Portrait of Dr.Henriette Boas (1911-2001)
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This is the story of an uncompromising woman almost everybody loved to hate. Born in 1911 as the child of Marcus Boas, a Jewish professor who dedicated his life to science, Henriette Boas was considered a genius. At the age of 2 she would quote Homer to her father’s students. She graduated form the university with honors. But the woman widely considered a great mind “only” tirelessly wrote thousands of letters to the editor. Most Dutch readers knew her as ”Dr. Henriette Boas, Badheovendorp”. Anyone who made even the most trivial mistake could expect a letter signed by her. She was the persistent watchdog whenever anything was written about Israel or Judaism. In this capacity, she was often frowned upon by Jews and gentiles alike. Henriette Boas, a woman who admired intellect and despised emotion, never got married. She said she was married to the Jewish cause.
A troublesome woman constantly finding fault?
A true warrior with a strong sense of justice and a love of truth?
The woman who made writing letters to the editor her life’s work was an outsider by nature. Her uncompromising character led her to expose two of the most controversial affairs in the post-war Netherlands. The film shows Henriette Boas and the role she played in the Netherlands, and also the individual Henriette Boas from her birth in 1911 to her death in 2001 at the age of 89.
Research: Daphne Meijer, David de Jongh, Shaul Kesslassi
Scenario: Daphne Meijer, Shaul Kesslassi
Produced, directed and edited by: Shaul Kesslassi
