Paul Verhoeven
Paul Verhoeven | |
---|---|
Born | Amsterdam, Netherlands | 18 July 1938
Alma mater | Leiden University |
Occupation(s) | Film director, screenwriter |
Years active | 1955–present |
Spouse |
Martine Tours (m. 1967) |
Children | 2 |
Awards | Saturn Award for Best Director (1987) Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film (2016) |
Paul Verhoeven (Dutch:
In 1985, Verhoeven made his first Hollywood film Flesh and Blood and later had a successful career in the United States, directing science fiction films such as RoboCop (1987), Total Recall (1990), Starship Troopers (1997) and Hollow Man (2000), as well as the erotic thriller Basic Instinct (1992).
He later returned to Europe, making the Dutch war film
Early life
Paul Verhoeven was born in
In 1943, the family moved to The Hague, the location of the German headquarters in the Netherlands during World War II. The Verhoeven house was near a German military base with V1- and V2-rocket launchers, which was repeatedly bombed by Allied forces. Their neighbours' house was hit and Verhoeven's parents were almost killed when bombs fell on a street crossing. From this period, Verhoeven mentioned in interviews, he remembers images of violence, burning houses, dead bodies on the street, and continuous danger. As a small child, he experienced the war as an exciting adventure, and has compared himself with the character Bill Rowan in Hope and Glory (1987).[9]
Verhoeven's father became headteacher at the
Verhoeven and his father went ten times to see The War of the Worlds (1953). Verhoeven was a fan of the Dutch comic Dick Bos. The character Dick Bos is a private detective who fights crime using jujutsu. Verhoeven liked comic drawing; he created The Killer, a character in a detailed story of revenge. Other fiction he liked included Frankenstein and the Edgar Rice Burroughs Barsoom series.[9]
Verhoeven attended public secondary school Gymnasium Haganum in The Hague. Later, beginning in 1955, he studied at Leiden University. He graduated with a doctorandus (MSc) with a double major, in Mathematics and Physics.[11][12]
Career
Short films and TV series (1960–1969)
Verhoeven made his first film Één hagedis teveel ("One Lizard Too Many") for the anniversary of his
Verhoeven has not professionally used his mathematics and physics degree, opting instead to invest his energies in a career in film. After his studies, he entered the
When he left the Navy, Verhoeven took his skills to Dutch television. First, he made a documentary about
First feature films (1969–1983)
Verhoeven's first feature film
Verhoeven built on his reputation and achieved international success with the
In 1980, Verhoeven made Spetters with Renée Soutendijk and Rutger Hauer. The story is sometimes compared to Saturday Night Fever, but it has more explicit violence and sexuality (in this case also homosexuality), which are sometimes seen as the director's trademarks. The Fourth Man (1983) is a horror film starring Jeroen Krabbé and Renée Soutendijk. It was written by Gerard Soeteman from a novel by the Dutch writer Gerard Reve, and was Verhoeven's last Dutch production until Black Book (2006).
The Seattle Times praised Verhoeven by saying he "often appears to be a one-man Dutch movie industry".[15] The San Diego Union-Tribune called Verhoeven "a busy bee whose movies pollinate the festival circuit".[16]
Filmmaking in the United States (1983–2000)
Gerard Soeteman also wrote the script for Verhoeven's first English-language film,
Verhoeven followed those successes with Basic Instinct (1992), an erotic thriller. The film's most notorious scene shows Sharon Stone's character in a police interrogation, where she uncrosses her legs, briefly revealing her vulva (she does not wear underwear underneath her skirt). The film received two Academy Award nominations, for Film Editing and for Original Music, and was the ninth-highest-grossing film of the year.[17]
During this time, Verhoeven also worked on creating an historical epic based around the Crusades that would have starred Arnold Schwarzenegger. It went into pre-production in 1993, but a year later the studio backing it, Carolco, pulled funding for the project. Verhoeven would continue to discuss it throughout the 1990s.[18][19][20]
Verhoeven's next film was the poorly received,
After Basic Instinct and Showgirls Verhoeven returned to the science fiction genre, utilizing the graphic violence and special-effects tropes that had marked his earlier films, making Starship Troopers (1997), loosely based on the novel of the same name by Robert A. Heinlein,[24] and Hollow Man (2000). Each film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Visual Effects.
