Holland is a mystery thriller starring Nicole Kidman, and it has some shocking twists and turns that completely change the main character’s fate. Nicole Kidman has had a very successful couple of years recently, and her streak continues with Holland. Directed by Mimi Cave, Holland takes the audience to the тιтle town in Michigan, known for its tulips, windmill, and for being a small community. Holland follows Nancy Vandergroot (Kidman), a teacher living with her husband, Fred Vandergroot (Matthew Macfadyen), and their son Harry (Jude Hill).
The Vandergroots live a calm life in Holland until Nancy begins to suspect that Fred is cheating on her. Nancy confides in fellow teacher Dave (Gael García Bernal), who arrived in town not long ago, and convinces him to help her find out what Fred is up to. Nancy and David develop strong feelings for each other, and they set out to find evidence of Fred’s cheating so Nancy can leave him without remorse. However, they make a disturbing discovery about Fred, which completely changes their plans and views.
What Really Happened To Nancy’s Husband Fred In Holland
Fred Vandergroot Was Living A Disturbing Double Life
Fred Vandergroot is an optometrist, and because Holland is a small town, everyone knows who he is. Fred constantly goes out of town for work, which Nancy had never found suspicious until she finds a receipt in his pocket that contradicts where he supposedly had been. This is the beginning of Nancy’s spiral, as she’s convinced Fred has been cheating on her, even though she doesn’t really have proof. Nancy doesn’t get answers right away, making Holland a slow-burn mystery that, once it gets to its third act, amps up the pace.
After Nancy drops her jewelry at Fred’s office when breaking into it at night, Fred confronts her, telling her they should just hit “reset” and move on. However, Nancy is already into Dave, who helped her break into Fred’s office, and though she wants to leave Fred, she wants to have proof of his infidelity, so she has a solid reason to leave him. At that moment, her only clues are a box of Polaroid film and the first receipt.
When Fred goes out of town again, Dave and Nancy follow him. Nancy breaks into his H๏τel room while Dave keeps an eye on Fred at the H๏τel’s bar, and Nancy finds underwear, handcuffs, and dog treats in his room. This still isn’t enough to confirm Fred is cheating on her, but Nancy has to return home to pick Harry up, so Dave stays to continue following Fred. Meanwhile, Nancy does her own research at the town’s library with some details she finds in Fred’s town model.
Nancy finds out about many women who disappeared and were later found ᴅᴇᴀᴅ, while Dave finds Fred meeting a young woman. When Dave breaks into the house, he sees the woman’s dogs eating the treats, while in another room, Fred is caught murdering the young woman. Dave and Fred get into a fight, resulting in Fred being stabbed with his own knife and falling into the lake. Dave returns to Holland and lets Nancy know that she and Harry are now safe, but there’s still one more surprise for them.
When Nancy calls Harry for help, she finds him outside with Fred, who survived his fight with Dave.
During Holland’s Tulip Time festival, Nancy’s friends tell her they saw Fred not long ago, and Dave spots him in the crowd. Nancy panics and takes Harry to a nearby motel, with Dave following them. Dave panics and tells Nancy they should alert the police, but she stops him and a TV falls on his head. When Nancy calls Harry for help, she finds him outside with Fred, who survived his fight with Dave. As he has always done, Fred tries to gaslight Nancy again, once more telling her they will just hit “reset”, but Nancy is determined to fight for her and Harry.
Back in the car, Nancy makes Fred stop and tells Harry to run, while she defends herself with Dave’s gun. Nancy shoots Fred but misses, only hitting his cheek and ear, and after Harry tries to defend her but is pushed away by Fred, Nancy takes a clog and beats him to death. Fred never pays for his crimes, but Nancy finally stops him from killing more women.
What Happened To Dave In Holland’s Ending
Dave’s Fate Is Left Ambiguous
Dave is a recent arrival in Holland and a teacher at the same school as Nancy. Dave is shown to care about those around him, including his students, but he faces racism as he’s Mexican. Still, he’s always willing to help, so much so that he puts himself on the danger line to help Nancy. Although Dave wants to be with Nancy, he stops himself as he doesn’t feel it’s right due to Nancy being married, and he wants to protect his feelings. However, when Nancy tells him she’s leaving Fred, Dave offers himself to get her the proof she needs of Fred’s infidelity.
