Sunday, April 29, 2007

Black Book


What a crass, vulgar, perverse and offensive film it is! Paul Verhoeven, the Dutch director behind such lurid camp classics like Basic Instinct and Showgirls, returns to his home country after a long time but keeps his sensibilities intact, even when the subject is as serious as the second world war and persecution of Jews. I guess, one could have praised the irreverence that he shows here as something refreshing, had there been any evidence of seriousness of intent, but without that it is just crass and in bad-taste, and I mean bad bad-taste.

The story is about how a Jewish girl named Rachel (played with some really uncommon energy and gusto by someone called Clarice van Houten) survives the Nazi occupation by joining the resistance and spying against the Nazis. The title in the beginning claims that it is based on "real events" but the treatment makes it look like some third-grade pulp fiction, what with one jaw-droppingly weird sequence after another. In one Rachel mistakes the gun of the Nazi she has been sleeping with (a "good" and "sensitive" Nazi) with his erection. In another she dyes her pubic hair blonde, of course shown in close-up! There are many other scenes which are so ridiculous and so crass that they are neither funny nor erotic. To give the film some semblance of moral complexity the good Nazi mentioned above is counterbalanced by vile and scheming resistance fighters. Everybody is shit, you see! That's the profound moral lesson of the film. But yes overall it is very efficiently made. If you can leave your scruples at home, you might even be entertained. Otherwise irredeemably worthless in my opinion. Strictly for connoisseurs of bad-taste. jim hoberman seems to like it a little. other reviews here.

7 comments:

Szerelem said...

Can I saw Eeew wven if I have not seen it?

Alok said...

yes, and I left out a few scenes in my post too.

Cheshire Cat said...

I must confess I love Verhoeven. "Starship Troopers" is one of the all-time great movies. Embarrassingly, I haven't seen "Showgirls". I should definitely catch "Black Book" if I can...

Falstaff said...

Actually, I didn't think it was that bad. I think you need to go into it completely clear that what you're going to see is pure escapist entertainment and not in any way a meaningful, serious comment on the Holocaust, the Resistance, or anything else. It's like a commando comic, only with more sex. Once you've got that straight (and don't let the first fifteen minutes fool you into thinking otherwise) it's a fast-paced, slickly done thriller that manages to be fairly funny (without intending to). It's like Schindler's List meets 'allo 'allo.

Alok said...

cat: i have seen starship troopers only in bits and pieces on TV. I think you will like Black Book then :)

falstaff: I realized this but still I thought this subject matter was too serious to get this treatment. bad taste and camp can have their own artistic and political significance but I don't think it was used thoughtfully here.

Cheshire Cat said...

I found it rather inoffensive - I wish it had lived up more to the description you gave! Basically, "Candide" set in Nazi Holland.

Alok said...

okay, I do have a reputation for having a stiff upper lip. :)