Katie Tippel

Paul Verhoeven directed this film, a moving period drama, before he relocated to Hollywood. A true story set in 19th century Holland, Keetje Tippel is a young girl born into poverty whose mother takes her to work in a brothel. As men use her, so too, Katie decides, she can use them to obtain the social status she seeks. When she becomes the mistress of a young banker (Hauer), Keetje finds a foothold in the Dutch upper-class and uses it to wed one of the banker's wealthy friends. Once again, Verhoeven has crafted a riveting film where female sexuality is a weapon to be honed and used cunningly, as in BASIC INSTINCT, resulting in an erotic, yet disturbing, drama that takes a dim view of capitalism and male dominated societies.