A period piece that draws you in despite some questionable plot arcs and convenient gaps in judgment amongst characters. That aside, this is a tense pic that has its hands deep in the oil wells of reality, pumping away to generate tension, excitement, confrontation and some timely duets by the main architect of the Netherlands gestapo despite not being it's head. there are both sympathetic scenes and exaggerated action and rolled up in hard to believe plot where the obvious is overlooked.Mind you, I believe that was the point the director was attempting to make about the reality of the time. Flashes on our starlets breast and bush did nothing to add to either element, if only to add brashness to our character, but to the detriment of suspense of disbelief. Not that sex wasn't used by both sides to get what they wanted or needed, but it was pedaled more than bought and that's a bit hard to swallow. The acting is above par but definitely mixed all along, confusing this viewer and adding to the overall thought that the high cost film was spiraling and had to wrap up before these inconsistencies could grow further.

An excellent rendition of the plight of the Dutch, especially those of Jewish descent, under Nazi occupation. Most Jews did not survive under Nazi occupation and this is the story of a woman determined not only to survive but to avenge the atrocities of the SS and Gestapo.Most English-speaking viewers will need the English subtitles to follow the film. Being a Dutch film, the Dutch language is of course flawless and the occasional smattering of English as well.My only gripe is that whereas a large part of the film is spoken in German, the language is often spoken very poorly, both in terms of pronunciation and grammar. For example, it is common in most of the Netherlands to leave the "n" silent in infinitives and plurals ending in "en", but this is not the case in German. Nevertheless, this central Netherlands affectation gets applied equally to the German-speaking passages in the film. In addition, most of the Dutch actors struggle excessively with German nouns. Most irritating was "das Vleugel" which should be "der Fluegel". No excuse, given that vleugel isn't a neuter in Dutch either. Another example: "aufmachen" (infinitive) is used where the imperative ("mach auf") is required instead.Apart from that distraction, which non-reasonable-German-speaking viewers won't be afflicted by, it is a good story with plenty of suspense and is well acted.

I once knew a Dutch lady who as a young girl had lived through the Battle of Arnhem. Asked what she thought of the film 'A Bridge too Far' she said: 'It wasn't like that at all'. 'Zwartboek', a film on the theme of resistance and repression in the Netherlands during World War II, has an even more tenuous link to reality, although Verhoeven has invested heavily in making the thing look realistic: dialogues in four languages; lots of historic vehicles and aircraft; celebrations of the liberation modelled on colour pictures available from those days; soup kitchens with boys scraping out the food containers; the delectable Carice van Houten dyeing all her hair in order to become Aryan Ellis instead of Jewish Rachel. That includes her pubic hair, and here we get a glimpse (or two) of what Verhoeven really wanted to do with this picture: make lots of money. Which is fine, and not something most Dutch film directors are good at.'Zwartboek' is not a documentary. But if you spend so much on recreating reality you might as well do it properly – I want value for money when I watch a film. Knowing a few things about pre-1960s planes I felt cheated right at the start: Verhoeven might have rented an authentic German plane to intercept the American bomber – they are available. Then, in order to gain height, the stricken bomber jettisons its bombs. Quite logical, but it would do that in one go, not as shown: one, just a splash in the lake… two, a bit of an explosion right next to the little yacht carrying Rachel and a friend which briefly rocks the boat… three – wham!!! There goes the remote farm in which she hides from the Nazis. These are on the spot in half a minute (I timed them), Rachel's identity card is found and the fun can start.Some scenes in the film hit home alright. But there is just too much nonsense: A river barge is to take a number of refugees through the Biesbosch marshes to the safety of the liberated south of the Netherlands. This sort of thing did happen regularly towards the end of the war, but not on that (dangerous) scale and the skipper would (a) never have set out in broad daylight; (b) have made sure that his passengers were hidden below deck instead of lounging on top as if on a cruise. But of course that makes it easier for them to be shot, which happens. After a hit in the forehead the indestructible Rachel makes her escape.Ellis and the rather nice Sicherheitsdienst officer (something of a contradiction) she will eventually bed for the sake of the resistance get friendly over… his stamp collection! Well, this apparently happened in those days: I read somewhere that war-time US president Roosevelt seduced a woman that way. (Our heroine – a feminist touch - does the philatelic seducing).Why on earth would the baddie risk his life in the shootout in the cellar of the SD building? And why would the Germans have bothered setting such a risky trap when they could quite simply have blocked the coal chute of the cellar? (Likely answer: because then there would have been no reason for a shootout).The cauldron of ordure poured out over Ellis as a suspected 'Moffenhoer' (Nazi whore). It is a fact that those suspected of collaborating with the Germans were often subjected to inhuman treatment; but this is Grand Guignol theatre, Wagner from the sewers.I was soon laughing again, though. The near-final scene, where the baddie gets screwed (literally) in his coffin, was straight out of Polanski's 'Fearless Vampire Killers'. A real howler.I have known people who were in the Dutch resistance, who were imprisoned in German camps, who spent years in hiding. I am pretty certain that they would have found this film cheap, in spite of all the expense, and that they would have said: 'It wasn't like that at all.'

Wonder how this stayed under my radar for so long while having so many things in excess - runtime, dramatization, graphic content be it sex or violence, production values, contriving, the number of characters and tragically failed missions. But what was hard to believe was the text that said in the beginning - based on real life events. Were they just referring to WWII in the backdrop? Though Carice van Houten gives her best shot, this multidimensional dream character was never converted to an Oscar vehicle.Backdrop is Denmark has come under Nazi rule and Jews are fleeing the country. Carice van Houten (Rachel Stein) is a Jew living in hiding. When her hideout is blown, she tries to make a run out of the country. She gets together with her family and gets on a boat. Rachel alone escapes a ruthless slaughter when a German patrol boat intercepts them. After she smuggles herself back into the city helped by a resistance group, she decides to fight for their cause. Her role is to setup a honey trap to a German Captain and assumes a new identity as Ellis de Vries.Carice van Houten fits the role perfectly upon her looks where she has to be equally cute, sexy and generous on nudity. Production values were extravagant for bringing an authentic feel to the period. With too many melodramatic moments and a highly commercial approach to presentation has not done enough justice to live up to the words in the beginning 'Based on real life events'. The resistance group is full of caricature characters you will find in any sort of group - an aggressor, a thinker, a comedian, a guilt driven paranoid etc. The dilemmas, perspectives and consequences that happen on the immediate aftermath of German surrender to the Allied Forces has never been dealt before - that too this period is not just a commentary based factual display but a proper thriller thread is induced here. Background score found wanting of elevation at certain moments, the action sequences look dated for its time.Seduce you through sex, violence and drama