Return to Europe (2006–2021)
After about twenty years of working and living in the United States, Verhoeven returned to the Netherlands for the shooting of a new film. Together with his screenwriter
Verhoeven was knighted in the Order of the Netherlands Lion in 2007.[27]
Since Black Book, Verhoeven has been connected to a large number of projects, but in the first decade after his return, none came to fruition. Some of those titles were produced with other directors at the helm, such as The Paperboy. In 2016, however, Verhoeven followed Black Book by directing a French film: Elle, an adaptation of a novel by Philippe Djian. A psychological thriller in which Isabelle Huppert plays a rape victim, Elle was selected for the Official Competition at the Cannes International Film Festival, where it obtained very favourable reviews.
In December 2016, it was announced that Verhoeven would be the president of the jury for the 67th Berlin International Film Festival, scheduled to take place in February 2017.[28]
In April 2017, it was announced that filming of Benedetta, his next French film, would begin in August of the same year.[29][30] It is a biopic about the life of Benedetta Carlini, portrayed by Elle co-star Virginie Efira, and is an adaptation of the non-fiction book Immodest Acts: The Life of a Lesbian Nun in Renaissance Italy by Judith C. Brown.[31] In May 2018, it was announced that Charlotte Rampling would play a key supporting role.[32] The film premiered at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival in competition for the Palme d'Or.[33]
Return to filmmaking in the United States (2022–present)
Verhoeven is currently preparing his next film, Young Sinner, which reunites him with RoboCop screenwriter Edward Neumeier. An erotic political thriller, it is set in Washington DC and is about a "young staffer who works for a powerful Senator [and] is drawn into a web of international intrigue and danger."[34] Verhoeven hopes to begin shooting Young Sinner in 2024.[35]
Other activities
Verhoeven was a member of the
In 2007, Verhoeven wrote the book Jesus of Nazareth (Dutch: Jezus van Nazaret) about the life of Jesus of Nazareth.[42] The book reviews the ideas of Jesus of Nazareth and the alleged corruption of these same ideas over the last 2,000 years. Co-written with Verhoeven's biographer Rob Van Scheers, the book is the culmination of the research Verhoeven conducted in preparation for Jesus: The Man, a motion picture about the life of Christ.[37] The book tells about the Jewish uprising against Roman rule and characterizes Jesus as a radical political activist, downplaying any supernatural events and miracles as unproved or unprovable. Jesus of Nazareth: A Realistic Portrait was released in September 2008 in Dutch, and was published in English in May 2010 by Seven Stories Press.[43]
Personal life
In 1967, Verhoeven married Martine Tours, with whom he has two daughters: Claudia (b. 1972) and Helen (b. 1974).
Filmography
Year | Film | Director | Writer | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1959 | Cups of Coffee | Yes | Short film | |
1960 | One Lizard Too Many | Yes | ||
1961 | Nothing Special | Yes | ||
1962 | The Hitchhikers | Yes | ||
1963 | Let's Have a Party | Yes | ||
1965 | The Marine Corps | Yes | Short documentary | |
1970 | Mussert | Yes | Television documentary | |
1971 | The Wrestler | Yes | Short film | |
Business Is Business | Yes | |||
1973 | Turkish Delight | Yes | ||
1975 | Keetje Tippel | Yes | ||
1977 | Soldier of Orange | Yes | Yes | |
1980 | Spetters | Yes | ||
1981 | All Things Pass | Yes | Television film | |
1983 | The Fourth Man | Yes | ||
1985 | Flesh and Blood | Yes | Yes | |
1987 | RoboCop | Yes | ||
1990 | Total Recall | Yes | ||
1992 | Basic Instinct | Yes | ||
1995 | Showgirls
|
Yes | ||
1997 | Starship Troopers | Yes | ||
2000 | Hollow Man | Yes | ||
2006 | Black Book | Yes | Yes | |
2012 | Tricked | Yes | Yes | |
2016 | Elle | Yes | ||
