Flying on Fumes and Dreams

Read Time:5 Minute, 58 Second

MOVIE REVIEW
Dakota
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Genre: Drama
Year Released: 1974, Cult Epics Blu-ray 2025
Runtime: 1h 42m
Director(s): Wim Verstappen
Writer(s): Charles Gormley, Jan Verstappen, Harrie Verstappen
Cast: Kees Brusse, Monique van de Ven, Willeke van Ammelrooy, Diana Dobbelman, Dora van der Groen
Where to Watch: available September 16, 2025, pre-order your copy here: www.cultepics.com, www.mvdshop.com, or www.amazon.com

RAVING REVIEW: DAKOTA is a film defined by obsession—both in the story it tells and the story behind its making. At its center is Dick de Boer, played with conviction by Kees Brusse, a Dutch pilot whose life is tethered to his DC-3 Dakota. For Dick, flying isn’t just an occupation; it’s survival, compulsion, and the only place he seems to feel alive. That singular fixation gives the movie its shape, even when production chaos nearly brought it to a halt.

The film begins in Curaçao, where Dick is drawn into shady deals that eventually lead to a smuggling run. The mechanics of his mission are more than just background detail—the filmmakers dedicate long stretches to the actual logistics of keeping a decades-old aircraft airborne, including barrels of contraband fuel. The most talked-about sequence remains his solo flight from the Dutch Antilles to Amsterdam, a feat captured with surprising realism for the time. Jan de Bont and Theo van de Sande’s widescreen cinematography lingers on the plane and its environment, delivering both the thrill of aviation and the quiet terror of isolation at thousands of feet.

That sense of authenticity is what has long kept DAKOTA alive in the memories of aviation enthusiasts, even as the film’s broader reputation suffered. The on-set drama is almost as infamous as the movie itself. Monique van de Ven, cast as Claudia, began a relationship with cinematographer Jan de Bont during filming. Tensions escalated to the point where she left the production altogether, taking de Bont with her. In a scramble, director Wim Verstappen rewrote large sections of the script, cutting entire roles and reshaping the story into a loner’s tale. Lawsuits followed, crew changes rippled through the set, and what could have been a more balanced drama shifted into something fragmented.

The result is a film that feels both ambitious and compromised. Its opening is unusually drawn-out—nearly twenty minutes of Dick flying and landing with little dialogue—setting a tone of endurance that some critics found lifeless. At the same time, this methodical approach underlines Dick’s character. He is a man without a life on the ground, trapped in routines that only make sense in the cockpit. Brusse leans into this stoicism, playing Dick as a man whose devotion to flight borders on self-destructive.

The female leads—Monique van de Ven and Willeke van Ammelrooy—add intrigue to the film, despite production troubles limiting their screen time. Both were emerging talents of Dutch cinema in the 1970s, and their presence links the movie to a wider cultural moment when the Netherlands was experimenting with more daring, adult-themed films under the Scorpio banner.

Released in 1974, the film flopped financially; critics dismissed it as disjointed, padded with long shots of airplanes and lacking a compelling human story. Yet over time, its uniqueness began to shine through. The detailed aviation sequences, rare glimpses of Curaçao in the early 1970s, and a narrative that explores obsession rather than heroism gradually earned it cult admiration. Pilots and aviation buffs, in particular, embraced it as one of the few films that gets the little things right about flying.

That rediscovery is what makes the new 2025 Blu-ray release from Cult Epics so important. For decades, DAKOTA was difficult to find, surviving mostly in washed-out TV recordings and half-remembered late-night screenings. Now, thanks to a new 2K restoration, the film’s visuals have regained much of their original scope. The Caribbean skies are richer, the Dutch landscapes sharper, and the Dakota itself finally shines as more than just a workhorse plane—it’s a character in this journey.

The disc also helps contextualize the film. An audio commentary by historian Peter Verstraten sheds light on the troubled production. Archival footage, such as the 1978 Cannes “Dakota Press Flight,” situates the movie within its era, and trailers from Scorpio’s other productions remind viewers of the company’s place in Dutch cinema. The slipcase art by Juan Esteban R. and reversible sleeve add collector appeal, underscoring the film’s shift from forgotten relic to rediscovered artifact.

DAKOTA has a stubborn kind of staying power. Its protagonist clings to his plane the way Verstappen clung to finishing his film—against odds, against reason, and against the tide of opinion. That parallel is what gives the movie a strange resonance today. You can see the cracks left by its chaotic production, but you can also see the determination behind it. It’s not a polished classic, but it’s never less than fascinating, and in its restored form, it feels more alive than it has in decades.

Viewed through a modern lens, DAKOTA lands somewhere in the middle. It’s far from flawless, weighed down by narrative gaps and stretches of inert storytelling, yet it also offers images and moments you won’t find anywhere else. In that sense, the rating feels fair—but it’s also the kind of film that rewards curiosity. If you love aviation, European cult cinema, or the messy history of troubled productions, this Blu-ray is more than worth the flight.

Bonus Materials:
New Restored 2K Transfer
Audio Commentary by film historian Peter Verstraten
Dakota Press flight
Cannes Filmfestival 1978 (Vara Visie)
Photo Gallery
Scorpio Films Trailers
New artwork design by Juan Esteban R.
Reversible sleeve with original Dutch poster art
Slipcase

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[photo courtesy of CULT EPICS, MVD ENTERTAINMENT]

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