“Rutger Hauer had something that most actors don’t have: scenes that immortalize you.”

Sanna and her parents have been linked to the famous actor all their lives, ever since they met on a caravan trip. I accidentally discovered a box full of photos and home videos. After looking at the footage director Hauer had shot over the decades, he decided he had enough to put together a documentary that would do justice to his accomplishments on and off screen.

“Rutger Hauer: Like Tears in the Rain” will premiere on Filmin next Friday, November 14thtells how the Apollonian, introspective young Dutchman entered the industry almost by accident, surrendering to his naturalness and complete disregard for fame, and how, in addition to appearing in more than 140 films, both memorable and not, he signed on for one of the most memorable performances in film history since Blade Runner, the ruthlessness of a replicant. As unbelievable as it may seem, Sanna is a sci-fi classic that people had never seen until just 10 years ago.

“This film is important for a documentary, of course, but I wanted to show everything that goes beyond that, which is a big deal, especially if you focus on Rutger not only as an actor but as a person,” says the debut director. “In that sense, what surprised me the most was… The most unexpected discovery was seeing how much he did for others.».

The documentary is thus a portrait of an introspective but extremely generous and affable man who loved not only the luxuries that fame brought, but also nature and the simplicity and simplicity inherent in a life in close contact with nature. “He loved sailing and climbing…he had more adventures off screen than on screen.”With a laugh, Sanna reiterated Hauer’s altruism as the “big surprise” of his research and made it clear that he didn’t want to overexpose that aspect in the documentary.

Lutgelas Elsen Hauer was born on January 23, 1944 in Breukelen, Utrecht, Netherlands, into a family where acting was an unwritten law, and he spent years trying to escape that law. Although his father, mother and three sisters were actors, he joined the merchant navy at the age of 15 and then worked in construction before joining the army, which was his last paid occupation (he was also a street poet in Amsterdam), returning to the army in 1969 and making his debut in the Dutch television series Floris.

In the same year, after an unsuccessful attempt to participate in a film (“Monsieur Hawarden”), in which his scenes were deleted. He shot to fame when he starred in Paul Verhoeven’s “Turkish Delight.” (1973), and since then he has not missed any work. After making his Hollywood debut in 1981 with Nighthawks (1985) and becoming a cult sensation with Blade Runner the following year, his filmography included such hits as Flesh and Blood (1985), The Hitcher (1986), Escape from Sobibor (1987, Golden Globe winner), and Confessions. Dangerous Minds (2002), Sin City (2005), Batman Begins (2005), and Valerian (2017).

“None of that changed his personality,” Sanna says. “And that’s where his charm, his charm, his charisma came from. He was such a confident guy that everyone wanted to be like him. Sometimes he caused anxiety in the interlocutor. He didn’t like flattery, so even if he had to disappear from public life for a while, he did it with no problem.

Although Hauer never boasted about his successes, “he was particularly proud of The Legend of the Holy Drinker (directed by Ermanno Olmi in 1988, for which he won Best Actor at the Seattle International Film Festival). And, of course, “Blade Runner”» and admitted that she was his goddaughter. “How many people have taken part in a film that has an everlasting scene that is considered one of the best in its genre and continues to generate so much praise and happiness even 20 or 30 years later?”

The Replicant’s speech in the rain, in which he so longed for eternal life, is also a cultural item in its own right, sampled in songs, printed on T-shirts, and tattooed on arms, further reaffirming his immortality. Sana says she still can’t believe Rutger passed away in 2019. “He was such a wonderful human being in every way, and he was always so free to do what he wanted that I wonder if he’ll live on forever.”