Black Book
starring: Carice van Houten, Sebastian Koch, Thom Hoffman, Halina Reijn, Waldemar Kobus
directed by: Paul Verhoeven
directed by: Paul Verhoeven
List Price: $14.94
Prices subject to change.
Price: $8.99
You Save: $5.95 (40%)Prices subject to change.
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Product Description:
In the darkest days of world war ii a dutch resistance cell enlists a sexy spy to go undercover inside a nazi stronghold - where she discovers that the enemy is all too human.Studio: Sony Pictures Home EntRelease Date: 10/28/2008Run time: 146 minutesRating: R
Amazon.com:
As in Basic Instinct, a lovely lady takes the lead in Black Book, but this time Paul Verhoeven has more than cheap thrills in mind. Towards the end of WWII, Rachel Stein (the vibrant Carice von Houten), a Jewish singer, is living with a gentile family in the countryside. When Allied forces bomb the area, she's forced to flee. On her perilous journey to The Hague (Verhoeven's hometown), brunette Rachel joins the Resistance and changes her identity to blonde Ellis de Vries. Her next order of business: infiltrate Gestapo headquarters. Like many Verhoeven heroines, Rachel aces her assignment--and then some. First, she seduces the handsome Captain Müntze (Sebastian Koch, The Lives of Others), then she falls in love with him. Müntze, who returns her affection, isn't what he appears to be, but their relationship puts both at great risk. At this point, the filmmaker expertly kicks the proceedings into high gear, before concluding on a bittersweet note. Naturally, since this is a Verhoeven picture, there's plenty of wry humor and uninhibited sexuality along the way. Starting with 1985's Flesh + Blood, the Dutch director released an American movie every two to three years. After the poorly received Hollow Man, however, Verhoeven took a six-year break. Black Book, a return to his native Holland, was worth the wait. (He began work on the screenplay in the 1980s.) It works triple-time as a thriller, a tribute to Holland's Jewish population, and a poison pen letter to the Dutch opportunists who would attempt to sell them out. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
In the darkest days of world war ii a dutch resistance cell enlists a sexy spy to go undercover inside a nazi stronghold - where she discovers that the enemy is all too human.Studio: Sony Pictures Home EntRelease Date: 10/28/2008Run time: 146 minutesRating: R
Amazon.com:
As in Basic Instinct, a lovely lady takes the lead in Black Book, but this time Paul Verhoeven has more than cheap thrills in mind. Towards the end of WWII, Rachel Stein (the vibrant Carice von Houten), a Jewish singer, is living with a gentile family in the countryside. When Allied forces bomb the area, she's forced to flee. On her perilous journey to The Hague (Verhoeven's hometown), brunette Rachel joins the Resistance and changes her identity to blonde Ellis de Vries. Her next order of business: infiltrate Gestapo headquarters. Like many Verhoeven heroines, Rachel aces her assignment--and then some. First, she seduces the handsome Captain Müntze (Sebastian Koch, The Lives of Others), then she falls in love with him. Müntze, who returns her affection, isn't what he appears to be, but their relationship puts both at great risk. At this point, the filmmaker expertly kicks the proceedings into high gear, before concluding on a bittersweet note. Naturally, since this is a Verhoeven picture, there's plenty of wry humor and uninhibited sexuality along the way. Starting with 1985's Flesh + Blood, the Dutch director released an American movie every two to three years. After the poorly received Hollow Man, however, Verhoeven took a six-year break. Black Book, a return to his native Holland, was worth the wait. (He began work on the screenplay in the 1980s.) It works triple-time as a thriller, a tribute to Holland's Jewish population, and a poison pen letter to the Dutch opportunists who would attempt to sell them out. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Related Items:
Browse for similar items by category:
- VHS » DVD » Genres » Art House & International » General
- VHS » DVD » Genres » Art House & International » By Country » Germany » General AAS
- VHS » DVD » Genres » Art House & International » By Country » Netherlands
- VHS » DVD » Genres » Art House & International » By Country » British Cinema » Mystery & Suspense
- VHS » DVD » Genres » Art House & International » By Country » British Cinema » General
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: 
- A Great Movie Ruined
I just bought this movie for my Dad for Father's Day. He's Dutch, Mom is American, and I thought they both could enjoy watching the movie together.
It turns out that the subtitles ran off the bottom of the screen, so my Dad had to interpret the whole movie.
What a shame. I thought I hit a home run with this present, but I struck out!
Rating: - Zie dames en Heren deze film!
This thriller takes place in Holland (the Hague) near the end of the Second World War where Rachel Stein/Ellis deVriess (Carice van Houten), a Jew, loses her hiding place through a freak accident of war. She borrows money from a prominent lawyer who admonishes her to trust no one. Reunited with her father, mother and brother, she manages to barely escape an ambush. She finds her way to the Resistance where she is asked to infiltrate Gestapo headquarters by establishing a liaison with a Nazi Captain ... Read More
Rating: - Very likely a good movie but with very bad translation
Although this movie was given some good review before, its (English) translation/sub-title is definitely lousy.
Rating: - costume drama
loosely based on truth,a fine film with SUB TITLES...and a dame whosteps out and up to the plate to make a difference.You can quickly pinpoint a villain or two,recognize the heroine but there is a twist so watch out...and watch it
Rating: - The Brutal German Occupation of the Netherlands
This is a very good film.The solitary reason I held back from giving it five stars is due to the liberties taken with the occupation history in order to fit the story into a time frame of September 1944 to May 1945. BLACK BOOK cannot be categorized as a war film.It is a drama thriller, complete with a mystery that is only resolved at the conclusion of the film, set during the final year of World War Two in Europe.
The film's main character is Rachel Stein, who later goes by the name ... Read More
- A Great Movie RuinedI just bought this movie for my Dad for Father's Day. He's Dutch, Mom is American, and I thought they both could enjoy watching the movie together.
It turns out that the subtitles ran off the bottom of the screen, so my Dad had to interpret the whole movie.
What a shame. I thought I hit a home run with this present, but I struck out!
- Zie dames en Heren deze film!This thriller takes place in Holland (the Hague) near the end of the Second World War where Rachel Stein/Ellis deVriess (Carice van Houten), a Jew, loses her hiding place through a freak accident of war. She borrows money from a prominent lawyer who admonishes her to trust no one. Reunited with her father, mother and brother, she manages to barely escape an ambush. She finds her way to the Resistance where she is asked to infiltrate Gestapo headquarters by establishing a liaison with a Nazi Captain ... Read More
- Very likely a good movie but with very bad translationAlthough this movie was given some good review before, its (English) translation/sub-title is definitely lousy
- costume dramaloosely based on truth,a fine film with SUB TITLES...and a dame whosteps out and up to the plate to make a difference.You can quickly pinpoint a villain or two,recognize the heroine but there is a twist so watch out...and watch it
- The Brutal German Occupation of the NetherlandsThis is a very good film.The solitary reason I held back from giving it five stars is due to the liberties taken with the occupation history in order to fit the story into a time frame of September 1944 to May 1945. BLACK BOOK cannot be categorized as a war film.It is a drama thriller, complete with a mystery that is only resolved at the conclusion of the film, set during the final year of World War Two in Europe.
The film's main character is Rachel Stein, who later goes by the name ... Read More
