Katie Tippel

Back when I was a not-so-critically perceptive 20-year-old, director Paul Verhoeven's 1975 Katie Tippel, based on the autobiography of a late 19th century Dutchwoman named Neel Doff, struck me as oh-so-European--not because of its frank depiction of sexuality, actually, but rather because it included scenes of people going to the bathroom (ooh la wee wee!)--unheard of in Hollywood features at the time. Watching it again, 26 years later, I'm still impressed with the opening half, in which the sprawling, dirt-poor Tippel family moves to Amsterdam to secure a better life, holing up in a cold, flood-prone basement apartment while the two older girls search for work, with Katie (the engagingly natural Monique Van de Ven) landing a factory job and her sister turning tricks on the street. Unfortunately, the second half of this Dickens-meets-Showgirls tale drags considerably, as Katie is--almost without exception--lusted after by every male she meets and treated with inexplicable contempt by every female that crosses her path on a predictable narrative road that takes her from prostitution to rescue by a young banker (Rutger Hauer). Presented with a reasonably sharp digital transfer and unremarkable mono soundtrack, the disc includes a commentary from director Verhoeven. [Note: Verhoeven's debut film, Business Is Business, is also newly available at the same price.] (R. Pitman)