by Fiona Underhill

Paul Verhoeven is best known for his schlocky and shockingly violent sci-films (Robocop, Total Recall, and Starship Troopers) and his sex-and-nudity-filled 90s thrillers (Basic Instinct and Showgirls). Two central themes of his career have been fascism (depicted via graphic violence) and fetishism (depicted via graphic sex) and these two themes continue into his World War Two drama Black Book. Zwartboek (to give it its Dutch title) was a return to Verhoeven’s homeland. He had made many Dutch-language films in the 1970s, regularly collaborating with Rutger Hauer and his 1973 film Turkish Delight (aka The Sensualist) was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards. But Black Book was a return to Dutch-language films after a 23 year gap and to themes closer to home.