Dave has nightmares of Fred in the lake and waking up, as well as of the dogs of the murdered woman licking her blood from the floor.
After his confrontation with Fred, Dave is convinced Fred is ᴅᴇᴀᴅ, but he’s still very paranoid about it. Dave has nightmares of Fred in the lake and waking up, as well as of the dogs of the murdered woman licking her blood from the floor. Determined to keep Nancy and Harry safe, Dave takes his gun and attends the tulip festival, where he sees Fred among the crowd. As mentioned above, Dave meets Nancy at the motel and tries to convince her to call the police, but she pushes him and a TV falls on his head, injuring him.
When Nancy returns to the motel room after killing Fred, Dave is gone, and the final voiceover in Holland changes between Dave and Nancy. Dave survives his wounds, and he most likely leaves Holland after what happened with Nancy and Fred. The final narration in Holland doesn’t mention Dave and Nancy getting together, so it’s safe to ᴀssume he disappeared after that day.
What Fred’s Town Model In Holland Really Means
Fred’s Town Model Wasn’t Just A Hobby
There’s a lot of focus on Fred’s town model from the beginning of Holland, with the camera going through it during the opening credits. Fred and Harry spend quality time together in the garage, where they work together on the town model. Although the audience is led to see the town model as nothing more than a hobby Fred likes to share with Harry, there’s something a lot more sinister behind the town model, which isn’t a replica of Holland.
The first clue to something not being right with the town model is when Nancy spots a sign in one of the model’s houses that she saw in one of Fred’s Polaroids. A quick research throws the name of Lacey Anne, who Nancy later learns was murdered three years ago. Nancy’s research leads to finding more women killed in the last few years and around the Holland area, and she makes the connection between them and the houses and streets in Fred’s model. The town model, then, is Fred’s own register of all the murders he has committed.
Do Nancy & Harry Leave Holland?
Nancy & Harry’s Fate Might Not Be What The Audience Expects
When Dave tells Nancy that she’s safe and Fred won’t return (as he believes he’s ᴅᴇᴀᴅ), Nancy doesn’t have the reaction he hoped for. Instead of agreeing to leave town with Dave and Harry, Nancy tells him they can’t because Harry’s life will be impacted and they can’t leave before the festival. Nancy tells Dave they will just keep Fred’s actions and fate hidden like they always do. Throughout Holland, Nancy is shown to be very traditional, but she has always struggled with agency.
Holland has become Nancy’s safe place, and even if her husband is a serial killer, she’s not ready to leave the safest place she has ever had.
Nancy explains at the beginning that Fred “rescued” her and brought her to Holland, where she has the perfect life – or that’s what she thought. Holland has become Nancy’s safe place, and even if her husband is a serial killer, she’s not ready to leave the safest place she has ever had, and one where she’s very comfortable. It’s understood at the end of Holland that Nancy and Harry don’t leave town, and they simply move on together from everything that happened with Fred.
Holland’s Final Line Explained
Holland’s Final Line Could Potentially Change The Whole Movie
Everything Dave and Nancy go through together is enough to make them question if it was real, but it doesn’t literally mean that most of Holland didn’t happen.
The voiceover narration at the end of Holland begins with Dave and starts to overlap with Nancy’s, as they share the same feelings of fear, insecurity, and feeling invisible. Nancy says she finally found a way out, but both Dave and Nancy wonder if everything “was even real.” Nancy finds a way out of her marriage, though not exactly Holland, while Dave finds a way out of town – a town that wasn’t welcoming to him in the first place. Everything Dave and Nancy go through together is enough to make them question if it was real, but it doesn’t literally mean that most of Holland didn’t happen.
Dave and Nancy find in each other the comfort, support, and company they lack, but they ultimately have very different views on life and want different things. Dave witnesses a murder and almost kills a man, while Nancy learns that her husband is a serial killer and thus has to fight for her and her son’s safety. It’s understandable that Dave and Nancy would wonder if what they went through together was real or not, but it definitely was – it just goes to show how everyone sees the world differently and copes with its horrors the best way they can.
