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Impression of an old two-lane road, where countless fatal accidents happened in the busy lorry and commuter traffic, until the road was recently relieved by a new main road.
The trees are beset with scars of vehicles that bored their way into them and the shoulders are full of monuments to road casualties. The Napoleonsbaan, the connecting road between Blerick and Ittervoort in Limburg, has a long and bloody history. The construction of the A73-Zuid motorway will put an end to this situation. Previous measures had already reduced the danger. This atmospheric impression introduces people living by the Napoleonsbaan who, often in the Limburg dialect, tell about the victims that fell in their vicinity. 'When we hear a bang, it is usually serious', they knew when another crash took place. A retired customs officer explains how a motorcyclist was beheaded because he did not notice the border crossing barrier. A glazier keeps doing his job regardless. A cattle farmer takes care of his father who is growing demented. Although immense lorries thunder past one after the other, in the roadhouse people talk about the pleasures of living here. Since the traffic situation has changed, it takes some getting used to the deafening silence on this former deathtrap.

Credits

Director
Producer
Co-producer
Production company
Hans Heijnen Filmmaker
TV company
L1 televisie

Title: Doden weg - Zonen van de Napoleonsbaan
Year: 2008
Duration : 55 minutes
Category: Short Documentary
Edition: NFF 2008

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