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 - Der Mann mit dem Schwert (1969), about a medieval
knight. This featured actor Rutger Hauer,
who has appeared in many of Verhoeven's later films. Verhoeven's first
feature, Was sehe ich...! Was sehe ich...! (1971) (trans.
"What do I See?"), was released in 1971. However, it was his second,
Türkische Früchte (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
Der Soldat von Oranien (1977) and
Der vierte Mann (1983), received
international recognition, Verhoeven moved to the US. His first US film
was Flesh & Blood (1985) in 1985, but
it was RoboCop (1987) and, especially,
Total Recall - die totale erinnerung (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:
Der Soldat von Oranien (1977) and
Flesh & Blood (1985). He also directed
an episode of the HBO
Hitchhiker - Unglaubliche Geschichten (1983) TV
series. Several of his films have been photographed by
Jost Vacano, including the hit cult film,
Starship Troopers (1997),
starring Casper Van Dien.
