Learn Hardcore Dutch: In de bioscoopzaal vraag ik me af of iedereen het einde van het plot begrijpt. - In the cinema hall I wonder whether everyone understands the end of the plot.

In de bioscoopzaal vraag ik me af of iedereen het einde van het plot begrijpt.

In the cinema hall I wonder whether everyone understands the end of the plot.

Breakdown of In de bioscoopzaal vraag ik me af of iedereen het einde van het plot begrijpt.

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Questions & Answers about In de bioscoopzaal vraag ik me af of iedereen het einde van het plot begrijpt.

Why does the sentence say vraag ik me af? Isn’t vragen just to ask? Why is it reflexive?

In Dutch, zich afvragen is a fixed expression meaning to wonder (to ask oneself something internally), not to ask another person.

Infinitive: zich afvragen
1st person singular: ik vraag me af
2nd person singular: jij vraagt je af
3rd person singular: hij/zij vraagt zich af

So ik vraag me af literally looks like I ask myself, but idiomatically it means I wonder.
If you said ik vraag of iedereen het einde begrijpt, it would sound like you are actually asking someone a question, not just wondering to yourself.

What is the function of of in of iedereen het einde van het plot begrijpt? I thought of meant or.

Dutch of has two main uses:

As a conjunction meaning "or"
- Wil je koffie of thee? – Do you want coffee or tea?
As a conjunction meaning "if / whether" in indirect yes/no questions
- Ik vraag me af of iedereen het einde begrijpt.
  I wonder if / whether everyone understands the ending.

In this sentence, of introduces an indirect question: whether everyone understands the end of the plot.

Why is the word order In de bioscoopzaal vraag ik me af and not In de bioscoopzaal ik vraag me af?

Dutch has the verb-second rule in main clauses: the conjugated verb must be in the second position.

The first position can be:

the subject (Ik),
or some other element such as a time/place phrase (In de bioscoopzaal).

If you put In de bioscoopzaal first, the verb must come next:

In de bioscoopzaal (1st position)
vraag (2nd position: conjugated verb)
ik me af (rest of the clause)

So:

Ik vraag me in de bioscoopzaal af… – subject first, verb second (also correct).
In de bioscoopzaal vraag ik me af… – adverbial first, verb second (your sentence).
In de bioscoopzaal ik vraag me af… – incorrect word order in Dutch.

In the part of iedereen het einde van het plot begrijpt, why does the verb begrijpt go at the end?

Because of iedereen het einde van het plot begrijpt is a subordinate clause (bijzin) introduced by of.

In Dutch subordinate clauses:

the conjugated verb normally goes to the end.

Word order pattern here:

of (subordinator)
iedereen (subject)
het einde van het plot (object phrase)
begrijpt (conjugated verb at the end)

Compare:

Main clause: Iedereen begrijpt het einde van het plot.
Subordinate clause: … of iedereen het einde van het plot begrijpt.

Why is it iedereen … begrijpt and not something plural like iedereen … begrijpen?

In Dutch, iedereen (everyone) is grammatically singular, just like in English.

So:

Iedereen begrijpt het. – Everyone understands it.
Niemand weet het. – Nobody knows it.

That’s why the verb is begrijpt (3rd person singular), not begrijpen (plural).

What is the difference between me and mij here? Why vraag ik me af and not vraag ik mij af?

Me and mij are both forms of ik in the object case, but:

me is unstressed (clitic), used in normal, neutral speech.
mij is stressed, used for emphasis or contrast.

In a neutral sentence like this, Dutch strongly prefers:

Ik vraag me af…

Using mij:

Ik vraag míj af…
would sound unusually emphatic, like I am the one wondering (as opposed to someone else).

So the natural form is vraag ik me af.

Could I say Ik vraag me in de bioscoopzaal af of… instead? Is that word order correct?

Yes, Ik vraag me in de bioscoopzaal af of iedereen het einde van het plot begrijpt is grammatically correct.

The reflexive construction zich afvragen can be split:

Ik vraag me af of…
Ik vraag me in de bioscoopzaal af of…

Both are acceptable.
Your original version with In de bioscoopzaal vraag ik me af of… just puts the place phrase at the beginning for emphasis or style.

What’s the difference between bioscoop and bioscoopzaal?

de bioscoop = the cinema/movie theater (the whole establishment or business)
- We gaan vanavond naar de bioscoop. – We’re going to the movies tonight.
de bioscoopzaal = the actual auditorium / screen room inside the cinema where the movie is shown.

So:

In de bioscoop – somewhere in the cinema (lobby, hall, or theater).
In de bioscoopzaal – specifically in the screening room, during the showing.

In your sentence, bioscoopzaal emphasizes that this is happening while seated in the theater itself.

Why is it het plot and not de plot? And is plot used like in English?

In standard Dutch, plot (storyline/plot) is neuter, so it takes het:

het plot van de film – the plot of the film
het plot begrijpen – to understand the plot

You may hear de plot in casual speech, but dictionaries and standard language use het plot.

Yes, plot is used similarly to English:

the narrative structure of a film, book, etc.

However, Dutch speakers also very often say:

het verhaal (the story)
de ontknoping (the ending / resolution) depending on context.

Why is there no comma before of in … vraag ik me af of iedereen …? Would a comma be wrong?

In Dutch, a comma before a subordinate clause (like one starting with of, dat, omdat, etc.) is often optional, especially when the clause follows directly and the sentence is not too long.

So both are acceptable:

In de bioscoopzaal vraag ik me af of iedereen het einde van het plot begrijpt.
In de bioscoopzaal vraag ik me af, of iedereen het einde van het plot begrijpt.

Many writers omit the comma in a sentence of this length. Including a comma is more common when:

the sentence is long or complex, or
the comma helps readability.

Here, leaving it out is perfectly normal.

Could I use snappen instead of begrijpen here? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can say:

In de bioscoopzaal vraag ik me af of iedereen het einde van het plot snapt.

Differences:

begrijpen – neutral, slightly more formal; works in all registers.
snappen – more informal, spoken language, a bit more colloquial.

Meaning-wise, they are very close here:

begrijpen ≈ to understand
snappen ≈ to get it / to catch it

In everyday conversation, snappen is very common. In writing or more formal contexts, begrijpen is safer.

Could I change the tense in the last part? For example, say … of iedereen het einde van het plot begreep or … zal begrijpen?

Yes, you can change the tense, but the meaning shifts:

… of iedereen het einde van het plot begrijpt.
- Present tense: you are wondering now whether they (now) understand the ending.
… of iedereen het einde van het plot begreep.
- Past tense: you are wondering whether they understood it at some past time (e.g. right after the film ended yesterday).
… of iedereen het einde van het plot zal begrijpen.
- Future: you wonder whether they will understand the ending later.

In your original context (sitting in the theater, thinking about what people make of the ending as they see it), the present tense begrijpt is the most natural.