2021 | Benedetta | Yes | Yes |
Awards and nominations
Academy Awards
Year | Nominated work | Category | Result |
---|---|---|---|
1973 | Turkish Delight | Best Foreign Language Film
|
Nominated |
Golden Globe Awards
Year | Nominated work | Category | Result |
---|---|---|---|
1977 | Soldier of Orange | Best Foreign Language Film | Nominated |
2016 | Elle | Won |
BAFTA Awards
Year | Nominated work | Category | Result |
---|---|---|---|
2006 | Black Book | Best Film Not in the English Language | Nominated |
2016 | Elle | Nominated |
César Awards
Year | Nominated work | Category | Result |
---|---|---|---|
2016 | Elle | Best Film | Won |
Best Director | Nominated |
Saturn Awards
Year | Nominated work | Category | Result |
---|---|---|---|
1987 | RoboCop | Best Director | Won |
1990 | Total Recall | Nominated | |
1992 | Basic Instinct | Nominated | |
1997 | Starship Troopers | Nominated |
Golden Raspberry Awards
Year | Nominated work | Category | Result |
---|---|---|---|
1995 | Showgirls
|
Worst Director | Won |
Year | Title | Academy Awards | BAFTA Awards | Golden Globe Awards | César Awards | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nominations | Wins | Nominations | Wins | Nominations | Wins | Nominations | Wins | ||
1974 | Turkish Delight | 1 | |||||||
1980 | Soldier of Orange | 1 | |||||||
1988 | RoboCop | 2 | 2 | ||||||
1990 | Total Recall | 3 | 1 | ||||||
1993 | Basic Instinct | 2 | 2 | ||||||
1998 | Starship Troopers | 1 | |||||||
2001 | Hollow Man | 1 | |||||||
2007 | Black Book | 1 | |||||||
2017 | Elle | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 11 | 2 | ||
2021 | Benedetta | 1 | |||||||
Total | 10 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 12 | 2 |
See also
References
- ^ Walters, Ben (3 February 2017). "Paul Verhoeven: cinema's mischievous satirist is more vital than ever". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
- ^ "Turks fruit" (in Dutch). Netherlands Film Festival. Archived from the original on 15 February 2016. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
- ^ "Zwartboek beste film aller tijden" [Black Book: best film of all time]. Cinema.nl (in Dutch). 3 October 2008. Archived from the original on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
- ^ Wood, Jennifer (22 September 2015). "Showgirls': Paul Verhoeven on the Greatest Stripper Movie Ever Made". Rollingstone.com. Archived from the original on 11 June 2020. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
- ^ Rochlin, Margy (25 May 2008). "Step by Step, the Showgirl Must Go On". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 March 2009.
- ^ "How Showgirls exposed the rot of our misogynistic culture".
- ^ "'Showgirls' is Absurd, Problematic, and Famously Bad. 25 Years Later It's a Hate-Watch Classic". 22 September 2020.
- ^ Bauer, Pat. "Paul Verhoeven". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
- ^ a b c Testelmans, Rob (2003). "Een beetje oorlog, best spannend" [A little war, quite exciting]. De cinema van Paul Verhoeven: voorbij de controverse (in Dutch). Retrieved 17 October 2006.
- ^ Scheers, Rob van (20 September 2016). "Paul Verhoeven als het zoontje van het schoolhoofd". de Volkskrant (in Dutch). Retrieved 23 December 2020.
- ^ "What's new?". paulverhoeven.net. Archived from the original on 20 February 2009.
- ^ "Paul Verhoeven profile". Wiskundemeisjes.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 February 2017.
- ^ "Paul Verhoeven: Biography". gonemovies.com (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 29 January 2007. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
- ^ "Winners & Nominees: Soldier of Orange". Hollywood Foreign Press Association. 1980. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
- ^ Hartl, John (7 June 1985). "'The Fourth Man' is occult thriller that holds suspense". The Seattle Times. p. 22.
- ^ Elliott, David (20 July 1984). "'The Fourth Man' is half-baked film". The San Diego Union-Tribune.
