drama confronting terminal illness with intimate, tearful emotion
One Day
adult romantic melodrama about marriage, betrayal, and devastating illness
Movie Details
- Director
- Reinout Oerlemans
- Release Date
- 2009-11-26
- Runtime
- 105 min
- Rating
- 5.9 / 10 (64)
Cast
- Barry Atsma
- Carice van Houten
- Anna Drijver
- Jeroen Willems
- Sacha Bulthuis
- Pierre Bokma
- Gijs Scholten van Aschat
- Walid Benmbarek
- Yfke Wegman
- Isabelle Moerman
Common questions
- What is Stricken about?
- A reckless Dutch advertising executive’s marriage is tested beyond endurance when his wife develops breast cancer.
- What is Stricken like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Stricken as measured, its intensity as extreme and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Stricken violent?
- No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in Stricken.
- Which films are like Stricken?
- Films with a similar feel include The Fault in Our Stars, Love Story, and One Day.
- How long is Stricken?
- Stricken runs 105 minutes.
