Yogi Da (2026) Review: Bitter Dinner Parties in Black and White

This Yogi Da review covers a film that is not what its listings suggest. Yogi Da (2026) is the English-facing title for the Dutch drama Dagboek van een zwakke yogi, directed by Pim de la Parra. It is a small, black-and-white study of two couples, not the action film some blurbs describe.

Yogi Da Review: The Story So Far (No Spoilers)

The Yogi Da plot centres on two friendly couples. Audrey is a successful novelist married to Derek, a professor in paradoxical logic. Loes, a motorcycle mechanic and horse owner, lives with the painter Robert.

On the surface the four get along. Once they spend time together, though, petty grievances, jealousy and quiet mid-life frustration start to show. The film follows how those irritations turn into darkly comic complications and harsher psychological clashes.

A note on confusion: a Tamil action film also carries the name Yogi Da, about a police officer fighting corruption. That is a different film. This review covers the Dutch one, which fits the cast, director and runtime listed here.

What Works in Yogi Da

The premise is simple and well suited to a short running time. At 82 minutes, the film stays close to its characters and does not pad out its ideas.

The minimalist black-and-white approach gives the drama a stripped-back, intimate feel. According to Hollandse Film, it was shot in ten days in Amsterdam and Rotterdam. It is also the last of fifteen minimalist films De la Parra made in the 1990s, so it reads as the end of a deliberate creative run.

A Dutch review cited on Letterboxd, rated 3.5 by Cinemagazine, says the film carries the atmosphere of the liberal artist communities that grew out of the squatting era, a way of life already fading. That sense of a world on its way out gives the story some texture beyond the relationship squabbles.

The film also leans toward nouvelle vague style. If you like talky, character-led European cinema, that will be a draw.

Yogi Da Cast and Performances

The Yogi Da cast is built around its two pairs of leads:

• Kamaran Abdulla as Derek van Romondt

• Manouk van der Meulen as Audrey van Romondt

• Dela Maria Vaags as Loes van Moorsel

• Robert C. Smith as Robert Menzel

• Marcel Faber as Diederik van Zwieten

The ensemble has to carry the film, since so much depends on conversation and tension between people. The Dutch review mentioned above calls the acting somewhat affected, which it describes as a traditional blemish of Dutch film. That stylised delivery may suit some viewers and bother others.

I would not judge the cast on one note. The format asks for a theatrical, heightened tone, and your tolerance for it will shape how much you enjoy the film.

Where Yogi Da Stumbles

The main weakness is accessibility. Public information about the film is thin, with no critics' consensus or major aggregate scores that I could find, and the only audience rating listed is a single vote. That makes it hard to promise a broad crowd-pleaser.

The stylised acting is the second hurdle. Where the drama needs to feel raw, an affected performance can create distance.

Finally, the film had a troubled path to release. Hollandse Film notes it was delayed for years by tragic circumstances and legal problems. That context is worth knowing, though it also means the film arrives as a late artefact of another era rather than a fresh, current voice.

Is Yogi Da Worth Watching?

Yes, if you want a short, offbeat Dutch drama and know what to expect. It is a minimalist art-house piece, not an action movie, and it rewards patience more than excitement.

Its brief runtime makes it an easy risk. The black-and-white look, the dry humour of couples grating on each other, and the historical footnote of De la Parra's final minimalist film all give it value for curious viewers.

If you came looking for fight scenes and a crime-busting heroine, skip it and browse our action movie reviews instead. If you prefer relationship stories with a bitter edge, our drama movie reviews and comedy movie reviews are better places to start.

The Yogi Da release date in Dutch cinemas is 3 September 2026. For more background, see the film's TMDB page.

Who Will Enjoy Yogi Da

• Fans of Pim de la Parra and minimalist Dutch cinema.

• Viewers who like dialogue-driven dramas about relationships under strain.

• Anyone drawn to black-and-white, nouvelle vague-flavoured films with a short running time.