Black Book (2006)
"Zwartboek" (original title)

In the Nazi-occupied Netherlands during World War II, a Jewish singer infiltrates the regional Gestapo headquarters for the Dutch resistance.

Director:

Paul Verhoeven

Writers:

Gerard Soeteman, Paul Verhoeven

Stars:

Carice van Houten, Sebastian Koch, Thom Hoffman

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 14 wins & 17 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Carice van Houten	...	Rachel Stein / Ellis de Vries
Sebastian Koch	...	Ludwig Müntze
Thom Hoffman	...	Hans Akkermans
Halina Reijn	...	Ronnie
Waldemar Kobus	...	Günther Franken
Derek de Lint	...	Gerben Kuipers
Christian Berkel	...	General Käutner
Dolf de Vries	...	Notary Wim Smaal
Peter Blok	...	Van Gein
Michiel Huisman	...	Rob
Ronald Armbrust	...	Tim Kuipers
Frank Lammers	...	Kees
Matthias Schoenaerts	...	Joop
Johnny de Mol	...	Theo
Xander Straat	...	Maarten

Storyline

Israel 1956. Rachel, a Jew, rather unexpectedly meets an old friend at the kibbutz where she is working as a teacher. It brings back memories of her experiences in The Netherlands during the war, memories of betrayal. September 1944. Rachel is in trouble when her hiding place is bombed by allied troops. She gets in contact with a man from the resistance and joins a group of Jews who are to be smuggled across the Biesbosch by boat to the freed South Netherlands. Germans from a patrol boat murder them all however. Only Rachel is able to escape. She is rescued by a resistance group under the leadership of Gerben Kuipers. When Kuipers' son is captured after trying to smuggle weapons, he asks Rachel to seduce SS-hauptsturmführer Ludwig Müntze. Soon she will find out the attack in the Biesbosch wasn't a coincidence.

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Plot Keywords:

resistance | hiding | boat | nazi | escape | 

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Taglines:

To fight the enemy, she must become one of them.

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some strong violence, graphic nudity, sexuality and language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [nl] Official site [us]

Country:

Netherlands

Language:

Dutch German English Hebrew

Release Date:

14 September 2006 (Netherlands)

Also Known As:

Black Book

Filming Locations:

's-Gravenhage, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands

Box Office

Budget:

$21,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$112,521 (USA) (6 April 2007)

Gross:

$4,398,392 (USA) (17 August 2007)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fu Works, Egoli Tossell Film, Clockwork Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

145 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The movie was almost canceled in 2004, when many of the (foreign) companies that had promised to fund the movie, had not yet paid up. Production was abruptly green-lit again in the autumn of 2005, when the 16 million Euro budget was finally secured. This allowed the production team only a couple of months for principal photography.

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Goofs

In a scene shot in a powder room, on the wall behind the actress one can see a modern type lavatory-paper holder which did not exist in that time.

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Quotes

Gerben Kuipers: We will kill that girl! However, wherever, whenever.

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Connections

Referenced in Allemaal film: Betere tijden (2007)

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Soundtracks

"Divertimento in D Major"
Written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

User Reviews

Why there's no exact line between good or bad...

When I read all the comments about Zwartboek, it becomes clear to me that either you like the movie or you kind of hate it. What is that with good and bad that we want to make an exact line... This whole movie is about not knowing if you can do bad things (kill, betray or whatever) to achieve the good. Or the other way around off course. I must admit that the movie is (again) explicit, but aren't all the Dutch movies? What strikes me most is that some people expect to get a movie in which everything is clear. I think this is a movie which should set us to thinking: what would I do if I were in the same situation. Paul Verhoeven made clear with this movie that in the end, lots of people act for their own prosperity. It's just what you make people around you believe... I think in lots of countries people acted like this, none of the countries however dared to make a movie out of it. To me this movie is again (as Soldaat van Oranje and for instance De Tweeling)a beautiful one about WWII without getting boring. A smart story with two faces. Although some of the actors don't really fit into a masterpiece like this, I give it a great compliment. Get over the explicit name calling (ever seen Pulp Fiction??) and appreciate the scenery and nice camera-work, the great plot change and you'll have a great time and may even reconsider your own ideas about the resistance!