Suzy Q is a 1999 Dutch film starring Carice van Houten and directed by Martin Koolhoven. It is based on the childhood memories of Frouke Fokkema, who wrote the script together with Koolhoven. The film featured van Houten in her first leading role; she worked again with Koolhoven on the films AmnesiA and Brimstone.

Plot

The film is set in the sixties and revolves around the teenager Suzy, who is part of an uncaring family: her father is abusive and unemployed, her mother is naive, one brother is the brooding type while the other is habitually stoned. Suzy surreptitiously manages to gain access to the hotel room of Mick Jagger and Marianne Faithfull during their visit to Amsterdam. Suzy gets kissed by her idol Jagger and wants to tell the world, but nobody believes her or even wants to hear the story.

Background

The film is a joint production of Staccato Films and the Dutch public broadcasting service. The title refers to The Rolling Stones' cover of the Dale Hawkins song Susie Q. Suzy Q won various awards, including a Gouden Kalf for van Houten. Despite being a film made for TV, it was the most decorated Dutch film of 1999. Due to the frequent use of music by the likes of The Rolling Stones, The Turtles, Jimi Hendrix, Tee-Set and Booker T & the MG's, the film was never released in cinemas or on DVD. In 2014, to save his project from obscurity, Martin Koolhoven published the film on YouTube. He also asked for the film to be distributed via torrent sites, which promptly happened.

Cast