One might be tempted to classify Alex van Warmerdam’s “Borgman” as yet another entry in the “home invasion” sub-genre, however to do so would be to deny oneself of the many pleasures concealed within this adventurous tale. The word “pleasures” itself, feels strange, considering the film begins with shocking violence that only keeps escalating towards the numbing levels of some of Michael Haneke’s greatest treatises on the human condition.
“Borgman” begins with the title character’s (played by Jan Bijvoet) violent eviction from the underground shelter he inhabits. A group of vicious-looking men arrive with rifles in hand and begin shooting the ground in a sequence reminiscent of anything out of Wes Anderson’s “The Fantastic Mr. Fox”. As the craft Borgman escapes this attack he warns others, who like him, live in holes in the ground. We don’t know why they’re being pursued, we don’t know what kind of creatures they are and the film doesn’t make this information accessible either.
Next we know, Borgman is knocking at the door of a rich family in the suburbs asking if he can use their shower. The husband Richard (Jeroen Perceval) responds with aggression by beating him, in the process igniting a sense of compassion in his wife Marina (Hadewych Minis) who secretly lets Borgman stay in the cottage they have in the garden. Sooner rather than later, Borgman is infiltrating the house when they least suspect it, and whether through sorcery or just good old fashioned mindfuckery, he wins the affection of the couple’s children who think of him as a friendly gnome figure.
Borgman’s intentions begin to materialize as we see him turn Marina against her husband, who isn’t necessarily the world’s nicest guy but who seems to genuinely love his family. The mysterious character proves to be a mix of Rumpelstiltskin and Rasputin as he charms the pants out of those willing to play his game. What remains fascinating about the film is how van Warmerdam, who also wrote the screenplay, refuses to give in to any easy way out. This is not a film we can “figure out”. It works as political allegory because it reminds us of the evil that can grow beneath our very noses, it works as social satire because Borgman, if anything, seems to be a representation of the desire of the underprivileged to teach self-entitled one-per-centers a lesson, and essentially it also works as a madcap comedy in the vein of the Marx Brothers best works. Films are rarely as satisfyingly macabre as this one.