- ^ "1993 Nominees (B)". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
- ^ Brew, Simon (3 March 2009). "The 7 films that Arnold Schwarzenegger never made". Den of Geek. Retrieved 25 October 2019.
- ^ Vigilla, Hubert (29 February 2012). "From Hell: Paul Verhoeven/Arnold Schwarzenegger's Crusade". Flixist. Archived from the original on 25 October 2019. Retrieved 25 October 2019.
- ^ Yakir, Dan (February 1996). "Starship Instincts". Starlog (223): 34–35 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ "Razzie Awards (1996)". IMDb.
- ^ "'Showgirls': Paul Verhoeven on Greatest Stripper Movie Ever". Rolling Stone. 22 September 2015. Archived from the original on 11 June 2020.
- ^ "Showgirls DVD". MGM. 28 April 2007. Archived from the original on 28 April 2007. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
- ^ Podgorski, Daniel (4 February 2016). "Poking Fun at Militarism: How Paul Verhoeven's Cult Classic Starship Troopers Willfully Discards Robert Heinlein's Novel". The Gemsbok. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
- ^ "Gala van de Nederlandse Film". filmfestival.nl (in Dutch). 6 October 2006. Archived from the original on 4 January 2007. Retrieved 17 October 2006.
- ^ "Winnaars Gouden Kalveren 2006". 6 October 2006. Archived from the original on 12 March 2007. Retrieved 17 October 2006.
- ^ "Paul Verhoeven geridderd in Den Haag". Omroep West (in Dutch). 27 April 2007. Retrieved 12 February 2015.
- ^ "Jury President of the Berlinale 2017: Paul Verhoeven". Berlinale. Archived from the original on 13 February 2018. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
- ^ Mitchell, Robert (26 April 2017). "Paul Verhoeven to Direct 'Blessed Virgin,' Based on True Story of Lesbian Nun". Variety.
- ^ "Virginie Efira retourne chez Paul Verhoeven". Le Blog d'Ecran Noir.
- Allociné(in French). 26 April 2017. Retrieved 22 March 2018..
- ^ Wiseman, Andreas (1 May 2018). "Charlotte Rampling Set To Join Paul Verhoeven's Erotic Thriller 'Blessed Virgin'". Deadline Hollywood.
- BFMTV(in French).
- ^ Keslassy, Elsa (7 December 2021). "Paul Verhoeven Reteams With 'RoboCop' Writer for Women-Led Erotic Thriller 'Young Sinner'". Variety. Retrieved 4 May 2022.
- ^ Zilko, Christian (6 January 2024). "Paul Verhoeven 'Wouldn't Hesitate' to Make Another Blockbuster". IndieWire. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
- ^ "Meet the Westar Fellows: Paul Verhoeven". westarinstitute.org. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
- ^ a b "Paul Verhoeven schrijft boek over Jezus" [Paul Verhoeven writes book about Jesus]. Katholiek Nederland (in Dutch). 3 September 2005. Archived from the original on 11 March 2007.
- ^ Hakkenes, Emiel (24 October 2008). "Verhoeven is niet echt zeer geleerd". Trouw.
Zijn academische titel zou Verhoeven behaald hebben aan de Universiteit Leiden. Maar is hij wel gepromoveerd? "Dan zouden wij een proefschrift van hem moeten hebben", zegt een woordvoerder van de universiteit. "Dat is niet het geval." English translation: Verhoeven would have received his academic degree at the University of Leiden. But did he receive a doctor's degree? "Then we should have a dissertation", says a spokesperson of the university. "This is not the case."
- ^ Shaw, Dan (January 2003). "Paul Verhoeven". Senses of Cinema. Archived from the original on 17 November 2007. Retrieved 28 November 2007.
- ISBN 978-0-0606-4166-5.
- ^ Allen, Charlotte (February 1995). "Away with the Manger". Lingua Franca: 27.
- ^ "Fondslijst Uitgeverij Bijleveld". bijleveldbooks.nl (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 12 March 2007.
- ^ "Jesus of Nazareth by Paul Verhoeven". Seven Stories Press. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
External links
- Paul Verhoeven at IMDb
- "Literature on Paul Verhoeven". virtual-history.com.