Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2389 in DVD
• Released on: 2007-04-30
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
• Formats: DVD-Video, PAL, Colour, Widescreen, Subtitled
• Original language: Dutch
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 140 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Absent from the directors’ chair for over half a decade, Paul Verhoeven returns to business with the engaging thriller Black Book, and it finds him once again near the top of his game.

Leaving the disappointing Hollow Man firmly in the rear view mirror, and more in keeping with his original Dutch films than his infamous Hollywood output (Basic Instinct, Robocop, Starship Troopers and Showgirls all sit on his CV), Black Book is the story of a refugee by the name of Rachel Stein in the second World War, who embarks on a quest for revenge when her family are killed. Stein joins up with the Resistance, and is giving the mission of using her seductive charms to infiltrate the German Security Service, and the ingredients then fall into place for a labyrinthine thriller of some quality.

Black Book works for several reasons. Firstly, lead actress Carice von Houten is quite excellent, while the tight screenplay is happy to provoke questions and keep the complex plot in check. Verhoeven, too, directs well, occasionally relying a little too much on one or two of his conventions, but nonetheless delivering an engrossing piece of cinema.

For sure, Black Book isn’t perfect, and there are films that treat the material with more gravitas than is on display here. But it’s still a strong, well-made thriller, and one that leaves you hoping its director won’t be away for quite so long next time. --Jon Foster

DVD Description
September 1944 – Nazi Occupied Holland. When her temporary safe house is destroyed by a bomb, the beautiful young Jewish chanteuse Rachel Stein joins fellow refugees in an attempt to reach safe Allied territory by boat. Tragedy strikes when a Nazi patrol intercepts their escape, ruthlessly killing everybody onboard including Rachel’s family; only Rachel escapes the massacre. Embittered and desperate for revenge, she joins the Resistance where, assigned a new identity as the blond Ellis de Vries, she is charged with infiltrating the German Security Service by seducing senior officer Muntze. Without warning she becomes entangled in a deadly web of double-dealing and betrayal

Twenty years in the making, this stunning, sexy thriller from the internationally acclaimed director Paul Verhoeven (Basic Instinct, Total Recall) is an epic and moving tale of great courage and fierce emotion – played out against the dying explosive months of WWII.

Synopsis
Dutch filmmaker Paul Verhoeven made his name in Hollywood with films such as ROBOCOP, BASIC INSTINCT, and STARSHIP TROOPERS. But Verhoeven got his start in the industry by making films (the acclaimed SPETTERS and SOLDIER OF ORANGE among them) in his native country, and it's to Holland that he returns for BLACK BOOK--his first Dutch film in 20 years. The story is set during the final days of World War II in Holland, and follows a Jewish singer named Rachel Stein (Carice Van Houten). Rachel attempts to avoid the Nazis and remains in quiet hiding until her family is brutally slain, causing her to join up with a resistance movement. On a subsequent undercover mission, Rachel crosses paths with a smitten German general named Ludwig Muntze (Sebastian Koch), with whom Rachel begins a relationship in order to feed vital information back to her colleagues in the resistance. But as the action and bloodshed escalate, Rachel realises that she has genuine feelings for Muntze, and soon she is in enormous danger. Verhoeven's film is wildly ambitious and takes many intriguing twists and turns during its 146 minutes. BLACK BOOK commanded the largest budget of any film to be produced in Holland, and it shows. Explosions litter the screen, plenty of car chases ensue, and wince-inducing injuries and deaths propel the action. The director isn't afraid to criticise his fellow countrymen and inserts a fascinating subtext about the actions of the resistance fighters, asking some uncomfortable questions about the similarities between their behavior and that of the Nazis. Van Houten lights up the screen throughout and is surely destined for bigger things, and while the tumultuous experiences her character undergoes might push the boundaries of reality at times, Verhoeven has pointed out in interviews that Rachel is a composite character who encompasses the merged experiences of many real people from the era.

Customer Reviews

Gripping stuff!!
This has to be one of the best Non-English WWII action/drama films I have seen. The acting, costumes and special affects not to mention the overall ambience were excellent. Even though mainly in Dutch, German Hebrew and English were mixed in and I found myself understanding the conversations without constantly being glued to the subtitles.

The heroine shows such gutsy determination to endure and not give in to despair when all around is collapsing - without giving too much away; I was particularly impressed with the script for her lover towards the end of the movie - a German not making a 'cut and run' at wars end? a nice twist.

With so many twists and turns this should keep any war film buff happy for a couple of hours. Although the heroine is saved from many near death incidents (one or two a bit implausible) overall having rented this first I have since added it to my owned collection.

Colourful in just about every sense...
A movie which is both highly entertaining and thought provoking, Black Book is about the most Hollywood-like movie to ever come out of Europe. Paul Verhoeven returned to Holland after 20 years to make this epic (in Dutch and German for the most part) about the Dutch resistance in WW II.
Carice van Houten is magnificent in a role which I expect she will always be remembered. She can switch from whimsy to intensity, and passion to despair, and still hold your attention through the whole journey. It's a long journey too, about 2 and a half hours. And yet, the action, plot twists, and crucially the characters, keep you engaged throughout. Scratch that - not just engaged - on the edge of your seat. If there is a downside, it is that as so often with Paul Verhoeven's US output, with all the bright colours, frequent nudity and non stop action, we are almost voyeurs of the occupation, rather than growing to despise it.
The lush saturated colours and technical perfection are holdovers from the highly produced style Verhoeven perfected in America with Basic Instinct and Total Recall amongst others. And yet, while all the style and technical elements scream Hollywood, there is a European sensibility here when it comes to the story and characters. The characters are never ciphers but enter into real shades of grey. Sebastian Koch's Gestapo Chief Muentze is a delight - a Gestapo Chief who collects stamps, has a conscience.. and is perhaps even someone with whom the heroine can fall in love with.
There are underlying ideas here being explored - what would you be prepared to do? When is killing another person right.. is it still murder when it is the right thing to do? But rather than make this an issue movie which seriously and earnestly displays angst, this is an action romp with a compelling whodunit at its core.
This is therefore an exciting action thriller in Hollywood, style, but with some thought provoking ideas thrown in. Don't be put off by the foreign languages.. if you only see one Dutch movie this year, then this is the one!

A great war epic
I was very impressed with this beautiful Dutch film about the resistance to the German occupation towards the end of the WW2.

The film follows Rachel ( Carice von Houten ) a Jewish woman hiding from the Nazis who ends up working as a spy for the resistance and meets a German commander ( Sebastian Koch,her real life partner ) and a very dangerous relationship develops and that forms the interesting part of the movie.

The plot is a bit jumpy and in some parts it does not connect the sequences very well ,the cinematography is superb and the best thing in this movie is the brilliant performance of the 2 main actors ( I am sure we will see Carice von Houten in much bigger productions very soon , she makes most Hollywood starts look dull ).

The direction by Paul Verhoeven is excellent and comes back to the theme he addressed in soldier of orange but perhaps this time the final product is more successful.

In summary a great war drama made in Europe with European actors based on real events that should make some recent American directors be ashamed of themselves.

5 stars