Paul Verhoeven(I)

Paul Verhoeven graduated from the University of Leiden, with a degree in math and physics. He entered the Royal Netherlands Navy, where he began his film career by making documentaries for the Navy and later for TV. In 1969, he directed the popular Dutch TV series, Floris (1969), about a medieval knight. This featured actor Rutger Hauer, who has appeared in many of Verhoeven's later films. Verhoeven's first feature, Mitä näenkään, mitä näenkään (1971) (trans. "What do I See?"), was released in 1971. However, it was his second, Turkkilainen namu (1973), with its combination of raw sexuality and a poignant story-line, that gained him great popularity in the Netherlands, especially with male audiences. When his films, especially Gestapon vihollinen numero 1 (1977) and The Fourth Man (1983), received international recognition, Verhoeven moved to the US. His first US film was Lihaa ja verta (1985) in 1985, but it was RoboCop (1987) and, especially, Total Recall - unohda tai kuole (1990) that made him a big box office success. Sometimes accused of portraying excessive violence in his films, Verhoeven replies that he is only recording the violence of society. Verhoeven has co-scripted two of his films: Gestapon vihollinen numero 1 (1977) and Lihaa ja verta (1985). He also directed an episode of the HBO Liftari (1983) TV series. Several of his films have been photographed by Jost Vacano, including the hit cult film, Starship troopers - Universumin sotilaat (1997), starring Casper Van Dien.